Lincoln pistol info

[ccdjg]

I have been digging into my Lincoln pistol files and studying your photographs more closely, and I am not now quite as confident as I was that your pistol has been reblued. It would take a close inspection of the pistol itself to be absolutely sure one way or the other, looking for example at the depth of colouring, for any pits or scratches that might have been blued over, and comparing the degree of colour fading between exposed and unexposed parts of the gun.
Although none of the various Lincolns that I know of that have a reasonable amount of original blueing remaining match the colour characteristics of your gun (see for example http://www.network54.com/Forum/68145...ncoln+Jeffries), I notice that the serial number of your pistol is exceptionally high (1112; highest number yet recorded 1213) which means that it could have been one of the few made well into the 1930's and so might have been blued by a different process to most. This could also explain why the finish has survived in such good condition. I am very dubious about the "whiting in" of the lettering though, as this has never been reported before and if original has survived remarkably well.

Does anyone else have a high serial number Lincoln with similar blued characteristics to this example? It would add a lot to our knowledge of these rare pistols if this were the case.

[ccdjg]

Well, I seem to have been able to answer my own question. I have continued digging into my files and have now found details of a late Lincoln pistol with well preserved original finish. This pistol is actually an extended cylinder Lincoln with serial number 1212, which places it pretty close to yours in age. (The standard Lincolns and extended cylinder variants were serial numbered together.)
You can see from the colour photo here
http://i135.photobucket.com/albums/q...pszbvq2pkg.jpg
that this has reddish tints to the cast steel parts and a deep black to the cylinder and barrel, similar to yours.

So unless there are obvious signs of reblueing on physical inspection, I would now say that your pistol has almost certainly not been reblued and is one of the best preserved examples of the standard Lincolns I have come across. To keep in this condition I would have thought that it had spent most of its life in its original box, but that would be too much to hope for – an original box for the Lincoln has yet to be discovered.

Apologies for my original scepticism, and congratulations on a unique find!

[micky]

Just to add to this about reblue, l had a Lincoln pistol se/no 862 that had been reblued at some time, l don't know when, but l think it was in moden times.and that had the two-tone bluing.

[Slinky-power]

Very nice example.
As far as I can see it has been refinished (in the 'Webley look').
There is no wear on all the usual areas and has been noted there appears to be pitting and areas of staining under the refinish.
Can't see in the pictures, but look at the front of the cylinder where the cocking arm connects. The slot where the spring is visible will have sharp edges if not used. Through use the sharpness is removed apart from just under 1cm at each end. There may also be lines in the cylinder from repeated cocking. Certainly the cocking wears the finish quite noticeably.
Also as there is clear evidence of pitting and staining, there is no sign of even dulling of the blue on the cylinder or barrel that I can see?
Even if it had been kept in a box these last 70+ years, I can't imagine that it would have picked up some rust, but no wear on the high points of the cylinder where these always show silver.
The highest serial number noted is 1218

[ccdjg]

Very nice example.
As far as I can see it has been refinished (in the 'Webley look').
There is no wear on all the usual areas and has been noted there appears to be pitting and areas of staining under the refinish.
Can't see in the pictures, but look at the front of the cylinder where the cocking arm connects. The slot where the spring is visible will have sharp edges if not used. Through use the sharpness is removed apart from just under 1cm at each end. There may also be lines in the cylinder from repeated cocking. Certainly the cocking wears the finish quite noticeably.
Also as there is clear evidence of pitting and staining, there is no sign of even dulling of the blue on the cylinder or barrel that I can see?
Even if it had been kept in a box these last 70+ years, I can't imagine that it would have picked up some rust, but no wear on the high points of the cylinder where these always show silver.
The highest serial number noted is 1218

Interesting and valid comments. There is no substitute for examining a gun in the flesh.

Thanks for the updated highest serial number. Has this been documented anywhere, and do you know if this was a standard Lincoln or one of its variants?

[Unframed Dave]

This is mine, the serial number is 711, although the trigger stamped 712, bizarre?

http://imgur.com/gallery/pFYR2/new

Scroll down the page to see all pics. First time I've used Imgur, thanks to whoever suggested it last week, doddle to use.

Dave

[Abasmajor]

For what it's worth, my understanding was that the original finish on these pistols was not particularly deep and it was consequently very rare to find one with a significant amount of blue remaining.

Regards

Brian

[Slinky-power]

Thanks for the updated highest serial number. Has this been documented anywhere, and do you know if this was a standard Lincoln or one of its variants?

http://www.gunstar.co.uk/lincoln-air...ir-Guns/525631
Unfortunately gunstar don't save the pictures on expired ad's.
Also 824 was listed recently:
http://www.gunstar.co.uk/lincoln-bar...ir-Guns/729481

[micky]

l was looking at one of these today which the seller said that the owner had it refinshed, and it too was a twotone finish.