charles newton (buffalo rifles )
i have two buffalo rifles about 1920= Bbruce jennings, cunfirmed ser# s . he had # 1 dismanttled , i have ser #2=cal 256 =(GWG ) inletted in forarm in cherkering, fatory order. then ser # 106=cal 35 n, same inletted ( GWG ) who was gwg. ???? p/s= both guns ,bought by me springfield , ron b/c canada .your help or anyones will be gladly taken.
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I am not sure anyone understands your question.
Who made the rifles. What do they look like? What type of actions? Why are you calling these "buffalo rifles".
Charles Newton was an inventor of high velocity cartridges and the rifles to fire them in the 1920s. The rifles you are referring to are obviously .256 Newton and .35 Newton caliber. Newton rifle companies failed in late 1920s. These were all bolt action rifles.
Confused?
Heavyiron[?]0 -
Hello I agree with HEAVY IRON what is the question? .NEWTON made a number of rifles and was a "WEATHERBY" of the 1920's. HE made these rifles in BUFFALO NEW YORK thus the name had nothing to do with the animal. He had some very good cartridges named for him but they did not reach their full potential because we did not have slow burning powders to go along with them . The 256 newton is very close to todays 25-06 The rifles were at least 3 models or designs one had double set triggers with one trigger as normal and the other one faceing backward. the second model had double st triggers both faceing the same way .The bolt had "many " small locking lugs like a WEATHERBY. and the rifleing was POLYGON like a H&K P7 pistol this again to try to keep down fouling on the bullets of that time .Another neat feature of the rifle was the front action screw was part of the mag. floor plate when you dropped the floor plate down you could turn it to unsrew the screw. My W.A.S guess is that GWG was customer # 106 and he wanted his name on the gun the chance on finding out who he was is somewhere between slim and none quote:"PRAISE THE HARDBALL GUN" 0 -
quote:Originally posted by rkenoras
i have two buffalo rifles about 1920= Bbruce jennings, cunfirmed ser# s . he had # 1 dismanttled , i have ser #2=cal 256 =(GWG ) inletted in forarm in cherkering, fatory order. then ser # 106=cal 35 n, same inletted ( GWG ) who was gwg. ???? p/s= both guns ,bought by me springfield , ron b/c canada .your help or anyones will be gladly taken.
Perhaps I can clarify rekenoras post a little.
1), The "Buffalo Newtons" were the second model rifle that Charles Newton developerd. This was after the First World War, during the 1920's. This model is the one with the very distinctive "reversed" set-trigger.
2), Bruce Jennings is the author of the definitive book on Charles Newton. "Charles Newton: Father of High Velocity"
My wag is that "GWG" was the original owner of these rifles. Since it's been over 80 years since they were manufactured for him, it's not likely you will be able to trace him at this late date.
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I would like to say...that Charles Newton had relitively little to do with "Buffalo Newton" rifles...It's been 25-30 years since I needed to recall this but I think the Buffalo Newton was a product of Meecham (sp?)..
and...serial number 1 belongs to the grandson of Newton's machine shop foreman...unfortunately the trigger guard (#1) is currently in the hands of another well known Newton collector (also here near Buffalo)...
There is a great deal of misunderstanding about Newton rifles, some of which has been perpetuated by greed. Many of the key factors of Newton collecting are NEVER discussed...perhaps due to a lack of interest but more due to the scarcity of remaining rifles.
Elsewhere on this forum I read about Newton's gun collection which turned out to be Bruce Jennings collection...but just to put the nails in the coffin of Newtons personal collection (historic Newton rifles)...those particular rifles, not his custom guns or the Adolph drilling, but the experimental guns that advanced the technic of the modern rifle...those particular guns wound up in the hands of Chet Bickers (proof test foreman)...When Chet died, the rifles found their way into the hands of his nephew, the infamous Robert Kleason. It is believed that Kleason buried those historic rifles on the family farm/land (Wyoming County) before fleeing to Texas to avoid prosecution, here in NY State, for blowing off the foot of a trespasser with a 33 Newton rifle. The only way Charles Newton's hisoric rifles will ever surface is with a metal detector.
It should also be noted that Charles personal drilling built in Austia and signed "Fred Adolph, Genoa NY" was last known to belong to magazine writer Harry Dean (Guns, American Rifleman, Life magazines). After Harry passed, the gun was stolen by Joeseph Ries ("High Tech Burglary Gang") and sold in the midwest. The Dean family would desparately like to see the return of this stolen historic drilling. It can't be missed...it's the only Adolph drilling bored for a Newton caliber and it has an intertwining cypher C & N where the toplever would normally be found.0 -
Charles Newton is also the man who invented the 250-3000 for Savage Arms in 1914. This was the first factory round with a mussel velocity of 3000fps, hence the 250-3000 moniker.
W.D.0 -
And to further clarify the above and robertchambers post...Charles Newton did in fact start the Buffalo Newton Rifle Corporation in July 1923 and they were made in New Haven, CT. In October 1924 John Meeker took over the company and the resulting rifles were marked Meeker Arms Co Model 1925. Approximately 50 of these were made before Meeker folded. HTH 0 -
Thanks Tex...I would have thought the production numbers were higher for the Buffalo Newtons only because I've seen so many over the years...
It is also worth noting that several sources, including a factory engraver J J Lankes in BECHS document titled "Recollections of J J Lankes" point out that every Newton rifle made in Buffalo NY had to go by the bench of the final fitter/assembler/inspector Emil Flues. Flues title was "model maker" but was also responsable for final quality control when he wasn't making experimental models. Many of the Newton rifles with 2 or 3 sets of serial numbers where also assembled at the reorganized company (on Jewett Parkway) were also subject to final assembly by Flues.
It's difficult for me to understand how Newton's advancement effected rifle production throughout the world yet there is more information out there on the Lankes brothers than there is on Flues and Newton put together. And Flues made several other notable accomplishments* throughout his life. If that doesn't beat all, Chet Bickers nephew wound up being the most well known...just google the name Robert Kleason...near every teenager in the country knows of his alleged deeds. History, as it turns out, is very fickle.
I would hope that somebody else would spill the beans about Harry Pope's involvement in Newton Arms Corp so that I may add the few details that I know.
* A Flues patent made Ithaca Gun Company a household word by 1910 and brought Parker, Fox, and L C Smith to their fiscal knees...forcing them to respond to Ithaca's capture of the market share by introducing the Parker Trojan, the Fox Sterlingworth, and Smith Fulton boxlock...all in response to the inexpensive Ithaca Flues model. Within about three years of the Flues assembly line production, Remington ceased all doublegun production (models 1894 & 1900) as they too could no longer compete in that market.0 -
Well, I was in too much of a hurry this morning.....there were more Model 1924s made. Meeker only lasted about 3 months, was sued, and Newton took back the plant. Total production is estimated at around 1000 +/- The best source on Newton is The Newton Rifle by Lawrence Wales.
After all this wrangling I hope rkenoras got his ???question? answered.0 -
quote:Originally posted by rkenoras
i have two buffalo rifles about 1920= Bbruce jennings, cunfirmed ser# s . he had # 1 dismanttled , i have ser #2=cal 256 =(GWG ) inletted in forarm in cherkering, fatory order. then ser # 106=cal 35 n, same inletted ( GWG ) who was gwg. ???? p/s= both guns ,bought by me Springfield , Ron b/c Canada .your help or anyones will be gladly taken.
well so far a lot of guys that know less then I do, I have all three books #1 by Bruce and #1 and #2 by l Wales, now to add 256 newton =25-06 Remington , the leaver bolt is the =guts of the Winchester 88 . the 22 high power or 22 newton , picked up by savage and chambered 22 high power, , the only leaver bolt known was in the hands till death of Bruce Jennings,and last but not least there is some ware around 4000 rifles start to finish, but all the meeker's assembled out of left over parts from the buffalo plant were thrown together and sold untested and had given newton rifles a bad name as unsafe.0 -
I have a Newton rifle. It was in 256 Newton. The barrel was shot out to a smooth bore. I re-barrel it to a new in cosmolene Springfield 3/43 30-06. It's been test fired. I still need to make the scope mounts for the side. Nicest double set triggers I have used. Still working on the stock pattern. I want to make it my offhand rifle.
Second I'd like to re-rifle the shot out barrel to 7mm and chamber it to the 280 Ackley improved. I would also like to make the bolt peep sight for it.
I have a Newton factory catalog from 1910 or so, around here somewhere.0
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