Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, November 3, 1994                   TAG: 9411030076
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-2   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

HOWARD DOVE, GUN ENGRAVER, DEAD AT 52

Dove, 52, was well-known in the gun-collecting world for his intricately detailed engraving and inlay work on firearms and other collectibles, such as belt buckles. His work went into the collections of celebrities, political figures and athletes. "Howard was not engraver, Howard was an artist," friend and collector Paul Littleton said Wednesday. "His gold and silver inlay, there was nobody who could touch the quality of it."

In a 1988 newspaper article, a Colt Firearms official said Dove was among the top engravers in the U.S. Littleton, of Christiansburg, was more emphatic: "He was the best in the world."

Dove grew up near Blacksburg and always had an interest in drawing and shooting. He was a crack shot, especially with a .22-caliber rifle. He was locally famous for splitting a .22-caliber bullet on an ax blade after using a mirror to aim over his shoulder.

Dove started teaching himself to engrave when he returned from the Army in the early '70s. He used almost anything metal for practice, including quarters. "I used to engrave lines in the hair on old George's head," Dove said in 1988.

By 1978, Dove was working for Colt Firearms in New Haven, Conn. He left in 1985 as a master engraver to return to the New River Valley and set up his own business. From here, he did work for Colt's and Winchester's custom shops. He was known as the official engraver to the Colt Collectors Association. "People don't know it but they had a celebrity living here," Littleton said. "And I had a good friend."

Dove is survived by his wife, Linda F. Dove; a son, Anthony Scott Dove of Jupiter, Fla.; two daughters, Wendy Roop of Christiansburg and Gidget Dove-Price of Blacksburg; his mother, Claudine Dove of Blacksburg; two brothers, Carl Dove of Blacksburg and Ronnie Dove of Pilot; and a sister, Carolyn Meadows of Christiansburg. A funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Friday at McCoy Funeral Home, Blacksburg, followed by burial at Roselawn Memorial Gardens, Christiansburg.