Mike, is that top picture your Didier Drevet 1918 SN 14204? If so, it's clearly 6.5 cm and my thesis about 1912 let alone 1918 being the changeover year is wrong (unless the above SN 17982 is in fact "14982" and the date is 1918).

I'm now not sure that SN 15034 (date not pictured) that I said was undated is actually 65mm. The chambered numbers are obscured but are suspiciously far apart and could be 6.5:
[Linked Image from jpgbox.com]
[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

The earliest dated Didier-Drevet barrel chambered in mm (after the 30 year break) now possibly is 1918? - 17982?? above - and 17982 is not a 1918 SN; both numbers are not clear.

The next dated Didier-Drevet barrel is on this 1924 gun:
1). Didier Drevet barrel dated 1924; 1924 - 2?871 (or 1?871 ??); gun number 1886 for gun labeled "Excelsior." (per other ads for Excelsior's in the period which are chronologically serial numbered apparently). 10 gauge ( 19.2); chamber: 75mm (chambered in mm)(3"). modèle EXCELSIOR. (This is from the Naturabuy advertisement. The photos show a chamber of ".655" whatever that means).

So now we're up to at least 1918, possibly as high as 1924 for the changeover year. We need more DD dated barrels or more solid analysis, maybe an Ideal dated per JC Mournetas or some other gun with a date marker, to determine when the first mm chambered gun came back to Saint-Etienne. FAB, as usual, was right.

Nous en sommes donc maintenant à au moins 1918, peut-être jusqu'à 1924 pour l'année de basculement. Nous avons besoin de plus de canons datés DD ou d'analyses plus solides, peut-être un Idéal daté par JC Mournetas ou un autre fusil avec un marqueur de date chambre en mm, pour déterminer quand le premier canon à chambre mm est revenu à Saint-Etienne. FAB, comme d'habitude, avait raison.

Last edited by Argo44; 07/19/23 11:13 PM.
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