A 200 Year Old Shotgun

[Splitear]

While perusing the Albany gun show, I happened across an interesting find. After a good conversation with the owner, I discovered that he was local to me. I took his card and told him I needed to think about it. Long story short, today I met him to for an amazing history lesson, and to pick up my new shotgun.

Now, technically, I believe this is a 10 Bore Sporting Gun, made by George Davison, Alnwick, England. Mr. Davison was a gunmaker from approximately 1807-1826, with this gun being made somewhere in that time span. His family is a fairly famous gun making family of the period, with George being a bit more hard to find information compared to his father, Thomas.

This gun is fully functional, and the lock is smoother than any production side lock that I own, it almost jumps to position when cocking it. The bore is bright and shiny. It has a Damascus octagon to round barrel with a traditional “brown” finish. The seller said the gun was probably refinished somewhere around the 1920’s, though I don’t know how he would know this for sure.

This would have been the type of gun my family might have brought with them from England when they emigrated to the US in the 1840’s. 

Now that it resides with me, I’m looking forward to working up a shot load for it, as well as seeing how well it can shoot patched round balls (.775 caliber). 

Edited February 3, 2023 by Splitear

[mowin]

1 minute ago, Splitear said:

While perusing the Albany gun show, I happened across an interesting find. After a good conversation with the owner, I discovered that he was local to me. I took his card and told him I needed to think about it. Long story short, today I met him to for an amazing history lesson, and to pick up my new shotgun.

Now, technically, I believe this is a 10 Bore Sporting Gun, made by George Davison, Alnwick, England. Mr. Davison was a gunmaker from approximately 1807-1826, with this gun being made somewhere in that time span. His family is a fairly famous gun making family of the period, with George being a bit more hard to find information compared to his father, Thomas.

This gun is fully functional, and the lock is smoother than any production side lock that o own, it almost jumps to position when cocking it. The bore is bright and shiny. It has a Damascus octagon to round barrel with a traditional “brown” finish. The seller said the gun was probably refinished somewhere around the 1920’s, though I don’t know how he would know this for sure.

This would have been the type of gun my family might have brought with them from England when they emigrated to the US in the 1840’s. 

Now that it resides with me, I’m looking forward to working up a shot load for it, as well as seeing how well it can shoot patched round balls (.775 caliber). 

That is stunning. Congrats on the purchase.  Love to shoot something like that. 

What kind of load would they have used back in the day?  

[Splitear]

1 minute ago, mowin said:

That is stunning. Congrats on the purchase.  Love to shoot something like that. 

What kind of load would they have used back in the day?  

I’m probably going to start with 1 1/4 oz of shot and equal volume 2f. 

[blackbeltbill]

THAT GORGEOUS WOOD!!

[mowin]

8 minutes ago, blackbeltbill said:

THAT GORGEOUS WOOD!!

Good thing you're on a hunting forum when saying something like that. 

[Otto]

Stunning firearm!  What a great purchase, you will enjoy just looking at it, and I’m sure even more so when you actually get to fire it. 

[grampy]

Incredible piece of history, and a magnificent old gun!!! Absolutely stunning to look at. Congratulations on making it yours. Can't wait to hear how it shoots!

[mowin]

Leland, will your 4H kids get to shoot this? If so I'm joining.  I'm only 13. 

[Splitear]

2 minutes ago, mowin said:

Leland, will your 4H kids get to shoot this? If so I'm joining.  I'm only 13. 

Haha! Absolutely. I’m going to get some shots through it to make sure it’s safe, but if it checks out, we’ll have a trap day for ML shotguns. We did it last year with my New Englander and a Fowler. The kids loved it. 

[mowin]

11 minutes ago, Splitear said:

Haha! Absolutely. I’m going to get some shots through it to make sure it’s safe, but if it checks out, we’ll have a trap day for ML shotguns. We did it last year with my New Englander and a Fowler. The kids loved it. 

Trap???  Omg I'm in.  

Let me know, I'll help you test it. OSHA not involved...

Edited February 3, 2023 by mowin

[mowin]

I'll post up a old shotgun I acquired and sold tomorrow.  Much different from yours.  The next generation... Or two..

Edited February 3, 2023 by mowin

[Dr Juice]

That’s an awesome piece of art. Good luck with it 🍀

[2BuckBizCT]

Looks awesome. I would be terrified to shoot it though. How do you check to see if it can be fired ok?

[Moho81]

Wow, that's not a firearm that a piece of artwork! 

[Splitear]

11 minutes ago, 2BuckBizCT said:

Looks awesome. I would be terrified to shoot it though. How do you check to see if it can be fired ok?

Unfortunately there’s not a whole lot of gunsmiths around to check them out. I know several “knowledgeable” folks that I trust to give it a second look. The barrel passes the “ting” test, which is a pretty good indicator that there are no weak welds or anything. I need to get a caliper on it, but the barrel thickness also looks very good to my eye. The stock seems very stable in any potential stress spots, and though there has been a stock repair under the breech near the lock, it looks and feels well done and stable.

The previous owner said he shot it pretty regularly up until a few years ago. Now, I don’t know him well, but I would like to trust that he’s genuine in the information that he gave me.

Ultimately, I’ll start with light loads and have someone hold my beer. 

Edited February 3, 2023 by Splitear