doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Hopkins & Allen 8 gauge market gun???

I did some trading this weekend and came away feeling like I did O.K.. Walked away with a Hopkins & Allen single barrel 8 gauge that is in excellent condition. CC are strong, wood is definetly a couple steps up from any I've seen in pictures of market guns. Lots of figure, round knob, very nice checkering and both the forearm and stock all carry the matching serial #940. Barrel is 36" and the bore is almost perfect. I'm looking for some direction on where to look for info on a gun like this. Is it appropriate for discussion here even though it only has one barrel? If so, I'll try to add some pictures later.

Also did H&A keep good production records? Thanks in advance.

That's a cool gun, they didn't make many in 8 gauge.

Anybody ever heard of a double 8 gauge from this company?

Just because it's an 8 gauge doesn't mean it was used by a market hunter. Lots of folks shot 8 gauge guns when they were legal.

I'm sure Hopkins & Allen kept company records but I don't believe they're known to still exist.

Destry

Thanks Destry. Is there a better venue to discuss this gun? I traded a double gun for it. Does that make it qualify for discussion?

I had one like you are describing in 10 ga. There are very interesting guns. Thought about making that rolling block into a heavy barrel .22 or a rimmed rifle but found someone that wanted worse than I did.

Thanks for reminding me. Very interesting guns. Would love to find one in 8 gauge.

It would be good to see a picture of the gun. I have a liking for 8's and thankfully they are still legal to take shooting here in the U.K. There is a certain satisfaction in bringing down geese with one. There are some neat single barrel guns out there; I have a handful including a single 10 by Sumner of Liverpool. Lagopus.....

I'd say this venue is good enough, you've got us all interested so let's see some pictures.

Is it a falling block action? I've got a 12 bore like the 10 bore that Coryeb mentions and used to have a .44 XL.


Destry

P.S. to lagopus - I've been over to the UK and took along my big Churchill 8 bore. You've absolutely spot on, there is a great satifaction in shooting a goose with one of the old big bore guns.

Well done Markethunter. I confine mine to trips to Scotland now as I can still use lead shot there for inland flighting over fields. Scottish law just prohibits lead over wetlands where English law prohibits it for ducks and geese. I can't afford to load it with bismuth, and steel or tungsten are out of it for both expense and unsuitability as the old girl has damascus barrels. Its an old Lang hammerless, nitro proofed, with the push forward underleaver that cocks the action. It looks like a sidelock but is really a trigger plate action with dummy side plates. Lagopus.....

Ironman,
You can try Cornell Publications, they have a lot of old catalogs that are reprinted. I did see a few for Hopkins and Allen from 1903 to 1911. I didn't see any listings for 8 ga. but they did have some for single barrel shotguns and it might be under them. If you wanted to look at them, go to ebay and type in Hopkins and Allen and Cornell should come up.

Lagopus,

I'm sure the non-toxic shot laws in England have cut into the use of the big guns down there. I have a few friends that reload non-toxic in their guns and do continue to use them though it's pretty expensive. I had the loan of a Holland & Holland double 4 bore on a driven duck shoot a few years back. That was a lot of fun, I killed what I believe was the longest duck of my life with that gun.

The cartridtges were loaded with 3 ounces of bismuth and cost around 10 pounds each to load. The owner gave me 10 of them and said go to work but I just couldn't bring myself to shoot them all up since he wouldn't take any money. I shot a few, loved it, and went back to the 12 bore for the rest of the day.

That gun of yours sounds like a dandy. You don't see hammerless 8 bore guns very often over here. How long are the tubes?

I was just in Northern Ireland doing some shooting this past September. Lead shot is still legal there for everything though the boys I was shooting with figure that non-toxic is coming in the next few years.


Regards,
Destry

Quick photo of the old girl. 34 inch barrels. Lagopus.....