Holland & Holland, 98 New Bond Street, London
12 bore 'Royal' Bar Action, Sidelever Sidelock Ejector
No. 12680
Date of manufacture: 1890

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Heritage Guns' Comment

Holland & Holland records show that this gun was finished in 1890 for 'Lumsdon' as one of a pair. It is in unusually good condition for its age and is a very lovely example of Holland & Holland's 'flag ship' gun but more importantly, it is one of the very few sidelever Royals that Holland & Holland made. Some of the great Makers of the time made a speciality of sidelevers but Hollands did not and this variant was only made as a special order.
The gun was re-barrelled in the mid 1930's and there are indications are that it was done by the 'Makers although due to patchy record keeping at this time it is impossible to confirm. The original case accompanied this gun when we purchased it and now relined, it presents this lovely old gun very nicely. With its excellent weight, interceptor sears, long stock and barrel dimensions, this gun would make a fine target or game gun for the discerning shooter.

WE REGRET THAT THIS GUN IS NOW SOLD. IF YOU ARE SEARCHING FOR A SIMILAR GUN, PLEASE CONTACT US.

The action is of combined Holland & Robertson design and features:
Beaded fences;
Bar action, 'Dip Edge' locks with bolstered tumbler pivots;
Double triggers bolted by an automatic top tang safety slide;
Breech face 'Patent Gas Checks';
'Patent Block Safety' interceptor sears;
Sidelever operating a double bite 'Purdey Bolt';
Passive top rib extension;
Holland & Robertson's patent ejector
and Anson's push rod forend catch.
Gun weight 6lb 13oz
Engraving style Best Bouquet & Scroll. 'THE ROYAL PATENT SAFETY HAMMERLESS EJECTOR' on underside of action.
Trigger pulls measure approximately: Front trigger 3 ½ lbs Rear trigger 4lbs.
The replacement steel barrels are 28" in length, chambered for 2 3/4" (70mm) cartridges and are of brazed 'dovetail' construction with soft soldered ribs. Top rib is of the smooth, concave game type.
Birmingham proof for 70mm nitro powder cartridges in 1933.


Approximate barrel measurements at date of publication:

 
Nominal Proof Size
Bore Diameter 9" from Breech
Minimum Wall Thickness
Choke Constriction
Right Barrel
12 (0.729")
0.731"
0.029"
0.009" (IC)
Left Barrel
12 (0.729")
0.731"
0.030"
0.029" (IM)

Straight Hand Stock and Splinter Forend are crafted from highly figured walnut. There are small inlet repairs to the forend edge. The stock is cast off for a right-handed shot, features a vacant yellow metal oval, well defined drop points and is finished with a 1" leather covered recoil pad.


Highly Figured walnut

The 24 lines per inch chequering has been freshened to normal sidelock pattern.
The stock is finished with a traditional linseed oil based preparation as used on best guns by one of the top English makers. This finish uses no grain fillers to achieve its deep, smooth lustre, only many hours of alternate build and flatting off of the surface.

Approximate stock measurements at date of publication:

Pull to Heel
Pull to Bump
Pull to Centre
Pull to Toe
14 1/2"
14 5/8"
14 5/8"
15 1/4"
Drop at Comb
Drop at Face
Drop at Heel
1 9/16"
1 11/16"
2 3/16"
Cast-on at Comb
Cast-on at Heel
1/16" approx
3/16" approx

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:
Scott's gas check patent no. 617 of 1882;
Needham & Hinton interceptor sears patent no. 706 of 1879;
Holland & Robertson's ejector patent no. 11623 of 1887;
'Purdey Bolt' patent no. 1104 of 1863;
'Scott Spindle' patent no. 2752 of 1865;
Anson's forend fastener patent no. 3791 of 1872.