14983 is "12boreman"'s U-L C-F Reilly which he continues to use today. It is the first Reilly documented with the rue Scribe address on the rib. There was a lot of speculation about those C-F hammers but a re-evaluation of the photos shows that it likely was a pin-fire later modified to C-F.

Yet, those fences look a lot healthier than the normal pin-fire in spite of the "sun bursts" around the presumably former pin-fire holes. (One always wonders about "tradition"; did Reilly build a C-F to look like a pin-fire?

I don't think the addresses on the rib were changed after modification so the historical data remains the same except for the comment about the C-F system and it's use as a date-marker for February 1868 is intact. Here is the updated comment in the history - lightly edited.

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*61 February 1868-1870, Paris-2: Reilly opens 2 rue Scribe, Paris as “E.M. Reilly & Cie”

Reilly’s triumph in Paris led him in February 1868 to open a branch office (EM Reilly & Cie.) at 2 rue Scribe, Paris where orders for his guns could be taken.*61a The store was located in the Grand Hotel near the Gare du Nord, a prime location (British travelers to Paris arrived at the Gare du Nord) facing "le Jockey Club" across the street.*61b, *61c, *61d This branch office remained open for the next 17 years.

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

. . . . .-- SN 14983 - The first extant gun with 2 rue Scribe on the rib is 14983, an 8 bore SxS under-lever, hammer gun shotgun (with a firing system very much resembling the earlier Lancaster "base-fire" action - other observers note that it was very like the Pape patent with retractable firing pins. Note: close-up photos of the barrel breeches show it probably was an original pin-fire converted to center-fire.*61e

The extant gun’s (modified) noseless hammers resemble the hammers pictured in Reilly ads for C-F guns at the time.*61f

. . . . .-- SN 15287 - A center fire 12 gauge shotgun hammer gun from this period, the second Reilly with the rue Scribe address on the rib, and with similar hammers (no photos available).*61g

Note: The French press in articles about Reilly in the 20th century has claimed that the artistic elegance and balance of a Reilly gun came from its association with Paris.*61h

Last edited by Argo44; 09/24/24 09:41 PM.
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