Frederick T Baker,
88 Fleet Street & 21 Cockspur Street, London
12 bore Needham patent, Back action, Sidelock Ejector
no. 6778
Date of manufacture: 1874-88
Click on these images for more detail.
Heritage
Guns' Comment
The lovely Needham patent sidelock
ejector has come to us on consignment and as such has not received
the full Heritage Guns restoration treatment. That said, we have
stripped, cleaned, re-lubricated and rebuilt the whole gun and
checked it for any problems. It appears to be in fantastic condition
for its age and almost totally original. In fact we would classify
it as the best 'sleeper' we have ever had through our workshops
and considering its unfashionable style and mechanism, that it
truly saying something.
One of the delightful safety features intrinsic
to the Needham design, is that once ejection has taken place and
the gun reloaded, the gun can not be closed until the hammers
have been fully cocked.
FT Baker were renowned for their very finely finished guns that
featured 'wall to wall' engraving of very Best quality and this
is no exception. The wood has a fantastic figure, the Whitworth
steel barrels measure up well and are totally devoid of pitting
and the gun's internals are mirror bright.
All in all, this is a very important gun for any enthusiast of
the best and most interesting products of the London gun trade
and represents a very rare opportunity.
It comes complete with its contemporary, and possibly original,
Leg of Mutton guncase.
WE
REGRET THAT THIS GUN IS NOW SOLD. IF YOU ARE SEARCHING FOR A SIMILAR
GUN, PLEASE CONTACT US.
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The action is of Needham's design
and features:
Double triggers bolted by an automatic top tang safety slide,
Back action 'Leg of Mutton' locks with Gold lined cocking indicators,
Westley Richards style top lever opening with a 'dolls head' rib extension
giving a single bite, Needham's patent ejector and split extractors
and a 'Grip' forend lever catch.
Gun weight 6lb 10oz Engraving style Best Foliate Scroll,
FTB trade mark engraved on base of action, Gold SAFE plate, Stylized
'Percussion' fences, Top rib engraved 'SIR JOSEPH WHITWORTH'S FLUID
PRESSED STEEL'.
Trigger pulls measure approximately: Front trigger 4 lbs Rear
trigger 4 lbs
The Whitworth Steel barrels are 30" in length, chambered
for 2 1/2" (65mm) cartridges and are of brazed 'dovetail' lump
construction with soft soldered ribs. Top rib is of the smooth,
concave type.
London reproof for 65mm nitro powder cartridges in 1982.
Approximate barrel measurements
at date of publication:
|
Nominal Proof Size
|
Bore Diameter 9" from Breech
|
Minimum Wall Thickness
|
Choke Constriction
|
Right Barrel |
0.729"
|
0.734"
|
0.026" Minimum
|
0.000" (Cyl)
|
Left Barrel |
0.729"
|
0.735"
|
0.025" Minimum
|
0.013" (IC)
|
Straight Hand Stock and Splinter Forend are crafted from highly
figured walnut. We suspect that the stock and forend wood is the original.
The stock is cast off for a right-handed shot, features a yellow metal
oval engraved 'WW' and is fitted with a 1" leather covered recoil
pad.
The 24 lines per inch chequering is cut to
the normal sidelock pattern. The stock is apparently finished with
a traditional linseed oil based preparation.
Approximate stock
measurements at date of publication:
Pull to Heel
|
Pull to Bump
|
Pull to Centre
|
Pull to Toe
|
15"
|
15 1/8"
|
15 1/8"
|
15 1/2"
|
Drop at Comb
|
Drop at Face
|
Drop at Heel
|
1 1/8"
|
1 3/8"
|
2"
|
Cast at Comb
|
Cast at Heel
|
Negligible
|
1/4" (approximate)
|
For the purposes of these measurements,
'Drop at Face' is the 'drop' measurement taken on a line perpendicular
to the
line joining the trigger and centre of the butt at approximately 8"
from the trigger (front trigger on a double trigger gun).
Patents Exhibited include:
Joseph Needham's ejector & extractor patent no. 1204 of 1874,
Westley Richards's bolting patent no. 1572 of 1871,
Harvey's forend catch patent no 1793 of 1866.