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Slightly off-topic but very interesting. The 1874 Purdey Gene found at Lewis Drake
https://www.drake.net/j-purdey-lond...oading-hammer-gun-9233-completed-in-1874

I believe has one of the VERY few English 6 iron crolle barrels that I've seen. Quite likely from Birmingham and an "Oxford" pattern.
Birmingham was just starting to produce, at least aesthetically, high quality crolle by the mid-1870s. c. 1890 James Purdey II 'fessed up that their tubes were Belgian sourced, but it is my opinion that in the 1870s the tubes were from Birmingham.
Greener thought 6-iron tubes were "over-twisted" and weakened, and most "British Best" tubes were 3 or 4 Iron.

The top 7 in the Birmingham Proof House Trial reported in 1891
1. English machine-forged 3 rod Laminated steel
2. English fluid compressed steel, Whitworth process
3. English machine-forged 2 rod Best Damascus
4. English steel Siemens - Martin process
5. English hand forged 4 rod Best Damascus
6. English machine-forged 2 rod variegated Damascus
7. English machine-forged 3 rod Best Damascus

The Crolle Damascus in my tensile test
2 Crescent No. 8 Knickerbocker 3 Rod Oxford (undoubtedly Belgian sourced), c. 1905 – 53,000 and 56,500 psi.
1 Wm. Powell Birmingham 3 Rod Oxford – 54,500 psi
1 Unknown English maker 3 Rod Oxford – 49,000 psi
1 Unknown source 3 Rod Oxford – 54,000 psi
1 Parker D4 4 Rod Turkish – 57,500 psi
1 Parker DD 6 Rod Turkish – 55,000 psi


It's a tough 'read' but I marked what I believe to be the ribband end welds




Little information on J.C. Grubb & Co., Philadelphia
http://www.american-firearms.com/american-firearms/z-html/company-G/Grubb,%20J.%20C.%20&%20Co/Grubb,%20J.%20C.%20&%20Co.html

8g percussion ML marked 'J.C. Grubb'