Originally Posted by
ccdjg
To answer your questions as best I can Guy:
1. I am pretty sure it dates to the mid-late 1920's, just possibly into the 1930's. I base this on the patina, the type of bluing where it has survived, which is of the rust bluing type typically found on guns like the Highest Possible, Titans, Certus, Parker etc. of the period. Also I think that the gun would have been made shortly after the concentric Highest Possible and Tell 2 were patented in 1922 and 1925 respectively, and was probably inspired by one or both of these.
2. Definitely not made up from parts of other guns. To get this gun to assemble and disassemble so easily, and to function flawlessly, must have taken a lot of design refinement, and to find bits of other guns that would fit together so perfectly would be a miracle.
3.The piston looks much better made (and thicker walled ) than most pistons I have seen, and I do not think it was an adaptation. I think the threaded piston head may have been introduced for experimental purposes, as it would make it very simple to make and try out different types of head/seal arrangements while keeping the same piston body.
4. The housing containing the detent is simplicity personified - just a drilled and milled block of steel. There would be no need to adapt a breech block from some other gun.
5. The gun is 220mm long, barrel 190 mm, and weight 963 grams (very similar to the Webley Senior).
6. The breech housing is a separate annular steel piece that is fitted over the cylinder and appears to be very neatly brazed in place. (I think I can just make out a brass layer).
Cheers,
John
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