doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com BRNO/ maybe FEG Boxlock

I've owned and shot BRNO ZP sidelocks in 16ga and 12ga, but had never run into their boxlock version. The boxlock below is ambitiously named the "Monte Carlo Imperial" model. I bought it on Gunbroker, but don't have it in hand yet. It looks about the same quality as the ZP sidelocks I've owned and is likely contemporaneously made, ie the '60's. Anyone have any info on these guns?...Geo

As far as I know, the Monte Carlo is not a Brno. It is made in Hungary by Fegyvergyar. At least anyone I have seen was. I have had about 5 Fegs now and they all looked like the gun pictured. They are another of those "sleeper guns". They feature dovetailed chopper lump barrels, cocking indicators, chrome lined bores, and most have an ejector mechanism that can be removed with the push of a button to make it an extractor gun. Here in Canada they can be had for between $250.00 to $500.00 for one in excellent condition. There should be a 2 digit date code on the barrel flats. Great value for the money.

Thanks Guns, the seller listed it as a BRNO. It does have the cocking indicators on the side. Don't know about ejectors. We'll see...Geo

Feg may just be one of the most underrated firearms manufactures in the world. I have owned and shot several different handguns by this manufacturer and they all have functioned very well. The quality designed and built into these guns IMO put many better known manufacturers to shame. I've had no experience with their shotguns but expect the results would be similiar.
N.B: My summer CC handgun is a Feg in 9MM Makarov. It is totally reliable and I would stake my life on it. It cost a fraction of what a similiar handgun would cost from a better known manufacturer.
Jim

Oh, yes:







A lot of gun for the money.

http://www.doublegunshop.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=267191&page=1


"Rudolf Frommer was born in Budapest on August 4th, 1868 and a source or 2 gives him being an engineer before joining Femaru Fegyver es Gepgyar in 1896. Other sources, http://sunblest.net/gun/Bio.htm , give he was a banker and was drawn to Femaru Fegyver es Gepgyar(prior name in 1896) to rectify their finanical troubles and in 1898 became obsessed with weapons. He may not have been a master but it would have been after his employment at Femaru Fegyver es Gepgyar and for now I don’t know where his walk-about took him, or if he was a journeyman. So with this additional info I have less faith in the fact that Rudolph Frommer was a scattergun designer but the probability still exists. He had some sort of disease in his 60s and that was the reason for his departure/retirement from Femaru Fegyver es Gepgyar in 1935. Shortly thereafter on September 1st, 1936 he expired in Budapest. From afar, and about 100 years later, it is difficult to determine just what part Rudolf Frommer played as a designer, practical product manufacture and supervisor at Femaru Fegyver es Gepgyar. Several other masterful minds were involved in theory as well as application and Karel Krnka was one of them. Karel Krnka(April 6th, 1858 – Feb. 25th, 1926 in Prague) was more of a theorist in gun design as well as writer but may have played a part, or imported the technology, as he was an employee of Zbrojovka Praga and then Ceskoslovenska Zbrojovka. So I know he came in contact with the Holek boys(Emanuel-master 1920/1921/1922???, Frantisek-master 1919??, Vaclav Holek was an apprentice in Pisek and then on to Mulacz in Vienna in 1905 and should have been a master by 1909/1910. He traveled to Nowonty of Prague in 1910, possibly as a master, to streamline the mechanized production of H&H sidelock scatterguns) and I guess Krnka may have taken some pointers from the boys Holek, specifically Vaclav, although I’m not positive who was the father of the ZP series but suspect Vaclav Holek. Karel Krnka apprenticed to his father, Sylvestr Krnka, who had been an apprentice to the Viennese gunamker Nowtony in the 1840s. I don’t know if his walk-about took him outside of the Austro-Hungarian empire but guess him to have been a master by 1881/1882. So in my mind, and for now, you have a supervisor, theorist and boys Holek all who may have contributed to the Femaru Fegyver es Gepgyar scattergun."

Let's see the marks.

Kind Regards,

Raimey
rse

Thanks Raimey for the history with the Brno connection. Even without the gun in hand I can see that there is a similarity in style and finish between this one and the ZPs I owned. I'll take a pic of the marks when I get it.

How the heck do you pronounce the name "Fegyvergyar". I think I'm stickin' with Feg...Geo

I can't wait to see whether this one has that removable ejector gizmo Kyrie posted the picture of!

Aside from the Fegs I have owned (still have one), I also have 3 Brno sidelocks. While both are very good value for the money, I give the edge in quality and finish to the Brno sidelock. Mind you I had one Feg Continental with beavertail forearm (most are splinter), high gloss finish with fancier wood, and 3" chambers. It was a beautiful gun in as new condition. I'm still kicking myself in the a_ _ for selling it in a "weak moment".

It would be quite a challenge to find a lock work that was more bare bones than on the Brno:

I hope a linguist will correct me, but it looks to be:

feg-ver-yar

Or just say Armory or FEG.

Anyone have an image of the lock of FN's simple sidelock at their finger tips?

Kind Regards,

Raimey
rse