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old 12 gauge single shot shotgun

rev37660
i have a old 12 gauge crack barrel shotgun that received from my grandfather if any one has any information on it. it says j.stevens arms company on the side,on the other side it says dreadnaught. it has a 32 inch barrell
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7 comments

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  • rufe-snow
    The information I have gotten on your shotgun is contradictory.

    One reference states that "DREADNOUGHT" was a trade name used by the Hopkins and Allen Co., BUT the marking "J. STEVENS ARMS CO. was used for at least 20 years after the First World War by Stevens on their various firearms.
    The only thing I can guess is that when H & A went out of business in 1916, Stevens got the contract to make "Hardware" guns (Shotguns) with the Dreadnough name.
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  • rev37660
    thanks for the info
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  • rev37660
    any other info on this shotgun and its worth thanks
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  • He Dog
    Stevens made a pile of these hardware store shotguns in a number of different models. They have not attracted much collector interest and sell as shooters. Prices are generally somewhat under $250.

    My heros have always killed cowboys.
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  • nord
    Whoa there Bucko!!!... $250.00???

    Not today, not tomorrow, not next week, not ever! This is a single barrel gun that sold new for under $10.00. Maybe under $5.00.

    They can be had at wholesale for about $35.00 in working order. Tag prices will be higher, but they don't sell well at any price.

    Nord
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  • rev37660
    any more info on this shotgun would be appreciated thanks alot for you that replied.
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  • nord
    History???

    Really not much to tell. Stevens and others found a market for inexpensive scatterguns that really blossomed beginning about 1890. To that end they put into production a reliable gun that could be sold at a very low price.

    Over the years there were many modificataions. Mostly they reduced production costs and did little else. As black powder was replaced there appeared such names as "White Powder Wonder". World War I issued in the British battleship Dreadnaught. The name was popular for a few years and used on the Stevens product.

    Model numbers changed time after time, but the basic gun remains unchanged to this day. Still a cheap, reliable single. Still a gun that can be stored in the barn and abused without a second thought.

    Value to you as a family momento is one thing. Value on the market is another. These guns are purchased by people who care only that a load of shot can be safely delivered to a certain general area. By any defenition these pieces are a tool and nothing more.

    Anyone who tells you that such a gun might sell for $200.00 better open their eyes. A good Mossberg pump can be had for $50.00 less and the very fine Savage or Remington versions of the Browning A-5 are often available at just over the $200.00 mark.

    So... Not a piece with any appreciable retail value. Not an item of collector interest, nor one one that ever will be. And not an item that will draw lines of eager buyers.

    Nord
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