Gunsmithing
P. Percy’s Prototype Patent Model Rifle
Lot 3074 in the September 2019 RIA auction. This appears to be a handmade prototype form one P. (or J. P.) Percy of Albany, NY, although I don’t have any information about who he was […]
United States
Percussion
Big Iron: Development of the Colt 1848 Dragoon Revolver
Selling in the September 2019 RIA auction. Walker, first variation, second variation, third variation, long barrel 3rd variation, and stocked 3rd variation. Sam Colt’s first foray into firearms manufacturing did not end well – after […]
Bolt Action Rifles
6mm Navy Straight Pull: The 1895 Lee Navy Rifle
Lot 3311 in the September 2019 RIA auction. The US Navy held a trial in 1894 to adopt a new rifle, one to finally replace the .45-70 black powder Trapdoor Springfield. The rifle was to […]
Prototype
Barnekov Greene Prototype 1870 Open-Bolt Army Rifle
Lot 3293 in the September RIA auction. Patented by Kiel V. Barnekov of New York in 1870, this is a toggle-locked, single shot, open bolt rifle. It was entered into the US 1872 rifle trials […]
Antiques
Marston 3-Barrel Selectable Pocket Derringer
Lot 1173 in the September 2019 RIA auction. William Marston was born in the UK in 1822 and emigrated to the US in the 1830s with his father, who was a gun smith. William became […]
Conversion
Spencer 1871 Conversion: From Carbine to Infantry Rifle
Lot 237 in the September 2019 RIA auction. During the Civil War, the Union purchased about 12,000 Spencer rifles and many tens of thousands of carbines, and the weapon became a standard arm for the […]
Percussion
Freeman’s Patent Revolver
Lot 259 in the September 2019 RIA auction. Patented by Austin H. Freeman in 1862, 2000 of these revolvers were manufactured by Hoard’s Armory in Watertown New York in 1863 and 1864. None were purchased […]
Prototype
P7A13: H&K’s Entry into the US XM9 Pistol Trials
The US held three series of pistol trials beginning in the late 1970s to find a replacement for the venerable M1911 handgun. H&K was a participant in all three – in the first the entered […]
Semiauto pistol
Abercrombie & Fitch Luger
Back before World War One, when Abercrombie & Fitch was still a true sporting goods company catering to the likes of Joseph Steinbeck and Theodore Roosevelt, they decided to offer Luger pistols for sale. This […]
Book review
Book Review: Arming the West
Published in 2008, “Arming the West” is, as it self-describes, “a fresh new look at the guns that were actually carried on the frontier.” Herbert Houze used the sales records of the Shuyler, Hartley, and Graham […]