doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Pre WWI Saint Etienne 12 ga with lots of case colo

I've been looking for some time at a pre-WWI Saint Etienne 12 gauge as yet another cheap way to sneak an extra gun into the house in case it's needed by friends. It's an interesting gun; looks clean; Stock has been added to on the comb and it's restocked, reblued. Normal proof for PT so its post 1900. Chambered in cm so its pre 1912. The gun was sold in 2009 for $525 and in 2010 for $351. Not sure what I could get it for.

But here's the question; I've never seen case coloring on a 105 year old French shotgun like this. The seller believes it's original. Is this plausible?

Looks like modern cyanide colors to me.

That begs the next question: What should the Case Colors on a pre-WWI French gun look like?

Ken, I don't know because I've never seen one with case colors...and the case coloring on more modern French guns comes out somewhat garish to American tastes. Edit: Here is an 1878 French gun with case colors:

Ken asked a good question and I'll be darned if I can say with any authority what the case coloring looks like on a 1900-1912 Saint Etienne gun. Dang it - something else to research. Here are a few other French case colored (Jasp�(e); Jaspage) guns...can't date them well (yet) though?

lots of interesting guns with a variety of interesting case colors...original or redo, they are all nice looking...

All beauties. To me, the back action gun and the Darne looks like cyanide, the sidelock looks like traditional case coloring, with the blues somewhat like those St. Ledger produced. I wonder what Manufrance guns looked like? You'd think at least some examples of the Robust with colors would be around, considering how many were made. I'm guessing a firm providing the service was in St. Etienne, anyone know the name if so?

Here is a Ideal and a Robust...don't know whether the case coloring is original (1st is possible; 2nd seems photo enhanced or unlikely?): (search "fusil de chasse" and "Jaspage" or "jaspe" and look at images. It's late..I'll get on this over the next couple of days and figure out what's original and what's not)...

Here's my Robust 226. According to Mourneta's Robust book, the 226 was made from 1930 to 1940. Gil

Gene,
Like this one:

http://www.doublegunshop.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=489300&page=all

There are lots of photos of this Halifax in the post, and I'm too lazy to break them out. The early French bone pack colors are muted, with more faint blues than, say, St. Ledger colors.

Later Darnes, post WWII have cyanide case colors, with or without a lacquer over the top. I've seen the lacquer thick enough that when it chipped off, it took the colors with it, giving the odd appearance of chipped off case colors.

Keep in mind that the French grey you see on higher grade Darne and other French guns, is an actual hardening process, with the quench happening in a solution of potassium prusiate, instead of tap water. The chemistry of the quench can be played with to give color from pewter to almost a silver plated look. I'd say it is no more or less durable than color case hardening. But, it is a hardening process, and not simply a silver color.

Best,
Ted