This is the new paragraph on 1856-59 Reilly pin-fire center-break guns in the History. It'll be edited in the future - but, as it stands it is evidence, very hard to refute, of Reilly building his own guns at the time:

Observation re "retailer" vs "gunmaker" from an analysis of 10054 and 10655:

-- In Fall 1856, there were virtually no outworkers in London who could have made 10054. Lang was making pin-fire Lefaucheux style breech loaders but not for the trade. Blanch claimed he made his first pin-fire breech-loader in 1856, this after traveling to Paris to buy a center-break, under-lever around trigger-guard, Berringer style pin-fire in late 1855 after the Paris Universelle and reverse engineering it. Reilly, thus was on his own when he obviously embarked on a similar path to that of Blanch in 1855 or possibly earlier to manufacture and sell the French invention.

-- Blanch explained in his later book, that at the time the change-over from muzzle-loaders entailed a massive alteration in the manufacturing processes for guns from a breech-plug to a lump, from locks to actions, etc. - this in the face of a very conservative clientele.

-- As for 10655, a Lefaucheux-style 12 bore SxS Shotgun pin-fire breech-loader, at the time it was numbered, early 1858, believe there were still very few gun-making firms or gun makers in general in all of UK that could have made it (and it's twins - submitted by Reilly for the March 1858 "The Field" breech-loader vs muzzle-loader trials) or portions of it - barrels, actions, etc.
. . . . - The two firms, who could possibly have made it, were Lang and Blanch (E.C. Hodges, the original designer of Lang's break-action gun, was making center-break actions, labeled with his name on the plate - not found on Reilly's). The first Birmingham-made center-break gun was still several years in the future.
. . . .- However, Lang and Blanch had orders aplenty themselves - they likely had no time to manufacture for "the trade." (Blanchs first pin-fire is dated 1856; Haris Holland made his first breech loader in 1857 although he advertised them in Sep 1856; Boss in 1858; Purdey in late 1858 or early 1859, etc.)

-- Thus, the most logical conclusion is that both 10054 and 10655 were indeed made by Reilly as he has claimed - no one else could have done it for him.

-- (These two conclusions are per historical data currently available on the early origins of UK center-break pin-fires.)

Last edited by Argo44; 09/18/20 08:51 PM.
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