doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com E.M. Reilly; History; Chronology; Serial Numbers

Thanks Aaron. That is extremely helpful - there are not that many around. That's the second Reilly cartridge you've posted, the first one (with an 1855 on it) being a rifle cartridge. (That rifle cartridge along with the date is very indicative and provocative - by 1855 center-break breech loaders were few and far between in UK - maybe 100 max?). This cartridge is probably dated to between late 1859 to 1868 or so being it is stamped with the EM Reilly name. The first cartridges he marketed had only "Reilly."

I'll post the chapter on Reilly cartridges again. Whether Reilly actually made these or had them made for him first in France and later by Eley is not known. If he did decide to make cartridges himself it was probably relatively short lived, from 1859 (see the 1858 letter to "The Field") to 1872 or so. At some point he apparently switched to having Eley make them for him.

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*42 Reilly Cartridges and Ammunition Following is a cursory look at Reilly’s involvement in the cartridge business, which came to be a major revenue producer for him. Specialists in cartridges may have more information on the subject.

For the first five years of Lefaucheaux pin-fire history in the UK, 1854-1860 the majority of the shells and shell hulls used were imported from France. There is a Reilly 12 gauge rifle pin-fire cartridge dated 1855 probably imported from France.*42a The French hulls of course were meant to be reloaded. During the 1858 trials a young Reilly employee was designated to do this task to assure all guns had equal charges, demonstrating Reilly’s involvement in the reloading business.*42b

The principle UK maker of shells and ammunition Eley seems to have begun offering pin-fire shells in early 1858; the first Eley ad for a breech loading cartridge is 02 January 1858 (possible for a rifle such as a Prince) and the first specifically for a pin-fire shotgun in March 1858.*42c


These Eley cartridges initially received bad reviews per letters to the Field.*42d.


In a letter he wrote to “The Field” in December 1857, EM Reilly complained about hide-bound practices of the UK cartridge establishment and the inability of UK ammunition makers to manufacture pin-fire shells even when given complete examples, plans and drawings.*42e


By that time Reilly was guaranteeing access to ammunition for gentlemen who bought his pin-fires. (Reilly said in his letter that up until 1857, breech loading shotguns were regarded essentially as "novelties" by the mainstream British press and clients, which may explain why Eley dithered.*42f


In an 1859 book by the editor of “The Field” the author “Stonehenge” pointed out that even at that late date at the very end of decade, French shells could be found in every town in UK and were clearly predominant.*42g


By 1858 it appears that Reilly, frustrated with Eley and possibly influenced by France, saw a marketing opportunity and had made the decision to go into the shotgun shell manufacturing and sales business. Reilly from the beginning of his involvement with pinfires, mentioned “cartridges” in his advertisements for breech-loaders. However, the first stand-alone mention in a Reilly advertisement of cartridge’s being sold appeared in June 1859.*42h Who made the cartridge casings for Reilly is unknown. It is possible that he imported them from France under contract with his name stamped on the base, or he may have found a local manufacturer.



Note: A drawing of a Reilly cartridge which appeared in a book published in early 1860 shows a pinfire 12 bore cartridge with only "Reilly" stamped on the case much like the 1855 12 bore cartridge pictured above.*42i The name of the company changed to E.M. Reilly & Co. circa Feb 1859.*42j. This may indicate that Reilly was filling and selling his own cartridges in 1858-early 1859.


Centripetal Machine: In 1861 he patented a new machine for crimping shells called a “centripetal device.”*42k This patent was renewed twice in 1891 and 1892.*42l



Cost of pinfire cartridges: In 1859 “Stonehenge” recorded the cost of French pin-fire cartridges, 2£ 10s per 1000 cartridges. In modern dollars that would be around $450 for 1000 cartridges, an average of about $11.25 per box of 25, $.45 per cartridge.*42m. (Cheaper than RST today).

Reilly continued to manufacture and sell his own shells for the next 40 years making the jump to marketing centerfire hulls and cartridges around 1865. This was apparently a significant stream of income for the company. Reilly shells (in centerfire format) have been found in archeological digs including an investigation of an old whaling station in New Zealand*42n and in Saskatchewan, Canada.*42o By the 1890's he was providing buyers with options on smokeless powders.*42p.


There is some question about if and when he began to use Eley as a source for his cartridge hulls; the Reilly cartridges unearthed in the archeological dig in Canada allegedly were made by Eley (no pictures to confirm this).*42q. However, in 1868 Reilly definitively for the first time advertised the sale of "Eley's best quality green case" cartridges (50 shillings per thousand empty; 150 shillings per thousand loaded with proper charge). Years later In 1899 Reilly again began advertising the sale of Eley cartridges in his store. This was perhaps an acknowledgement that his cartridge business had succumbed to the weight of specialized mass production.*42r.