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Forums10
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Mar 28th, 2026
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Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 117
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Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 117 |
Brian - Let me know what your gun's London address is, and I may be able to ballpark a manufacturing date. Cogswell & Harrison made most, if not all, of their boxlocks (side-plated or not) in their London factories - but these have been moved from time to time. I have a side-plated Coggie boxlock built in 1906 at their Gillingham Street Works near Victoria Station.
The Konor, being made in the '50s, just after WWII, might possibly be an exception; I have e-mailed the current incarnation of C&H to get an authoritative answer, and will post if and when they reply. The rib reads Cogswell & Harrison Ltd. London 168 Piccadilly & 226 Strand SN.55xxx It's a non sideplated, assisted opening, ejector boxlock.
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,155
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According to Cooley & Newton's book Cogswell & Harrison, two centuries of gunmaking, C&H occupied 226 Strand from 1882 to 1928, and 168 Piccadilly from 1917 to 1982. The years the two addresses overlapped were 1917 to 1928, and I would assume your gun was made during that time. Cogswell & Harrison today has the old C&H archives; check http://www.cogswell.co.uk/archive.htm# For $50 or so they will look up your gun and provide a Certificate of Origin, including when and where it was built, and for whom, original specifications and selling price. Pretty interesting stuff which I found well worth the money.
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Joined: Jan 2002
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Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Jan 2002
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I had both a 28 and 12 bore back action sidelock marked Cogswell and Harrison, and an H&H Climax model 12 bore that I sold to Cabela's a couple of years ago, all made by W&C Scott of Birmingham, apparently. On all 3 the barrels dropped and pulled rods forward to cock the locks. I sold that 28 bore to Don Shrum 20 years ago and wish I still had it, it was a wand. Too bad you can't keep them all.
Mike
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Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 117
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According to Cooley & Newton's book Cogswell & Harrison, two centuries of gunmaking, C&H occupied 226 Strand from 1882 to 1928, and 168 Piccadilly from 1917 to 1982. The years the two addresses overlapped were 1917 to 1928, and I would assume your gun was made during that time. Cogswell & Harrison today has the old C&H archives; check http://www.cogswell.co.uk/archive.htm# For $50 or so they will look up your gun and provide a Certificate of Origin, including when and where it was built, and for whom, original specifications and selling price. Pretty interesting stuff which I found well worth the money. The other interesting thing about this gun is the LOP which is 16 in. and is cast on for a lefty. The stock appears original so it would be interesting to know who ordered the gun back then with such a long LOP. I actually won the gun and kept it because it would be easy enough to fit to me when I was ready to play with it. As it is I shoot an LOP of 15-3/8, so one bend and a little shortening would be all it takes.
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,155
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I had both a 28 and 12 bore back action sidelock marked Cogswell and Harrison...made by W&C Scott of Birmingham, apparently. On all 3 the barrels dropped and pulled rods forward to cock the locks. Are you certain they were made by Webley & Scott? Cooley and Newton's book describes C&H's back action sidelocks: "...a mechanism that uses hooks on the barrel flats to draw forward cocking rods...William Middleditch Scott, son of William Scott, co-founder of Webley & Scott, was a Birmingham maker who built guns on this patent for London makers including Holland & Holland and the action was made under licence by Cogswell & Harrison."This suggests that the back action Coggie sidelocks were made by C&H in London, with a cocking system licensed by Webley & Scott of Birmingham.
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Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 238 Likes: 4
Sidelock
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Sidelock
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 238 Likes: 4 |
Cassady, the Birmingham date mark shows that the gun you are discussing was proofed in 1957.
Brian, according to Brown's "London Gunmakers" your gun was made between 1926 and 1929 (1925 - 54,960; 1926 - 55,166; 1927 - 55,603; 1928 - 55,754; 1929 - 56,209).
Regards - Ian Forrester
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Joined: Nov 2004
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What makes you think the Konor was built by Webley & Scott? As far as I know, Cogswell & Harrison made all their own boxlocks. The Konor, I believe, was a post-WWII boxlock made at C&H's Park Road Works in East Acton, London W3. C & H didn't make this one. Original Birmingham proof marks, no London marks present. Yeah, date code is for 1957, as the serial number appears to be as well. There is no evidence of reproof or rebarreling present, as the water table does not have a view mark, which would have been present from earlier (pre-1955) proof. The photo of the barrels shows the last digits of a non-matching serial number, which is normal for a Birmingham trade built gun. The trade makers usually stamped their serial numbers somewhere on the underside of the barrels. If C & H built the gun themselves, there would be no non-matching number here. Birmingham marks, non-matching number on the barrels, London maker's name - standard for a Birmingham gun built for the London trade.
"Serious rifles have two barrels, everything else just burns gunpowder."
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Joined: Jun 2002
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Nice catch on the non-matching serial numbers!
1957 was a chaotic year for C&H - diversification into non-gun products such as bird decoys and underwater gear, and "throughout this period the emphasis had shifted to the supply of surplus ex-Government rifles and equipment all of which had to be reconditioned, reproofed and tested at Acton." At the end of the year Interarms bought out the company's ordinary shares.
Apparently after WWII gunmaking became a sideline and C&H farmed some of it out to Birmingham. I know that there were quality control issues with some of the postwar Coggies, and the rough finish shown on the barrel undersides and action would make me doubly cautious about paying 6K for the gun at Cabela's.
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Sidelock
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Sidelock
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Re Jack Maloney's post above, hooks on barrel flats drawing rods forward to cock the locks, yes, that's exactly how they were made, the H&H Climax was made in 1888, I think, anyway I had a note from an expert for US Customs showing the gun was made before 1898 and they accepted the fact that it was an antoque under US law. Were Webley and Scott producing guns that early?
Mike
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Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 117
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Posts: 117 |
Cassady, the Birmingham date mark shows that the gun you are discussing was proofed in 1957.
Brian, according to Brown's "London Gunmakers" your gun was made between 1926 and 1929 (1925 - 54,960; 1926 - 55,166; 1927 - 55,603; 1928 - 55,754; 1929 - 56,209). It would be a 1927 gun then . Thanks for the info
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