Can anyone give me information on an H. Adkin single barrel hammer gun I have? Serial # is 1086, 32" Damascus barrel reproved at 2 3/4", non-rebounding hammer, full-length, smooth, concave rib, humongous barrel wall thickness, ebony forend tip, and pleasantly weighted (about 7 1/4 lbs.) When is this gun likely to have been built? And what is its intended purpose likely to have been?
Thanks in advance.

http://www.jpgbox.com/page/19220/
http://www.jpgbox.com/page/19221/

Looks like a single barrel live pigeon trap gun to me.

Henry Adkin, 11, High st. Bedford circa 1870, 57, High St. 1874 to 1894. & Sons added at same adress 1897 t0 1942. Also at Wentworth St, Peterborough, Northamptonshire circ 1878 and Long Causeway, Peterborough circ 1883. I would suspect that yours is a fairly early one from the looks of it. Lagopus.....

Could have been a fowler, too. I'd venture 1870's by the back-action island lock style and by the Purdey style trigger guard thumb latch. Nice looking gun - pretty good grade of single barrel.

On the rib:

H. ADKIN MAKER 57 HIGH ST. BEDFORD & PETERBORO, which, according to Lagopus' info puts it between 1878 - 94.

Thank you both for sharing your knowledge.

Seems kinda late for a non-rebounding lock. Is the action marked Adkin or just the barrel ?

Joe,

The action as well. See attached.

http://www.jpgbox.com/page/19229/

Nice gun...could something be amiss causing the locks to not rebound ?

Joe,

No, that's the way they built her, and I'm glad they did. I prefer non-rebounding guns to hunt with.

They sometimes left non-rebounding locks on pigeon guns as well as rifles. A lot of the old timers thought that it gave surer ignition. Important in competition guns and rifles for dangerous game. I have a double rifle built in 1881 still with non-rebounding locks. Some were converted later to rebound and that's why you will sometimes find 1860's made guns with re-bounding locks just to confuse we gun collectors. Lagopus.....