doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Clark & Sneider 16g, check 'er out....

so whats the story on this gun owd? I didnt see any thing on your blog about it. My 12ga hammerless is marked only Sneider, my hammerguns are Clark and Sneider. They are neat guns.

Eightbore,
That took me by surprise as I always thought the Lefever was the first hammerless.

At the NRA Convention in Reno in 1987, the Southern California Arms Collectors Association had in one of their display cabinets a hammerless 4-gauge double with 38-inch barrels and weighing 28 1/2 pounds, said to be made by Charles Edward Sneider ca 1875-6, and displayed at the Centenial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876.

2-Piper, as usual, you are right, recently on about the Clark and Sneider catalogs and how they reused them. I have copies and originals of the 1878 catalog and it shows only hammer guns. Then you see a catalog of that date, but with a hammerless gun pasted on it's pages. I wonder if we can assume that catalog is from "late 1878" as I would think if they were adding a hammerless gun, they would also add the latest date. I also have a copy of a Clark and Sneider catalog of 1876, showing , of course , only hammer guns in both Solid Grip ,Top Lever, Self-Closing Guns, and similar Double Grip guns of Self-Closing design.

Likewise, the 1883 catalog shows "Clark and Sneider" on the cover. They offer hammerless guns from 16 ga. to 8 ga. and hammerguns from 20 ga. to 8 ga. I have a hammerless 20 ga that checks in near 5 poounds in weight. Has anyone seen a catalog offering hammerless 20 ga. guns ? I do have old photographs of ads from an unidentified magazine source, maybe Forest and Stream. One is showing "The Sneider" hammerless gun, by Clark and Sneider with a latest Patent mentioned of 1880. The other ad shows "The Sneider Hammerless" offered by C. W. Sneider. The first ad specifically offers the Guns with Hammers in 4-20 gauge. No mention of Hammerless gauges. The second ad offers the Hammerless in 4-20 ga. , priced $100-$300----princely sums. I have never heard of a Sneider or Clark and Sneider 4 bore double and have seen only one 20 ga. Sneider or Clark and Sneider.

Sort of like the altered 1878 catalog, we also see the 1883 catalog altered with "Clark &" neatly crossed out on the cover, but still dated 1883. I would "assume" the partnership dissolved in that year.

I've seen the above mentioned 4-gauge double and have seen and handled Dr. McPhail's Sneider 4-gauge single. Would love to see the 4-gauge double and Daryl's 20-gauge laid side by side.

Researcher: No longer my 4 Ga -had to sell- kids in school.
Do you remember Serial # of Hammerless 4 double? Seems odd
that this gun was at 1876 Centenial and mechanism was patented
in 1880??
First Hammerless seial # I know of is "400" Last "718" Anyone
with more data. Hammer and Hammerless # seem to be intertwined,
High percentage of big bore guns.
Clark left 1884, would assume Sneider marked only on guns after
that.No direst data but fron experience think about mid 500#
had only SNEIDER.
Have two Sneider pinfires 1865-1868-neatest guns I H
have-apair 12 and 10 ga.
Sure would like a copy 0f the 1883 Catalogue! Does it describe
each "Dollar" Grade?
Sure is a Nice Guns
Bill McPhail

I don't know the serial number, it was in a glass case. The information they had printed on their handout about it being at Philadelphia could be wrong as well. I don't have any other indication of a hammerless Sneider that early.

Has anyone seen a Sneider or Clark and Sneider double rifle. They list them, but I have never heard of one.

I also own..hammerless 10....pics posted on another thread. Jeff

Wow!
Curious design, would like to know more about it Thanks for sharing