doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Going to look at a Dover Boss

eightbore tell us about the Purdey. Last year at the Southern I purchased a 1906 Purdey pigeon gun. It has been re-stocked though but a beautiful job. I think I got a somewhat good deal.
It does not have the file cut rib but per Purdey records it was built as a pigeon gun.
I have a friend who is considering selling his Boss two barrel set. I believe it also is a pigeon gun.

pipeliner, if you are looking a two-barrel pigeon gun I may know where a Holland #2 is located at a pretty good price.
If I can remember in the early thirties Gun Makers in London made sets of guns for the aristocrats to take to Spain after the game season to continue shooting birds and partake in the pigeon rings. I would say that is what this Holland #2 is.
And probably my friend's Boss as well.

But is it proofed for 2 3/4 inch?

The Boss is going to George at Champlins,will be interesting how he price the Boss.I dropped off a very nice Ithaca 4E 90% late gun at DSC.George just put it on his web site.Will need to sell a couple of guns before I purchase a best gun.I did make a solid offer on the Boss.Would be interested in the Holland #2,EC Green side lock and a Henry Akin stocked to the fences. Thank for all the advice, this will be my daily shooter for dove,blue quail and ducks.I do duck hunt approx 30days during the season.Grayson

Mike, my Purdey is a late, very late, Whitworth barrel hammer gun from 1921. It is a 2 3/4" chamber, 1 1/4 ounce pigeon gun with 30" barrels, side clips and third fastener. I found it in a local rifle store, leaning up in a dark corner, hidden from all the rifles and customers. I got permission to bring all my measuring tools the next day. Everything checked out so it was a quick sale. The gun is all original and fairly high condition. The consignor accepted an offer for a third of the asking price, which was not bad in itself.

Eightbore;

Your 50 year hunt for a dream gun turned out to be almost unheard of----the sort of thing that you would only expect someone like the late Cyril Adams to find. You have a significant treasure and with 2 3/4 inch proofs it's value will continue for years and years. Donald Dallas's book on Purdey shows (Plate 29 of the book) a Purdey hammer pigeon gun of 1922, serial no. 22182. Is your gun similar to this one?

What have you learned from Purdey of your gun's heritage?

Would you be so kind as to post photos of your treasure gun?

Kindest Regards;
Stephen Howell

eightbore, is it a bar action? What luck, I suppose the Lord was looking out for you.
I have shot pigeons (boxbirds) and Helice in the past. Mostly with a Model 21 and a Perazzi. Picked this 1906 Purdey at the Southern last spring. Come to find out it had belonged to my friend that I shoot with and he was the one that had it re-stocked.
It was eventually sold thru Holland and Holland to another pigeon shooter up North.
The one question I have is it does not have the matted rib. I emailed Purdey and they confirmed it was indeed built as a pigeon gun. Weighs in at 7lb / 12oz.

Oh my friend once owned a Purdey 12 bore hammer bar action that once belonged to the King of Spain which he used for boxbirds. It was a treasure to look at and shoot.

When I first moved to Texas was invited to box birds shoots in South Texas and Louisiana. He provided the birds time period was1980s.Miss it.

Bushveld, my gun is like the plate 29 in Dallas's book, but standard engraving. Mine is #20,300, a bar in iron gun. I emailed Purdey more than once, asking about my gun but never got a reply. Palunc, is your gun a hammer gun? At 7 pounds, 12 ounces yours is surely a pigeon gun, My gun has a very narrow file cut rib, not the classic pigeon rib, but I guess that was the owner's choice. You are right about luck. As luck would have it, I am a pigeon shooter, box birds and Columbaire, have shot a bit of helice, have a good collection of Parker pigeon guns, when the Purdey fell into my lap. The gun store was just a few miles from my house and I had only been in there a couple of times.