Drew,
Bogardus was shooting a hammer L.C. Smith before the hammerless came out in 1886.
From a testimonial in an 1888 Syrascuse L.C. smith catalog dated May 27, 1887 from Elkhart, Ill.
Dear Sir: "I have tested the two Hammerless guns that you made to my order and find them equal to any gun I have ever shot or examined. I think the fastening superior in construction to that of any gun that I have ever examined and it is my judgment that your guns will not become loose and shaky by hard usage. The guns hand and balance equal to any foreign gun that I am familiar with. Workmanship also good."
Yours Respectfully,
CAPT A.H. BOGARDUS
Champion wing shot of the World.
It's interesting that you mentioned he shot a 12 ga. that weighed 7 lbs. 12 ozs. With those specifications he was shooting a 30" barreled gun which is considered in their catalog a Medium Weight.
His load is recommended for 12 ga. guns weighing 9 lbs. Goes to show you that back then "men were men". I don't believe there were any recoil pads back then also.
Last edited by JDW; 10/03/09 05:08 PM.
