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Forums10
Topics38,531
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Most Online1,344 Apr 29th, 2024
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Joined: May 2008
Posts: 8,158 Likes: 114
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 8,158 Likes: 114 |
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" Chuckie Dickens gets credit for this baby. RWTF
"The field is the touchstone of the man"..
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Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 428 Likes: 77
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 428 Likes: 77 |
What era is best? I agree that the current era is best in terms of materials and manufacturing techniques, if what you are after is a reliable, cost-efficient gun. The 'standard' configurations and designs have been perfected through many decades of improvements and adjustments.
The downside is, well, everything pretty much looks the same, built on the same designs (with a few notable exceptions).
To me the most exciting era for English doubles was the late 1850s and the 1860s. A sportsman had real choice to ponder: a tried-and-true muzzle-loader? A new pinfire or needlefire? A Lancaster basefire? Or a Daw or Lancaster built for the new Schneider centrefire cartridge? Of the latter choices, which would be easier to use, the Daw snap-action, or Lancaster's slide-and-tilt? With the rising popularity of the pinfire, the choices were even greater by the later 1860s. You could go with a forward or rearward-fitted underlever, a pull toplever, a lifting toplever, a pivoting toplever, or one of the myriad sidelevers from Needham, Dougall, Law and others. You could go with a full snap action, perhaps with a forward or thumb lever, or a semi-snap, or a mechanically assisted opener, or the most basic and simple Henry Jones double-bite action.
The fine hammerless double with a Scott spindle and Purdey underbolt, and the Anson & Deeley boxlock, are peerless designs. But the age before these became 'the standards' is much more interesting to me.
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Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 227
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Apr 2011
Posts: 227 |
BrentD... love seeing my old Geener which you bought at auction . Hope it is as enjoyable to you as it was for me.
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Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 288 Likes: 7
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 288 Likes: 7 |
McKay Brown will make you a best gun with the best materials ever, but they are undeniably luxury goods, as best British guns always were. I always thought that Scottish gunmakers had the lead on slender grace.
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Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 6,753 Likes: 437
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 6,753 Likes: 437 |
McKay Brown will make you a best gun with the best materials ever, but they are undeniably luxury goods, as best British guns always were. I always thought that Scottish gunmakers had the lead on slender grace. Yup, it sure does. I replaced the replacement silver inlays with sterling silver that match the original perfectly and restored a few other things and it is good for another 100 yrs. I really enjoyed hunting ducks and geese with it last year, and I also used it a lot on pheasants. It will see more of the same this year.
_________ BrentD, (Professor - just for Stan)
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Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 12,743
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 12,743 |
Steve; I have a gun which falls within your preferred time frame, W & C Scott & Son 12 gauge Bar in Wood Pinfire. It carries no serial number but has the customer's name engraved into the top rib, William D Kennedy of Louisville KY. I contacted a Mr Crawford with info on it & he suspects it was made between 1863 & 1865. It carries a Matthews Patent bolting system which consists of a center pivoting top lever, but not the Scott Spindle, with a single underbolt. The locks are the smoothest working locks I have ever had the privilege of handling, though I have not handled many truly high-grade hammer guns. I purchased it from a Louisville collector & he had tried to get info on Mr Kennedy but could find neither a birth nor death certificate for him in Louisville. All he could find was he was issued a business license to operate a Jewelry Store which included the time frame this gun is estimated to have been built.
Miller/TN I Didn't Say Everything I Said, Yogi Berra
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Joined: May 2011
Posts: 742
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 742 |
Oh, Brent--that Greener looks somewhat like one I should NEVER have parted with...beautiful, but painful to remember!
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Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 428 Likes: 77
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 428 Likes: 77 |
Steve; I have a gun which falls within your preferred time frame, W & C Scott & Son 12 gauge Bar in Wood Pinfire. It carries no serial number but has the customer's name engraved into the top rib, William D Kennedy of Louisville KY. I contacted a Mr Crawford with info on it & he suspects it was made between 1863 & 1865. It carries a Matthews Patent bolting system which consists of a center pivoting top lever, but not the Scott Spindle, with a single underbolt. The locks are the smoothest working locks I have ever had the privilege of handling, though I have not handled many truly high-grade hammer guns. I purchased it from a Louisville collector & he had tried to get info on Mr Kennedy but could find neither a birth nor death certificate for him in Louisville. All he could find was he was issued a business license to operate a Jewelry Store which included the time frame this gun is estimated to have been built. Thanks, 2-piper. The sound and feel of cocking a well-made hammer gun lock is special, which is why I much prefer hammer guns.
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Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 156 Likes: 17
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 156 Likes: 17 |
Dan. S. W, I thought your gun looked familiar - here's my Greener. Not as similar as I had originally thought... Anyway, to the question. I'm fond of the early center fire era for many of the reasons pointed out in the article and elsewhere in this thread.
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Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 666 Likes: 45
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 666 Likes: 45 |
JB, definitely a strong resemblance - especially in the shape of the hammers. Are those drop points original or is it a restock? Very nice, either way.
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