doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com Opinions Please

I'm with Mr Schoyen on this; it's a beautiful little rifle and should be relined to .22 Hornet (or K-Hornet or .25-20SS) and the caliber marking removed and replaced. This would involve the least "messing with" and relining is a solution even the Old Ones would approve. I've used Mark Beinke in Klamath Falls OR for relines. If he's still working, he's a good guy and does beautiful work.(Say his name Ben-kah, the German way--it helps overcome the crankiness occasioned by 1) being a gunsmith who naturally gets 1001 stupid questions a day, and 2) his bad back caused by 1.).

Not a Hauck action, I think, although I can see why Mr. Ken is reminded of one. Looks German to me; once my visiting Marine wakes up and I can get to my books, I'll look it up.

What a nice rifle and great project! Thanks for sharing; guns like this MAKE my day! I know this forum will help make my NEW YEAR; hope you all have a great one!

Mike Armstrong

I had just briefly thought about relining. There is nothing particularly special about the barrel. No marking other than the poorly stamped 5.6x50, which is not original anyway. Contour is a rather simple one, should be no problem to copy. It is also a rather light contour, only about .550 at the muzzle. The whole rifle needs a proper polish and rust blue anyway, so figured it would be just as easy to install a new barrel.

I'll try to get a better picture of the buttstock, it really is a nice piece of wood.

Now, any suggestions on who would be interested in doing this sort of work? My last 2 attempts at picking a gunsmith did not work out to well.

John

Gasgunner,
I believe your action is a Kettner (Germany circa 1920-1925).
Found this info in Frank de Haas book. Very nice rifle.

CHN

CHN Kettner is like our Cabelas. They are retailers not makers. Very interesting stores with lots of very nice stuff.

Mike, Which Kettner is the retailer, Franz or Edw? I have a really nice Edw double rifle.

Mike,
You could very well be correct. In reading further de Haas says
the rifle he viewed was stamped on the barrel Franz Kettner.
Whether a maker or retailer I don't know.

CHN

Mike, your point is well taken, but has the company Kettner always been like Cabelas? The action is dated by Frank DeHaas as circa 1920-25.

A lot of old gunsmithing firms both large and small had to expand their shops stock to accomodate shooting accessories, fishing tackle, sports clothing for the shooter/fisherman. Then somewhere along the way gunsmithing lost out. A lot of German sporting arms companies went to the wall during or after WW2.

I suppose there wasn't a great demand for sporting rifles in the immediate aftermath. Any surviving Gunsmiths may have had to diversify in order to survive.

Harry

Mr. CHN is correct, the action is the same, with some minor cosmetic differences, as what Mr. DeHass (Single Shot Rifles and Actions) labeled as a Kettner action.

The design is interesting and appears to be sound. I would expect that it is well worth the restoration you have in mind.

Glenn

Trying to figure out German actions can be a real minefield and I am certainly not an expert on them. The Germans referred to different actions by the designer's name, such as "System-Martini". Many gunmakers made or used action designed by others with their name on them. I believe that your action might be a "System-Frohn" designed by Adolph Frohn of Suhl.

John, I believe that is a Hauk action. We have had a couple of them in this area, Southern new England over the past 20 or so years. Not sure of the action quality as all I have seen were on and off in function trouble. Now in honesty they all had been screwed with. Either rechambered or rebarreled. And not by capapble persons. They were all very attractive Rifle's. I suspect though that Hauk had a tendency towards wildcat or non standard calibers. HTH Regards, FITZ.