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Joined: Aug 2008
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Sidelock
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Sidelock
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Joined: Aug 2008
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Just curious, I see some neat pinfire sxs hammer guns pop up for sale fairly often, and I've passed on some gorgeous ones, simply because of the ammo issue, and most of them are shot out and have cyl/cyl chokes. For those that have gone to the trouble of making or buying pinfire ammo, did you enjoy the whole experience? Was it effective? Or was it not really worth the trouble?

Last edited by Mark Larson; 11/03/19 11:18 AM.
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Sidelock
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Joined: Jan 2005
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If you don't already enjoy making small batches of relatively close-fitting assemblies for old and non-standard systems, I'd say this isn't for you.

Joined: Jun 2008
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Can be fiddly but nice to get an old gun shooting again. I have about 3 dozen solid turned brass cases that should last forever. One tip is to remove the pin after firing as soon as possible as it is a devil to get out as it gets crudded up. I also use resized plastic centre fire cases with an insert into the old cap hole and a pin inserted through a drilled out hole at 90% to the rim. It works but case has to be thrown away afterwards after recovering the inset. Even if you don't intend to use them if you find a nice one then buy it; they aren't making any more! Lagopus…..

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Joined: May 2007
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A nice representative pinfire is on my list of wants, but nice ones are few and far between here.

Joined: Oct 2009
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Joined: Oct 2009
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There is a member here, Steve Nash, who makes pinfires the focus of his collecting. He has an incredible collection of guns. Don't know how often he checks in but you might direct your question to him. He likely knows as much about pinfires as anyone.


The world cries out for such: he is needed & needed badly- the man who can carry a message to Garcia
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Joined: Feb 2016
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I stumbled onto some of Steve Nash's writings abut pin-fires and early history of break action guns in UK. Darned good...here's a sample.
https://www.internetgunclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=97


Baluch are not Brahui, Brahui are Baluch
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A friend of mine, who posts here from time to time, has one and it looks like a lot of fun to me. The main benefit seems to be the sense of accomplishment that comes from the exercise.
Mike

Joined: Dec 2001
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Joined: Dec 2001
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Steve has posted here on several occasions concerning his pinfire collection. My own PF collection consists of the Grand Total of 1, a W&C Scott which I put up some black & white photos of recently on one of Steve's posts.

This was another British made pinfire which was made for export as it is marked on the top rib For Benj D Kennedy Louisville Kentucky.


Miller/TN
I Didn't Say Everything I Said, Yogi Berra
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Steve has come to our SxS shoot the last couple years and brought 6-8 Li fires each time. A tiny portion of his collection. He a great guy and it’s been great having him join us. I would dare to say he knows as much about the early development of the break action SxS as anyone. We are talking authoritative book kind of level of knowledge.


The world cries out for such: he is needed & needed badly- the man who can carry a message to Garcia
Joined: Jul 2014
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Joined: Jul 2014
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Thanks for the kind words, my friends. Getting ready for winter has kept me busy and away from the keyboard these past days.

The pinfire system was a very clever idea, which was not in any way lessened by the better and more successful centre-fire system which replaced it. The pinfire was in use for several decades in France before appearing on the British market in the late 1850s and early 1860s, where despite competing simultaneously with the early centre-fire, it reigned supreme for roughly a decade. Produced by the 'best' makers and unrecognized craftsmen in the back alleys of the Birmingham gun quarter, for the sportsman the gun of choice was the pinfire.

Until it wasn't.

For the most part the British sporting pinfire was a largely hand-made gun, with steam-powered machinery and machine-made damascus tubes only starting to appear in the waning years. One of the reasons the pinfire is not highly appreciated today is that it is easy to compare it with its descendants. Tall hammers and prominent levers can't compete with the sleek, balanced hammerless game gun - though many a graceful design feature of the perfected Edwardian double gun made its start in the pinfire, such as top- and side-levers.

I prefer to appreciate the quality of their construction, and their ingenuity. As the OP said, there are some gorgeous ones that appear on the market from time to time.

While I have gone the route of loading reusable brass cases in the past, it is a tricky business to get the pressures just right, and I was never completely satisfied. Even pinfires that have not been 'shot out' have likely seen more shells than I can realistically imagine, and 'obsolete' guns are never carefully looked after. 160 or more years of inattentive storage is not a good starting point for testing gun barrels, and I have chosen to retire all of my pinfires from active shooting. Should someone start manufacturing consistent-quality black-powder pinfire shells I might reconsider, but I'm not expecting that to happen anytime soon.

Are they worth the trouble? For shooting I would definitely look elsewhere, but for sheer enjoyment of the Victorian gunmaker's art, there is no finer gun to own.


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