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20467 (Autumn 1876)



Irrational, I'd estimate 20467 as having been made in Autumn 1876, possibly September/October

Analysis:

— 15270 is the first Paris address on a rib I've found; he opened Rue Scribe in late Jan/early Feb 1868.

— 26584 is the last gun I've found with a Paris address; he closed Rue Scribe about August 1886.

Between Feb 68 and Aug 86 (222 months) he numbered about 11,200 guns; that would be about 50+ numbered guns a month at a steady rate (and it obviously fluctuated).(on reflection this production rate stayed pretty steady from 1868 to 1898 - perhaps this was the maximum he could produce?)..say 620 a year. So just assuming this is correct, your gun would be about the 5,200th numbered gun produced after he opened Rue Scribe… 104 months after Feb 1868 = 8 years 8 months. So I’d estimate it to be have been made in Fall 1876.

As an accuracy check…the next marker is 26584, the last SN I've found produced at Rue Scribe in Aug 1886, about 6,000 serial numbers after yours. At 50 a month that would be 120 months of production = 10 years. 10 years before August 1886 = Autumn 1876.

To check this further, here are patents Reilly regularly used on his guns. It should not have the Mills 3rd bite patent but may have the 1875 patents. (note: Reilly would build whatever was ordered. I've found a muzzle loader built in the mid-1880's).

1872 - Patent: Anson's fore-end fastener patent no. 3791

1874 - Patent: Needham patented a hammerless, barrel-cocking gun which was also the first ejector in 1874.

1875 - Patent: W.M. Scott's patent 3223

1875 - Patent: Anson & Deely patent; the first hammerless gun with top lever.

1878 - Patent: Mills 3rd bite patent no 4980

I personally think Reilly's are currently a very good bargain in English 19th century shotguns...but this again is just a layman's observation. And, you'll get dozens of experts here responding to your last sentence saying in effect, "You can never have too many SxS's."

Here is Irrational's Reilly:


Last edited by Argo44; 09/11/18 09:04 PM.

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