An airgun whodunnit. Who made the Hercules/Speedy rifle and its pistol offspring?

[ccdjg]

One big mystery in the manufacturing history of late nineteenth/early twentieth century German airguns is the identity of the maker of the “Hercules” air rifle (also known in the UK as the ‘Speedy’), and its derivative air pistol, the ‘Boys’ Gem’. These guns were never marked with a maker’s name, and although catalogue entries are numerous, they have never thrown any light on the puzzle. So over the years there have been various guesses as to the manufacturer, but it has still remained a puzzle - until, I am pleased to say, now.

Recently an example of the rifle has come up for sale on Tim Dyson’s website, and there are now excellent of pictures of this and another in the Gallery.



That the rifle and pistol came from the same manufacturer is obvious when you compare them side- by- side.



Further proof of a common maker for the rifle and pistol is provided by a Bonehill catalogue from 1898, which calls them the “Boys’ Gem Air Gun” and “Boys Gem Air Pistol”, and describes them both with the phrase “With Drop-down Barrel and Patent lever breech-fastener”.



You can also see that they come from the same manufacturer by taking them apart. Both rifle and pistol have a very distinctive construction, and the cast steel is casing made up of two halves bolted together, with a removable inner brass cylinder. The following shows a dismantled pistol. A dismantled Hercules rifle has an almost identical appearance.



So who did make these guns? I was fortunate to be provided with a couple of pages from an extremely rare early Langenhan catalogue, dated 1911. This lists the rifle but not the pistol, which is not surprising, as catalogue data indicate that the pistol was not made after 1910. The catalogue labels the rifle simply as the ‘ Knaben- Luftgwehr Nr. 5 ‘ (translated as ‘Boys’ air rifle No. 5’, the same description used by Bonehill thirteen years earlier).



On its own, this catalogue page adds nothing to the story, but the introduction section to the catalogue is very informative:



(Note the telegram address in the top left-hand corner, which confirms the identity of the catalogue.)


The bottom paragraph translates as:

The items listed in the price list below are specialties of my company, which are made by a trained, experienced workforce using the latest precision machines. All of the items, including the smallest parts, are manufactured in-house.


So here we have Fritz Langenhan himself stating categorically that the Hercules air rifle was made, down to the smallest component, in his company. By inference, then he also made the Boys’ Gem pistol.

The pistol came in two quality versions, and was sold over the period ca. 1895 -1910. This was its last catalogue appearance, in the 1910 Burgsmuller catalogue. This is the only time I have seen it pictured alongside the MGR target pistol , which was introduced in the same year.



Considering that the Boys’ Gem pistol was so widely advertised (I have located no less than eight German catalogue appearances of the pistol over the 1898-1910 period), it is surprising that so few examples survive today. I know of only about half a dozen in various collections.

The air rifle seems to have survived on the German market for just a year longer than the pistol, and it does not disappear from the catalogue record until shortly after 1911. Then after a long absence it surprisingly pops up again in the 1920’s , but only in the UK and not in Germany. It was advertised exclusively by Clyde Bell as the ‘Speedy’, but he did not sell it for long and when stocks were exhausted the rifle disappeared permanently. It seems most likely that Clyde Bell was selling off old stock from Langenhan, or guns put together from left-over components and these soon ran out. We have to remember that this was the immediate post-World War 1 period and German companies were desperate to earn foreign currency in order to survive.


So two airgun identity mysteries are now solved, but I wonder why Langenhan never put his trademark on these guns?

[erichtfisherman]

A very interesting post. Regards Tim.

[Garvin]

Fascinating research, John. I find the pics of the two guns dismantled side by side most convincing.

Is there a suggestion that Langenhan made the MGR pistol in his factory? Perhaps sub-contracted by M&G? At the time, perhaps M&G's own factory didn't have the capacity to make all the cast parts, eg. the pistol's body?

[ccdjg]

It is an interesting possibility Danny, but as the technologies used in the construction of the two pistols Langenhan Boys’ Gem and the MGR are very different there would seem to be no real reason for MGR to outsource to Langenhan. The Boy’s Gem is more solidly built than the MGR, using largely steel castings, but this would also have made it more expensive to produce. The MGR on the other hand is more lightweight, depending heavily on folded steel, and using steel tubing for the cylinder. Perhaps it was this cost difference that led to the demise of the Boys’ Gem?

[Garvin]

Yes. I was thinking more of the first MGR pistol, the one called 'Luftpistole Nr. 6.' in the FLZ catalogue. I suppose Langenhan wasn't claiming he made the MGR pistol, down to its components, in his factory. Or was he?!

[ccdjg]

Sorry Danny, I misunderstood what you meant by the MGR pistol.

I am sure that Langenhan did make his version of the MGR, the No 6 in the catalogue above, entirely in house. After all, why not, as he obviously had expertise in steel casting? Whether he ever made the MGR for Mayer & Grammelspacher we just don't know.

Your question highlights the puzzle, which came first, the Langenhan No 6 or the “MGR” pistol? On balance one would say that the MGR came first, as it certainly dominated the market. The design was never patented so the patent record doesn’t help. It is unfortunate that Langenhan catalogues pre-1911 are as yet unknown and we know so little about his early products, so you never know, Langenhan might have been there first.

(For those of you who don’t know, the differences between the two pistols are subtle, and they can easily be mistaken for each other. The Langenhan is incredibly rare and the only picture I know of is a poor one from a magazine, and here it is alongside the MGR for comparison. The most obvious differences are the lack of MGR cast into the frame, and the different orientations of the fish scale patterns on the grip. )

[Garvin]

Sorry Danny, I misunderstood what you meant by the MGR pistol.

I am sure that Langenhan did make his version of the MGR, the No 6 in the catalogue above, entirely in house. After all, why not, as he obviously had expertise in steel casting? Whether he ever made the MGR for Mayer & Grammelspacher we just don't know.

Your question highlights the puzzle, which came first, the Langenhan No 6 or the “MGR” pistol? On balance one would say that the MGR came first, as it certainly dominated the market. The design was never patented so the patent record doesn’t help. It is unfortunate that Langenhan catalogues pre-1911 are as yet unknown and we know so little about his early products, so you never know, Langenhan might have been there first.

(For those of you who don’t know, the differences between the two pistols are subtle, and they can easily be mistaken for each other. The Langenhan is incredibly rare and the only picture I know of is a poor one from a magazine, and here it is alongside the MGR for comparison. The most obvious differences are the lack of MGR cast into the frame, and the different orientations of the fish scale patterns on the grip. )

Thanks John. I must admit, I hadn't read my ESAP and was unaware there was a non-MGR version.

Amazing to think the MGR might not have been a M&G invention!