Thankyou, Steve, for explaining the purpose of those cuts. My Fuller has them, but the Gasquoine and Higham pinfire guns I own do not, and I had bee wondering about the difference.
Regarding Gasquoine & Dyson, the Victorian directories for Manchester that my researches led me to list fewer gunmakers than I had expected. Barely half-a-dozen (from memory - I would have to check).
From my notes, during the pin-fire period, I have the following Manchester makers:
Agnew John P. Manchester 1849-1868
Booth & Co Edward Manchester 1867-1870
Burtinshaw William Manchester 1830-1865
Cadden Andrew Manchester 1862-1870
Conway Thomas Manchester 1804-1871
Conway Thomas Manchester 1819-1884
Edge John William Manchester 1849-1864
Gasquoine William Manchester 1857-1869
Gasquoine & Dyson Manchester 1846-1864
Gregory William Manchester 1815-1862
Griffiths William Manchester 1855-1906
Griffiths & Worsley Manchester 1862-1869
Hambling Reuben Manchester 1866-1868
Hamer & Co. Manchester 1860
Hepplestone Thomas Manchester 1852-1910
Kaye John Manchester 1845-1866
Manchester Ordnance & Rifle Co Manchester 1862-1864
Newton Thomas Manchester 1855-1906
Pearson Charles Manchester 1864-1869
Preston Francis Manchester 1858-1872
Robinson Francis Manchester 1858-1864
Somerset John Manchester 1857
Steel Henry Manchester 1857-1859
Stensby Robert Manchester 1832-1971
Warhurst Thomas Manchester 1867-1869
Watmough Robert Manchester 1854-1869
Whitworth Rifle Company Manchester 1860-1862
Wood John and William Manchester 1844-1855
I don't know for certain all of these sold/made pin-fires, but Agnew, Conway, Edge, Gasquoine, Gasquoine & Dyson, Griffiths, Griffiths & Worsly, Hambling, Newton and Watmough did. Others may have, but in such low numbers I have not yet found mention of them.
