The Night Before The Fair...

[Weebly]

If you cannot make it down to Bisley, you might try Thetford (South Norfolk) on Sunday.......I'll be there with a few of rifles and half a dozen pistols.....

See you there?

john

[chieffool]

Maybe Keith will identify it - I hope so as I'm intrigued...

Only 12-13 hours to go!

John

Hi Josie&John.... and Coburn.
I missed meeting you today - BUT, quite by chance, i did encounter Coburn as he unveiled the mystery air rifle.
What is that thing...?

[...and although it says Hiki on the butt plate, you'd think the hinterweb would unearth something on that alone!
It clearly means something entirely different nowadays. If you don't believe me - just plug the word into google, and choose images.]

[Josie & John]

Hi Josie&John.... and Coburn.
I missed meeting you today - BUT, quite by chance, i did encounter Coburn as he unveiled the mystery air rifle.
What is that thing...?

[...and although it says Hiki on the butt plate, you'd think the hinterweb would unearth something on that alone!
It clearly means something entirely different nowadays. If you don't believe me - just plug the word into google, and choose images.]

Sorry to have missed you! Hope you found something suitable as Keith had boxes of sights to rummage through. By chance I found an aperture sighted 1929 BSA on the Friday and am well pleased with her.

I think we're none the wiser over that mystery rifle. It was suggested to me that Hiki means 'young layabout' in Japanese and your images look like something Binners would come up with as a definition The rifle looked to have been well made and had a serial number, so must have been part of a production run.

John

[chieffool]

I took pics which i've PM'd about to Coburn in case he wants me to email over so he can have the fun (well-earned) of posting up a 'anyone know what the hell this is?' query.

Having looked through the pics again this morning i studied The stamp on the RHS of the stock, and LHS of the spring/air chamber. They should be recognisable.... just don't know what as yet.

Both show a shield topped with a crown, flanked either side by spread wings sprouting from the shield.
In the metal version it is easier to see the shield contains the word 'Hiki' set diagonally in the same hand-written script as it appears solus on the butt.
The metalwork stamp has shorter/different text: Looks like 'TORVALD'.
The Wooden stock stamp (i think) shows "TORV.VEEVE", BUT the second word could be VEFVE?

Nothing shows up on searches. Hiki is a modern slang term in japanese (discounted), but TORVALD is a Danish name. However, nothing obvious results in searches (i've tried under vintage guns, emblems, flags, mottos, etc) for Danish, Swedish, Hungarian, Norwegian, Austrian....etc.



...and THIS is probably where Garvin trips in with a website he's already built unbeknown to us with over 100 pics he's already collated or taken on this hitherto unknown make...
...or edbear has one in his workshop he's currently reassembling....!!