doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com An attribution I’d like to revisit.

I attributed this rifle to Steve Meunier more as a matter of elimination than anything else. Because we have such a diverse audience here with single-shot folks as well as classic rifle enthuses I thought it might be worth a second look. I still believe that the buttplate may be a key to the puzzle.

Steve Meunier: By Michael Petrov©
Steve was the brother of John Meunier, a famous Milwaukee gunmaker well known for his caplock Schuetzen rifles as well as for his prowess in shooting them. Steve was born in 1853 in Woerishofen, Germany and immigrated to the US with his family in 1857. He apprenticed to his brother John at age thirteen. Although I have read several references to Steve Meunier and bolt action sporting rifles I have only seen one, a Krag sporter illustrated in The Outer’s Book July, 1909. This Krag was a worked- over issue stock so not a lot of clues are present to compare other rifles to it. For that matter I know of no gun percussion or centerfire, marked with his name. If anyone has a Steve Meunier marked rifle of any kind I would like to learn about it. At a later date the company name was changed from John Meunier Gun Company to Meunier Gun Company so they may be marked in this way. The Meunier Gun Company was located at 272 West Water Street, Milwaukee as late as 1941.

The rifle I am going to tell you about with the accompanying pictures I believe may have been made by Steve Meunier. I would like to make it very clear that I have no proof he made it and beyond what I’ve figured out from using the process of elimination and circumstantial evidence I have nothing.

This rifle was discovered in an upscale East Coast custom gunmaking shop by the world’s leading authority on custom Krag sporting rifles, my friend, Mark Benenson. Not having that pound of metal hanging off the right side of the rifle like a Krag the 1903 Springfield looked odd & incomplete to Mark so he hurried to the phone and called me. The rifle is an NRA sales rifle (NRA and ordnance bomb on forward trigger guard housing) from Rock Island Arsenal serial number 220892 with a barrel date of RIA 10-12. The blued bolt, sling swivel barrel band through the stock, long slide Lyman 48, sweptback pistol grip and Schnabel forend all point to very early manufacture. The layout, workmanship, fit and finish are top notch; the rifle was clearly made by a gunmaker of some skill. There is nothing about the rifle that I can attribute to Worthen, Adolph or Wundhammer so Meunier is the winner by default. The rifle has a steel buttplate with a single number cast into it and is completely unknown to me. At first I thought it might be from an early single-shot rifle like the Sharps Borchardt or Marlin Ballard, but after comparing them all I’ve determined it’s not. The rear sight spline is expertly filled and if you did not know to look there it would never be noticed. Another feature unique to this rifle is the carved stock. The carving is much like that found on a percussion long rifle. I laid a piece of paper over the butt stock carving and traced both sides. When the paper was removed and folded over they were a perfect mirror image. Obviously this was not his first attempt at such carving. There is a small diamond of ivory inlaid in the forend tip. The stock is made from imported walnut and has a blank gold initial shield. This is a nice rifle that I would like to be able, some day, to attribute to its maker whether it’s Steve Meunier or someone else.

I can't be much help, but you now have given me an idea of what to do with all the hippo ivory I inherited.

It sure is an interesing gun too.
Brent

Good looking rifle and I like the carving. Not too much just enough to be interesting. I'm glad to finally see a color photo of this rifle also. I suppose you realize,Mr.Petrov, that you are creating a demand for a big,color photo book on the pre-war custom rifle. You are an excellent researcher/writer and take great photographs.I can hardly wait to see the book, if and when.I don't know if you can ever be financially rewarded enough for all your efforts,but they are certainly appreciated by the people who haunt this forum.

Brent, I have worked hippo ivory and it is as hard as woodpecker lips. In addition, the freshly-cut hippo ivory has a corpse-like pallor that's very unsightly, to me at least. This pallor seems to mitigate somewhat with the passage of time but in my limited experience it will never approach the beauty of elephant ivory. It will, however, crack like elephant ivory if allowed to dry out. Hippo and warthog ivory to me seem very similar to one another and supposedly they both make excellent front sight beads since they don't yellow like elephant ivory. I also have some warthog ivory but have never worked any of it. Yet.
Regards, Joe

I have very old ivory, and yes it is damn hard. I think a small pieces like that insert would be okay, and easy enough to shape with power tools. Might be dreaming there.

Warthog ivory is good stuff and I have a little of that too. No elephant though.

Brent

Yes, power tools will shape it quickly but there are two caveats to consider. Firstly, power tools will heat and dry the ivory, causing discoloration and cracking. Secondly, dust from the ivory is a serious health risk, IMO a LOT more serious and risky than, for instance, casting bullets in an unventilated room. I strongly suggest that you wear a dust mask and use a vacuum to draw off the excess dust if you use power tools, also if you must get your face close to the ivory when creating any dust at all with even hand tools. Don't ever forget that ivory dust will cause deadly things (fungus I believe) to grow inside your lungs and that ivory is a natural body product from the AIDS capital of the world. I use it periodically but I take precautions, many more precautions than I take when casting lead.
Regards, Joe

Joe,
I have more dust collecting horsepower than you can imagine. So, no problem there.

Never heard of ivory dust being dangerous, but then how many people work with it?

Brent

No...not yet! At least let me earn enough money to buy a few before you go and increase the demand (and the prices) up to where they should logically be! One more good book will blow the lid off the whole thing!

I say we let people chase factory made Mauser sporters for another decade or so while we keep scrounging for these old jewels. "Barney Worthen? Huh...never heard of him. But I'll take it off your hands for, oh...$500."

I bid $505.50!

Jerry Liles

Well folks I think that train has already left the station. The prices have escalated to a point I never dreamed of. This holds true for anything with the makers name on it but there are many fine makers such as Wundhammer who never marked his work. Of the over two-hundred rifles made by Wundhammer I know where fourteen are. A lot of opportunities for the educated buyer.

I've been trying for years to upgrade my Worthen Take-down with little luck. Mine was refinished years ago, a nice rifle but I would like to have one not messed with. I can console myself with a nice non take-down I have.