James Woodward & Sons,
64 St James’s Street, London
12
bore Bar Action Sidelock Ejector
‘The Automatic’
No. 5166
Date of Manufacture: 1897
Gun No. 5166
Click on image for more detail
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Heritage Guns' Comment
I have had the huge privilege to work on several of these Woodward
‘Automatic’ sidelock ejectors and have always been impressed by
the shear, uncompromising quality of the gunmaking. Gun no. 5166 displays most of the classic styling features of this marque
such as the breech side-clips, bolstered tumbler pivots, classic
Woodward engraving style and unique safety slide but have moved
into the ‘modern’ era with wood ‘stocked to the fences’ and
beautifully finished 9 pin, bar action sidelocks cocked by Rogers’
leverwork. A very unusual feature for hammerless guns are the
‘rebounding’ tumblers on the Stanton principle which ensure that
the disc-set firing pins do not hang up. 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 traditional sidelock design and features:
Toplever opening,
operating a double bite ‘Purdey Bolt’ via a ‘Scott Spindle’;
Double
triggers bolted by automatic, top tang, Woodward-style safety slide;
Bar action, 9 pin sidelocks with bolstered tumbler pivots and rebounding
tumblers;
Robertson style interceptor sears;
Gold lined cocking
indicators;
Vented disc-set strikers;
‘Perkes’ ejector box;
‘Anson’ forend catch;
Much original hardening colour;
Rounded
action bar;
Arcaded fences with side-clips.
Engraving style
Very best foliate scroll.
Breech face stamped ‘THE AUTOMATIC’ TRADE MARK’
and ‘JAMES
WOODWARD & SONS’. Gold inlaid ‘SAFE’.
Top rib, toplever and forend
tip with gold inlaid ‘1’.
Top rib engraved
‘MADE OF SIR JOSEPH WHITWORTH'S FLUID PRESSED STEEL’.
Gun weight
6lb 15oz
Trigger pulls measure
approximately: Front 3 ¾ lb Rear 4 ½ lb
The original
Whitworth steel chopperlump barrels are 29" in length and are
chambered for 2 ¾” (70mm) cartridges with soft soldered ribs.
Top
rib is of the smooth,
concave game type.
London reproof for 2 ¾” nitro powder
cartridges in 2019.
Proof
marks are etched into the barrels beside the forend loop.
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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Right Barrel |
18.5mm (0.728")
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0.730"
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0.025"
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0.002” (Sk)
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Left Barrel |
18.5mm (0.728")
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0.729+"
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0.026"
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0.013” (IC)
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The original Prince of Wales Stock and Splinter Forend
is crafted from highly figured walnut, the stock is lightly
cast-off for a right-handed shot and features well defined drop points,
vacant white metal oval, horn grip cap and a 1” leather covered recoil
pad. The forend has a finely engraved steel tip.
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Highly Figured Walnut |
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The approx. 24 lines per inch chequering
has been refreshed to its original 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:
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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 1/2"
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14 1/2"
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14 1/2"
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15"
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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
7/16"
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1
3/4"
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2
5/8"
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Cast-off at Comb
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Cast-off at Heel
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1/8" (approximate)
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1/4" (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:
'Purdey
Bolt' patent no. 1104 of 1863;
'Scott Spindle' patent no. 2752
of 1865;
Stanton rebounding lock patent no. 367 of
1867;
Perkes ejector patent
no. 12176 of 1887;
Anson forend fastener patent no. 3791 of 1872.