doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Very Early Westley Richards ?

Years back I owned a very similar 13 bore Westley Richards.

The hammers look to be replacements of some sorts and I'd say someone ground off the flash protectors.

The platinum is worth more than the gun.

Hi Letfly
nothing too unusual about the standing breech. Thought you meant it was split horizontally and in two sections.
Judging by the way the hammers sit at the nipples, something ain't right as they should hit the cap squarely. I would agree that these are probably not the original hammers, and there may well have been some doctoring to the flash guards to allow these hammers to function on this gun.
can't offer any more i'm afraid. enjoy shooting it, but keep an eye on the wood behind the breech....

Thanks for the information and interest. Is there any way to identify the hammers as replacements. These appear to be cast steel from inspection of the backside (see earlier photo). And you are correct the wood is fragile, especially under the breech block. If you are interested I will add a radiography photo of the barrels showing the detail of the barrel walls from breech to muzzle?

I think the only way to judge hammer originality would be the style, general fit, geometry and maybe engraving style and match to the rest of the ironwork. As i mentioned earlier, the slab sides seems right for 1830's style.
The radiograph would be great as a general interest item, thanks.