CJF,
I just saw one of these Francottes, a non-takedown one, last week and had a chance to disassemble and study it. It was a 297/230 Long Morris, had a 25" full octagon barrel (I believe it was cut from 27.5") and has a long wood addition to lengthen the LOP. The cartridge is a center fire that is basically a .22LR ballistically.
I think these Francottes are the best designed miniature Martini that I have personally seen. What is particularly appealing is the action disassembly lever that rotates 180 degrees to expose cuts in the pin that now allow the trigger/action assembly to rotate down around the rear of the action mortise. This tool-less takedown is appealing. Also, instead of the cone at the rear of the trigger/action assembly that mates with the cone in the back of the action the one I examined had a semi-circular transverse cylinder at the back of the action that cuts on the back of the trigger/action assembly mate with allowing the assembly to pivot forward into the action.
I hope I can impose on you to take some photos of the barrel takedown system. I've seen the Greener takedown method of cutting the bottom of the action through the threads and then using a threaded cross pin to squeeze the barrel in place and have a Model 6 and Model 12 BSA actions using the tapered cross pin but it looks like your action uses something different. I am working on a non-takedown Model 12 BSA that I'd like to create some kind of takedown system for.
Thanks,
Dennis
