doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Thoughts on this French SxS,pics and info added

Nigel, I think Gil was working from memory (with maybe a little humor) rather than looking at the barrel flats when he made that post. That's why I asked the question (with the smiley) about "soup steel". I'd guess it might be "acier pur".

With all due respect, Puree is *not* it.
Here is an off the cuff list of barrel verbiage that might help.
Not all stamping is good and many are weak in the ends.

cannon: barrel
surete: safety
purete: purity
guaranti(e): guaranteed
crochet(s): lumps
encastre(s): dovetailed
rectifie(s): ground
acier: steel
brevete: patented
poudre: powder
pyroxylee: smokeless
en long: longitudinal
portee: range
epreuve: proof
normale: standard
renforcee: reinforced
double: double
triple: treble
damas: damascus
fondu: melt

also note that Mens-Mart in the above shotgun refers to the Siemens-Martin steel process.

Best regards,
WC-

Another term sometimes seen in French for smokeless powder is poudre blanche.

Rectifie . . . I've never translated that as "ground", but rather adjusted or trued up (referring to barrels or chokes).

Sometimes, on French guns, you find about half a novel on the barrel flats!

Thanks much for the French-English dictionary. This should be bookmarked for future reference....

Hi Larry,
You are right, but in the machining world, "rectifieuse" is and has always been a grinder as in surface grinder, centerless grinder, etc.,hence my translation.
I forgot a few things (at least):
pierrage=honing
demi-bloc= you guess
ejecteurs= ditto
crochets rapportes= non-integral lumps (same as encastres;
note that this *could* refer to shoe lumps as well, but I have never seen a French shoe lumped gun).
poudre vive= smokeless (in Belgium)
fabrication mecanique=machine fabrication (meaning interchangeable parts, industrial machining, rather than hand made, one of a kind)
arquebusier= gun maker and dealer
armurier= gun dealer
armurerie= gun shop
successeur = successor to
cannonier= barrel maker
fait pour= made for

Best regards,
WC-

WC, you forgot the best one of all:
ailes=sideclips

You're right on rectifieuse, and the guy who operates the machine is un rectifieur. But since it pretty much goes without saying that you have to grind the chokes, I think adjusting or truing them up (chokes or barrels) works better for rectifie.

Armurier/arquebusier are more or less synonyms, the latter being an older word. But "armurier" can mean someone who makes, repairs, or sells guns--all 3. "Armurerie"--one of the hardest words to pronounce in French because of all the r's--is indeed a gun shop, and that's what you'd look for in the directory if you wanted to visit gun shops in a French or Belgian city.

Actually, in France, sideclips = oreilles (i.e. ears).
The Belgians do use a slightly different terminology.
I was "limiting" myself to words likely to be found on the barrels. Doing a gunsmithing dictionary is an entirely different endeavor which cannot be taken lightly...To be continued...
WC-

WC,I believe you'll find that "oreilles" does not refer to sideclips, but rather specifically to the "ears" on the "key" of a Darne-type action. "Ailerons" is also used by the Belgians, and even translated into English, in a Masquelier catalog I have, as "side wings".

Okay Wild Cattle and L. Brown, back to work, lets get that French/Belgium gunsmithing dictionary completed! I really like French shotguns and have been saving all the translations that you guys have posted so far . I wants more, more and still more .
Seriously, thanks for the information you've posted so far.
Steve

Just a thought, might "acier puree" (if that is how it was marked) be "alloy steel"??