William
Powell & Son, 13 Carrs Lane, Birmingham
12 bore Bar-in-Wood
Bar-action Hammergun no. 6175.
No.1 of a pair.
Date of manufacture: 1876
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Heritage Guns' Comment
This gun is in lovely, shootable condition and is a fine
example of the bar-in-wood guns that William Powell were
famous for. As is common with Powell’s of this period, the gun
exhibits an almost complete set of Powell patents including
toplever, inlaid strikers and striker extractor mechanism,
just missing the forend catch. The all too common shrinkage
cracks in the wood bar have been repaired and action bedded
into the wood which will hopefully delay their reappearance.
With its replacement steel barrels by the famous Pigeon Gun
specialist Charles Boswell, this represents a very rare
opportunity to acquire a fine hammergun from this innovative
era.
WE REGRET THAT
THIS GUN IS NOW SOLD. IF YOU ARE SEARCHING FOR A SIMILAR GUN,
PLEASE CONTACT US. |
The
action
is of William Powell’s own design and features:
Bar in Wood;
Double triggers;
Fluted percussion fences;
Bar action,
rebounding locks with low-level hammers;
Self-retracting, broad
strikers with silver inlaid ‘LOADED’ indicators;
Lift-up top lever
opening;
Deeley forend catch.
Replacement LH main spring and swivel.
Several small bleeds in upper and lower ribs.
Gun weight
7lb.
Engraving style Best Foliate Scroll.
Silver inlayed ‘LOADED’ on strikers. Toplever engraved ‘POWELL’S
PATENT’.
Striker retractor engraved ‘PATENT’. Toplever and Forend
iron engraved ‘1’.
Forend iron stamped ‘STEEL’ and
Deeley & Edge
forend catch stamped ‘PATENT’ and with D&E’s trade mark.
Trigger pulls measure approximately: Front trigger 3 lbs Rear
trigger 4 lbs
The replacement steel barrels are 29 7/8" in length,
chambered for 2 ½ ” (65mm) cartridges and are of brazed 'dovetail' lump
construction with soft soldered ribs.
Top rib is of the smooth,
concave, game type.
The bores are essentially clean but do show some
marks.
Birmingham re-proof
for 65mm nitro cartridges in 2017.
Approximate barrel measurements at date of publication:
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Nominal Proof Size
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Bore Diameter 9"
from Breech |
Minimum Wall Thickness
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Choke Constriction
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18.5mm (0.728")
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0.730"
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0.029"
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0.005"
(Skeet)
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Left Barrel |
18.5mm (0.728")
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0.731"
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0.027"
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0.035"
(Full)
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Straight Hand Stock and Splinter Forend
are crafted from highly figured walnut. The stock is lightly cast-off
for a right-handed shot, features a vacant white metal oval and is
fitted with a 5/8” ebonite butt plate secured with engraved screws.
The forend is fitted with a horn tip.
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Highly Figured Walnut
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The 24 lines per inch chequering is refreshed
to a traditional design.
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:
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Pull to Heel
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Pull to Bump
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Pull to Centre
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Pull to Toe
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14"
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14
3/16"
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14
1/8"
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14
5/8"
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Drop at Comb
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Drop at Face
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Drop at Heel
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1
1/2"
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1
3/4"
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2 3/16"
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Cast-off at Comb
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Cast-off at Heel
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Negligible
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3/16" (approximate)
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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:
Stanton's
rebounding lock patent no. 367 of 1867,
Powell’s inlaid and
extracting striker patent no. 1055 of 1869,
Powell’s top lever
patent no. 1163 of 1864,
Deeley &
Edge forend fastener patent no. 1422 of 1873.