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*25 1856: Reilly Begins Building Break Action Pin-Fire Guns

Reilly, began building center-break guns as early as 1856. (Note: E.M. Reilly claimed he experimented with the concept shortly after the 1851 Crystal Palace exhibition but abandoned it as commercially unviable - whether this is true or not is not verifiable). The first datable advertisement for a Reilly center-break gun is from "The Law Journal"," 16 August 1856, with follow-on ads in the fall of 1856. *25a (see chapter 26 below).

There is a 12 bore pin-fire rifle shell stamped "Reilly, London" and dated 1855.*25b It almost certainly was made under contract and imported from France. The cartridge's existance shows only that Reilly might have been selling pin-fire shells in 1855. It does, however, highlight Reilly's involvement in center-break guns at the time, surely a very small niche business then but one for which a sharp visionary businessman like E.M. could see a future.

This said there is always the possibility that Reilly had constructed a pin-fire rifle in 1855. Blanche seemed to believe that Reilly was working on a pin-fire gun when he bought his Beringer in Paris. And, the earliest existing Reilly pin-fire, perhaps the earliest extant UK made pin-fire period, is SN 10054, a 12 bore rifle.*25c (see below).

In the 26 December 1857 edition of "The Field" a long letter from E.M. was published detailing the state of the center-break pin-fire gun controversy.*25d E.M. stated that until about summer 1857 most of his sales of pin-fire breech-loaders were sold as "novelties."*25e It wasn't until then that the whole break-action concept began to be taken seriously in UK.

E.M. by that time had taken a major technological business risk. Per an advertisement from June 1857 he had 100 center-break breech-loaders in various states of build and ready to be customized.*2f He gambled on the market by devoting fully 33% of his production capacity to making breech-loaders. This was some two years before Purdey made his first. Boss didn’t make a center-break gun until 1858. Harris Holland made his first ever six center-break guns in 1857, etc.

As commented below Reilly for years had connections to Paris and Liège. There is some evidence that all early pin-fire makers in the UK, Hodges, Lang, Blanche and Reilly, may have been at some point dealing with Liège for actions, barrels, etc. There is one Reilly pin-fire from early 1860's with faint Liège proof marks on it overlain by London proof marks.*25g This will be investigated further and separately.)

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Last edited by Argo44; 06/04/22 11:37 PM.
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