Old shotgun information needed
My dad just gave me an old shotgun that his grandfather had. The only markings on it are "LAMINATED STEEL" on the barrel and "NEUMANN BROS" on the receiver. Any info such as the guage, type of shells it used to shoot, manufacturer, etc. would be greatly appreciated. Dad said he thinks it used to take some type of black powder shell but he hasn't seen it being shot since he was a young boy.
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Might be ok with black powder loaded shells. Take it to your local gunsmith for inspection. Google says Belgium made
http://www.GunBroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=3157400480 -
A typicle, made in Belgium, inexpensive 12 gauge made for black powder shells. Laminated (twist) steel barrels were made by welding a iron/steel bar strip around a mandrel. So you have one continuous circular weld in the barrel. If it was not properly cleaned it probably has deep pits in the bore, adding to the weakness. When these blow up they generally let go right where your hand is, about twelve inches forward of the breech. Generally not considered safe to shoot, especially not with modern smokeless powder (higher pressure) shells.
The side lever is typicle of these Belgium shotguns: cheaper to produce and not a tight lock-up. Usually they get very loose.0 -
quote:Originally posted by Barzillia
Your shotgun has several interesting features such as the side lever, fences, and rabbit ear hammers.
As such, more interesting than the average old breachloading shotgun people find, probably dating to the 1870's.
Probably Belgian in manufacture, but most folks don't say that Parkers and LC Smiths used Belgian barrels everyday, too. The pattern of the barrels can tell you a lot about the quality of the workmanship of those barrels.
Don't know the bore of the gun, but that is generally stamped on the bottoms of the barrels, as will be the nation proofs which will give you the origin of the gun. Black powder, no doubt, but the condition of the barrels is not given, and without a practical safety on the gun, they aren't good ideas to take out and shoot.
You can find some all brass shells (empty !) for a couple of dollars each, and enjoy a good conversation piece.
Thanks for this information. I inserted a 12 gauge shell into the chamber and it fit as it should. I really don't plan on shooting this shotgun but knowing it was my great grandfathers makes it a nice conversation piece. I removed the forearm and found several different markings but I have no clus as to what they mean. It also had a 18.2 stamped there as well. If anyone knows how to read the other stampings, please email me here and I'll return some photos.0 -
NEUMANN BROTHERS or NEUMANN FRERES in French: Gun makers located in Liege, Belgium (where they speak French) from 1863 to 1957. The gun shown in the photograph was made well before 1900 and all of the cautions given are correct. I would consider the gun to be nothing more that a wall hanger decorator. 0 -
18.2 is the bore diameter in millimeters. Works about to about .716 in thousands. Probably Modified choke? 0
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