doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Baker Paragon 16ga

Yes it's my gun. It came from England.

I have a Jostam anti finch and or a original Hawkins pad. I'm assuming either would be period correct?

I looked through a bunch of catalog listings and ads and only found "Soft Rubber Recoil Pad"; unspecified.
Either would be period correct
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qxQsLDgpKtKITSGCJZ9H348YOsQL5CeZjjqNnHshpKQ/edit?tab=t.0

I have never seen the engraving shown in these catalogs, with two dogs and two birds, on a crossbolt Paragon. It is the style I've seen on the Paragon Nineteen Nines.

Researcher, I think the last of the Baker Gun and Forging Co. catalogs that you picture had illustrations that were sort of generic , in that the Paragon guns shown with the crossbolt had Nineteen Nine rib extensions and Nineteen Nine shaped lockplates. But, those illustrations also show the pre Nineteen Nine cocking arms. I have never seen a Baker with that combination of configurations. I'd guess the Catalog designer used some "license" when developing the illustrations.

A bit later. I went to the wall in my Gunroom and looked at a 46,000 serial no. range Paragon and it is exactly as pictured in the catalog cuts above. The receiver is Black Oxide finished . This gun is also the only Baker Gun and Forging Co. double with a factory beavertail that I have seen. With the beavertail, Baker added special reinforcing lugs to the forend Iron to help absorb the added recoil stress of the heavy forearm. The Model Nineteen Nine will have a different cocking mechanism.

A couple of pictures of #46xxx which are similar to Researcher's catalog postings.

How do the Paragon serial numbers run. Mine has a serial number of just 425. How is it that there are some with 6 figures starting in the 200,000's? When the company changed hands did the serial numbers start anew?

I have recorded what I call "Regular" Paragons with serial numbers from 299 to 1059.



Then Paragon Model Nineteen-Nine with serial numbers in the 11xx range --



Finally, the crossbolt guns in the 48xxx range and the 201xxx range. The guns in the 201xxx range both with and without an F.

In general the Paragons and higher grade serial numbers ran from 1-1161 up until about the year 1913 . After that, when Baker was making more drop forgings and relative fewer guns, the Paragons had serial numbers scattered from 38,000 to about 48,000. Other grades were in that bracket, too.

Researcher - If you want to add to your records, I have "regular" Paragon SN 1063. It has Krupp barrels and is marked 1063 P.K. on the watertable and barrel flats.