I thought that I would post a picture of this little gun as it might be of interest:



This is a little combination gun with the left barrel being .300 rook Rifle and the right barrel being .410 shotgun. The name on the top rib is Rosson of Derby but other marks on it indicate that it started life in Birmingham at the Midland Gun Co. works. When I first got my hands on it it needed a bit of work. The top rib was loose, slightly off face and the forend wood had deep furrows in it where it looked as if someone had used it to hold down a fence while they climbed over. The .410 barrel had a 2" chamber and was proofed for black powder. Overall it was a bit grubby. Chamber was lengthened to 2 1/2" and submitted for nitro proof for both barrels. Luckily the rifling was in good shape. Polished up and re-blacked, new forend wood made and it now has another lease of life. Great little gun for stalking rabbits with. Flip up leaf sights are set for 50 and 100 yards. Lagopus.....

My compliments Mr Grouse.

Hello Lagopus,

It is a real beauty, congratulations!

JC

Have not heard of a 300 Rook. Can you elaborate on this a bit? Interested to know more about it.

Very nifty. T'would be a fun bunny gun I think. Five pounds?

Thanks for sharing.

Best,

Mike

Former President Carter should have had one of those gun to repell that rabbit that attacked him. Nasty bugger had him on the run. He, the rabbit, must have smelled the lust in his heart.

Very nice little Cape gun, glad you were able to salvage it.

The little gem would probably make a better North Country lagopus gun than a rabbit gun. Such a fine piece should not be restricted to the lowly cottontail.

Lagopus lagopus scoticus:



JC

Not sporting to shoot grouse with a rifle! The .300 Rook rifle cartridge is a little straight wall round with a bullet of around 85 grains. It is sometimes called the .295 Rook. Very similar to the old .32 Colt pistol round which can be fired in the .300. It is a subsonic round and designed for shooting rooks; a sort of crow which was traditionally shot on the 12th. May for the young birds leaving the nest. Made into rook pie (the old nursery rhyme which mentions four and twenty black birds baked in a pie is refering to rook pie). A round was need that had good shocking power at short range but would not travel too far with being fired into the tree tops. Other rook rounds were the .255 Jeffery, .297/250, .380, .360 Number 5. All we similar to low power pistol rounds in ballistics. Combinations such as this must be very rare as I have never seen another. Lagopus.....

We forget that there are corvids that are vegetable, rather than carrion, eaters.

One barrel for cottontail and "pie", the other for grouse on the wing.

JC

Lagopus Deadicus

Good one Terry!

JC