Being 'The' site of encyclopeadic knowledge on all things about guns I need your help.
I have a very beautifully made W.R.Pape boxlock that I am restoring.
Now I know from my readings that there was no love lost between Pape & Greener.Any history or anecdotes about the fued between these two will be gratefully received.
Here is a few gems for starters.
Pape is credited with inventing choke boring ( although I believe that both Pape and Greener had travelled to the U.S. and stolen Fred Kimball's idea?)
Greener subsequently crowed that he had invented choke, but it is believed Greeners success actually was down to the skill of a barrel borer he employed by the name of William Ford.
The countrysport magazine called 'The Field' organised trials to check the claims and quality of the various gun manufacturers, and indeed Pape won these trials initially.Greener as so incensed at this result he demanded a retrial which he subsequently won.
Now, we dish the dirt.Greener had obtained barreels bored by Pape prior to the events and found that they were not as good as is own.Imagine his surprise when he lost!
Upon investigation (Greener was a wealthy powerful man)he found that the pattern board officials had found numerous odd looking wads littering the floor.Upon inspection it was found that these hollowed out wads (cup like) obviously would contribute to a cartridge holding more shot pellets.
At the subsequent trials which Greener won the cartridges were supplied by 'The Field'
Any information about choke & choke boring will be useful also references to books, and Kimball or perhaps you know more about choke boring Thanks in anticipation of a flood of information.Salopian.
