doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com An Early Mistake,

When I wrote my first article about Griffin & Howe one rifle I pictured and wrote about was this rifle. In the years before S.R. Griffin formed the company of Griffin & Howe (1923) he marked some rifles with “S.R. Griffin New York” on the forward part of the floorplate. For a while the early G&H rifles were marked in the same place. Having never seen a S.R. Griffin stock I identified this rifle as such.

Later having looked at some Hoffman Arms Co and John Dubiel stocked rifles it was clear that this rifle had been stocked by Dubiel and not Griffin. I believe that the rifle was sent to Hoffman for a make-over. Converted to .35-Whelen, stocked by Dubiel and retaining the original Kornbrath floorplate with the owner’s name.

It was a good lesson for me, once it’s printed the mistake is there for all time.

Michael, beautiful rifle. What would you guess as to the approximate date this rifle was stocked by Dubiel?

Dr. Knutson wrote Townsend Whelen circa 1922 asking for advise about hunting in Alberta and told Whelen about his Griffin stocked Springfield. In 1923 he was hunting in Alberta and meet up with a hunting party that included Harry Snyder owner of Hoffman Arms Company. I don't known but suspect that when he returned from his hunting trip he sent the rifle for an upgrade to Hoffman Arms Co.

That's some pretty serious provenance. Did it come from American Rifleman or some paper that came with the rifle?

The letter to Townsend Whelen was in an Arms and the Man magazine. I learned about the meeting in Alberta from an article in the June, 1924 issue of Outdoor Life. The title was With Pack Train and Tepee in the Rockies of Alberta by Frank Conger Baldwin. Dr. Knutson with advice from Whelen had quizzed Stanley Clark (recipient of the Whelen-Wundhammer) on guiding him but did not want to pay the price so he hired a couple of local Indians to pack him into game country. The hunting party lead by Stanley Clark were not happy about it. In the article he is referred to as "A Certain Doctor in Reynolds, ILL."

I'm working on a John Dubiel article so if anyone has anything to offer I would be glad to hear from them. His early rifles are marked "Made by John Dubiel Ardmore, OKLA." later "Dubiel Arms Company Ardmore, OKLA" or just “Dubiel Arms Co.”

This Dubiel High-Wall in caliber 35 WCF is in the collection of one of our members. The picture does not do justice to this fine rifle. With the owner’s permission I’ll post a letter from the original owner to Johns Dubiel on receipt of this rifle.

Very fine High Wall! Unusual styling, looking very highly finished. I'd love to see the letter.

Unusual indeed. Not my cup of tea for sure. But what's up with that lever? It seems to have an extra button or something under its tail. Or perhaps that is not part of the gun?

Darn beautiful grain to the wood. Any idea of what it is or how it was finished?

The button unlocks the lever, the wood is Circassian walnut, most makers of this time period used a linseed oil finish, mixing their own formula.