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Help Decode French Proofmarks #289814 08/19/12 11:00 PM
Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 127 Next to the marsh, Minnesota Twister'sPa OP Sidelock
OP Twister'sPa Sidelock Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 127 Next to the marsh, Minnesota	I recently picked up a 16 gauge shooter. I have some shots that show proofmarks, but need help posting the photos. I'm wondering if I can get an approximate date of manufacture and a maker from photos? http://i1269.photobucket.com/albums/jj600/jimadler01/19422e76.jpg http://i1269.photobucket.com/albums/jj600/jimadler01/a232575a.jpg Thanks, Jim

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks Twister'sPa #289818 08/19/12 11:15 PM
Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 127 Next to the marsh, Minnesota Twister'sPa OP Sidelock
OP Twister'sPa Sidelock Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 127 Next to the marsh, Minnesota	Doesn't look like my images are making it all the way in. Hopefully the links work. Here's another shot of underside of bbls. http://i1269.photobucket.com/albums/jj600/jimadler01/3be78848.jpg Thanks, Jim

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks Twister'sPa #289819 08/19/12 11:29 PM
Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 127 Next to the marsh, Minnesota Twister'sPa OP Sidelock
OP Twister'sPa Sidelock Joined: Jan 2006 Posts: 127 Next to the marsh, Minnesota	Maybe this time? Ahh, sweet success. Thanks, Jim

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks Twister'sPa #289825 08/20/12 01:24 AM
Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 709 Dallas pooch Sidelock
pooch Sidelock Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 709 Dallas	Standard proof for finished gun on barrels, Single smokeless powder proof for gun should be equal to 11000 psi. Bored to 17 gage so it's a bit tight. Choke bore, steel of something (I can't see). Both barrels weight the same.

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks Twister'sPa #289826 08/20/12 01:46 AM
Joined: Nov 2005 Posts: 1,274 Likes: 1 California james-l Sidelock
james-l Sidelock Joined: Nov 2005 Posts: 1,274 Likes: 1 California	The 17.0 mark is the bore diameter in millimeters, or .669". The 65 mark is the chamber length in millimeters, almost 2 9/16". I learn something every day, and a lot of times it's that what I learned the day before was wrong

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks Twister'sPa #289834 08/20/12 07:13 AM
Joined: Dec 2001 Posts: 12,743 Lynchburg TN 2-piper Sidelock
2-piper Sidelock Joined: Dec 2001 Posts: 12,743 Lynchburg TN	As nominal 16 gauge size is .662" (16.8mm) the bore at 17.0mm as James correctly identified is sightly over bore rather than Tight. Miller/TN I Didn't Say Everything I Said, Yogi Berra

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks Twister'sPa #289836 08/20/12 08:29 AM
Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 709 Dallas pooch Sidelock
pooch Sidelock Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 709 Dallas	So the 6.5 is in cm rather then mm. Very good, you don't learn unless you hang it out.

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks Twister'sPa #289912 08/20/12 07:37 PM
Joined: May 2011 Posts: 1,217 Likes: 28 Maine Dave in Maine Sidelock
Dave in Maine Sidelock Joined: May 2011 Posts: 1,217 Likes: 28 Maine	AFAIK, unlike Belgian, Austrian and German guns, other than checking for changes in the other proof marks and correlating that to a range of dates there is no particular way of telling which year a French gun went through proof. I.e., the French didn't stamp specifically for year like the Belgians and Austrians or year and month like the Germans. From the looks of the barrels, best guess would be the inter-war years, probably earlier rather than later. fiery, dependable, occasionally transcendent

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks Twister'sPa #289931 08/20/12 09:13 PM
Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 5,694 Likes: 225 Amarillo, Texas skeettx Sidelock
skeettx Sidelock Joined: Jun 2008 Posts: 5,694 Likes: 225 Amarillo, Texas	Look here Your proof marks will be from the St Etienne proof house http://www.shotguns.se/html/france.html Last edited by skeettx; 08/20/12 09:14 PM. USAF RET 1971-95

Re: Help Decode French Proofmarks skeettx #289936 08/20/12 09:45 PM
Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 709 Dallas pooch Sidelock
pooch Sidelock Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 709 Dallas	Originally Posted By: skeettx Look here Your proof marks will be from the St Etienne proof house http://www.shotguns.se/html/france.html What a great source! I've been looking for proof info every since I lost my little book on proofs.

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