Dave allowed me 5 years leeway to edit because of Reilly line, et.al. 5 years has expired for the first page and I can't add words. Will start adding here:
=========================== French - English ===========================
A
Abîmé(e) - spoiled/ruined/damaged
Acier m - steel
…Acier chocolat - excessively soft steel (Belgian trade vernacular)
…Acier damas (also "damas") - damascus steel
…Acier revenu - tempered steel
…Acier trempé - quenched steel
Alésage -boring (barrels)
l’anglaise bouquet - English rose (engraving term
Argent m - silver
...Vieil argent - old silver
Ailes f - side clips
Alliage - Alloy
Âme du canon f - bore
Amorce f - primer
Amortisseur m - pad (as in buttpad)
Ancien - old
Anson et Deeley; Anson m - box lock
Arabesque f - scroll (engraving)
Arme f - weapon
Arme de poing f - hand gun
Arme d’épaule f - long gun
Arme à percution centrale f - centerfire gun
Armé - cocked
Armurier m - gun shop owner
Armurerie f - gun shop, not a maker, historically a body armor vendor
Arquebusier m - Gun maker (abbreviated as "Arqr")
Artisan, artisane - artisan (male, female)
Avantage (à droite, à gauche) - cast-off, cast-on
B
Baguette de nettoyage f - ramrod, cleaning rod
Banc d’épreuves m - proof house
Bande f - rib
…Prolongement de la bande - extension of the rib (to the receiver)
…Bande ventilée - ventilated rib
…Bande a tenon d'accrochage s'encastrant dans la bascule - doll’s head
…Band de visee - ventilated rib
Balle f - bullet or slug
Bascule f - receiver/action
…Bascule ronde - round receiver
Basculeur m - tradesman putting the action together
Bec m - heel
…Bec de Crosse - heel of the butt plate
Bille acier f - steel shot
Bois m - wood
...Bois de noyer - walnut
......Noyer blond - blond walnut
...Bois d'érable - maple
Boite a Fusil - gun case
Boitier m - housing
Bouche f - muzzle
Bouchon de canon - bullet starter (muzzle loader)
Bouchon de percuteur - Firing pin bushing
Bouquets (gravure à) - rose engraving
Bourre - wad
Bourrelet--rim (of shell)
Brasé - brazed
...brasé sur - brazed on
Bretelle - sling
...Bretelle à enrouleur - retractable sling (like on a Ideal)
...Brettelle retractable - retractable (built in) sling
Brevet - Patent
Breveté(e) - patented
...Breveté(e) SGDG - model patent ("sans garantie du gouvernement")- Patented Without Guarentee of the Government". French distinction that designates a technical patent in the U.S. sense, as opposed to trademark and the old design patent number system that dealt only with name and shape.
Brisure, à - Breakage
Broche - pinfire
Bronze - bronze; (copper and tin alloy)
Bronzage - barrel blacking
Brosse - gun cleaning bore brush
Busc - comb (for a stock)
C
Cale - wedge (in a double rifle), or spacer between barrels
Calibre - caliber
Canon - barrel
...Canons frettés - sleeved barrel set (externally sleeved or jacketed, built-up barrels)
...Canons juxtaposés - SxS double barrel
...Canon lisse - smoothbore
...Canons miroir - mirror finish bores
......Canonnerie miroir - ditto
...Canons mixtes (Arme à) - cape gun
...Canon monobloc - Barrel set made in one block of steel
...Canon poli - honed barrel
...Canon rayé - rifled barrel
...Canon rayé dispersant - Rifled spreader barrel (usually Euro woodcock guns)
...Canons superposés - over/under
Canonnier - barrel maker
Capuche - metal piece surrounding the Deeley forearm push button
Carabine - rifle, carbine
Carabine de salon - indoor rifle
Carabine de jardin - light rifle, rook rifle
Carnier - Shotshell pouch
Cartouches à plombs - shot shell
Cartouches à balle - slug shell
Cartouche de rechargement - reloader
Chambrage - chamber(ing)
Chambre - chamber
Chêne - Oak
Chargette - powder measure
Chasse - Hunting
Chasse (m) sous Bois - Upland woods hunting
Chevrotines - buck shot (large shot 2 - 000)
Chien - hammer
…Crête de chien - hammer spur
…Chiens extérieurs - external hammers
Choke - Choke
…Cylindrique - cylinder choke (synonym: lisse)
…Demi choke - Modified choke
…Plein - full (as in choke)
Chromage - chromed bores
Chromé(e) - chrome plated
Ciselures sur les coquille - shell motif on fences (engraving term)
Clé - key
…Clé Beringer - type of underlever also called Pontet-Serpent
…Clé de bascule - top lever key
…Clé devant pontet - underlever (Lefraucheux).
…Clé d’ouverture - opening key
…Clé longueur - side lever
…Clé sur le dessus - top lever key
Coffret - case (to put the gun in)
Contre-platines - side-plates
Convergence - regulation (shotgun or double rifle)
Coquille - action ball (fences)
...Coquilles de la Bascul - fences
. .Coquilles ciselures - shell motif on fences (engraving term)
Coquille de fusil de chasse - empty shotgun shell casing; Husk or Hull
Corne - horn
Corps de platines - side plates
Cran de sécurité - Safety catch
Crête de chien - hammer spur
Creusot? - hammered? (A mining/metallurgy center but believe it may mean "hammered' in the useage I saw.)
Crochet - barrel lump
...Crochets d’attache - barrel lump
...Crochets ajustés en queue d’aronde - dovetailed lump
...Crochet du canon - same
...Crochet encastré - dovetailed lump (embedded)
...Crochets rapportés - non integral lumps
Crosse - stock
...Crosse arab - - Stock with a smoothly tapering neck to a sinuous butt plate
...Crosse anglaise - English straight stock
...Crosse à joue - stock with cheek piece
...Crosse de borgne - crossover stock
...Crosse demi-pistolet - half pistol grip stock resembling a "Prince of Wales"
...Crosse pistolet - pistol grip stock
Crossier - stock maker
Creusot? - hammered? (Perhaps referring to a town known for forging.
Cuir - leather (for the sling)
...Cuir surpiqué - double layered sown leather
Culot - Brass base of the shotgun shell
Culture cynégétique - hunting culture
Cuivre - copper
Culasse - standing breech or bolt
Culasse mobile - movable breech (i.e. on a Darne)
Cylindrique - cylinder choke (synonym: lisse)
D
Damasquiné - damascened
Dans l'état - original
Dans son jus - original, never modified or restored
Déboulé (m)? - unleashed - in the wild?
Demi-armé - half cocked (for hammer guns)
Demi-bloc - chopper lump
Détente - trigger
...Double détente - double trigger
...Monodétente - single trigger
......Monodétente sélective - selective single trigger
Devant - forearm
. .Devant à pompe - Pump gun forearm
D'occasion - used
Doré - gold filled
Double détente - double trigger
Double verrou de fermeture - double locking bolt
Douille - Shotshell husk
Drageoir---rim cuts. Syn: feuillure.
E
Ébène - ebony
Écouvillon - cleaning rod and implement
...Écouvillon en laiton - brass barrel (cleaning) brush
Écusson - shield (on a stock)
Éjecteurs automatiques - automatic ejectors
Éjecteur/extracteur a grand développement - ejector contact point on the hull is over 1/4 of the circumference. Normally high-end guns only.
Emouler de Canons de Fusil- Barrel Grinder/Polisher (archaic)
Empreinte (f) de chambre - chamber cast
Enfoncements - dents
Entaillage - inletting
. . un entaillage droit - straight inletting
. . a bascule entaillee - insetted action
. . double entaillage - double inletting
Épaisseur - thickness
Épaisseur des parois du canon - Barrel walls thickness
éponge - bore cleaning swab
Épreuves - proof
...Banc d’épreuves - proof house
...double épreuve - double proof
...triple épreuve - triple proof
...épreuve ordinaire - version of normal proof
...épreuve ordinaire - modern day "triple proof"
Érable - maple (wood)
État - condition
...État mécanique - mechanical condition
...État moyen - so so condition; medium condition
...État mauvais - bad condition
…Pas en bon état - not in good condition
...État neuf - new condition
Étranglement - choke
Etui - Gun case; gun slip
Express (also double "express") - double rifle
Extracteur - extractors
F
Fabricant (also abbreviated as "Fabt") - maker
Fausses-platines - side-plates
Faux axes de platines - false side-plate pins
Faux-corps - false side plates; i.e. contra-platines
Fermeture en “T" - Jones underlever also known as "T" Anglais
Feu central, arme à - centerfire (gun)
Feuillet(s) - sight leaf
Feutrine - baize (gun case)
Finition - finish
…Finition argent - silver finish
…Finition blue - blued finish
…Finition canon de fusil - gunmetal finish
…Finition chromée - chrome finish
…Finition nickelée - nickel finish.
…Finition noir - blued finish
Forage - bore (barrel)(boring)
Forgé(e) - forged
Foudre(s) - 4 lightening bolts - St Etienne proof mark for guns finished when proofed 1923-39
Fournie - not sure (concentrated perhaps?)
Fourreau - Leg-o-mutton case
Frères - Brothers
Frette - monoblock;
Fusil - firearm (normally a shotgun but also a military rifle)
...Fusil à broche - pinfire gun
...Fusil à canon scié - sawed off shotgun
...Fusil à chargement par la bouche - muzzle loader
...Fusil à chien - hammer gun
...Fusil de chasse - shotgun
...Fusil juxtaposé - double gun
... Fusil juxtaposé artisanal Français - Artisanal French double gun (quite often maker not known)
...Fusils lever-action - lever action gun
......Fusil à levier de sous-garde - ditto
......Fusil levier sous garde - ditto
...Fusil à percussion - muzzle loading, percussion rifle
...Fusil à piston - percussion gun
...Fusil à pompe - pump gun (also "branlette" in French hunting vernacular)
...Fusil à silex - flintlock
G
Gâchette - sear; trigger
Gâchette interruptrice - safety sear; cocking sear
Gâchette facile - trigger happy
Garnisseur - tradesman assembling barrels, ribs and lumps
Gerbe - pattern
Gerbe de Plombe - shot pattern
Graveur - engraver
Gravure en pointes d’epinee - thorn point engraving
Gravure(s) - engraving(s)
Grenadière - sling swivel
Grenailles - smaller shot (in a shotgun shell) (4-9)
Goupille - round pin
Goupille de charnière - hinge pin
Guidon - front sight
... protège-guidon - sight hood
Guilloché(e) - ornamented with geometric design
...Vis guillochées - ornamented screws
H
Hausse - back sight (originally adjustable type)
I
Illisible - illegible
J
Jaspage - case coloring
Jaspé(e) - case colored
Jaugé - guage
Jaugé à - gauged, measured at
Jauge d’alésage - bore gauge
Jaugé de chambre - chamber measuring gage
Jeu - play (in the sense of movement)
...Jeu dans la bascule - (play in the receiver)
...Sans jeu - without play
Joue - cheekpiece
...Joue allemande - German style cheeckpiece
Juxtaposé - side by side
L
Laine d’acier - steel wool
Laiton - Brass: alloy - 70 parts copper; 30 parts zinc
Lefaucheux à clé - type of underlever
Levier - Lever
Levier d'armement - cocking lever; chagring lever
Levier de sécurité (ou sécurité) - safety lever
Levier de sécurité (ou sécurité) à la poignée - grip safety
Levier de sous garde - cocking underlever (Winchester type)
Levier sous la longuesse - underlever
Levier à volute - type of underlever
Lisse - smooth (as in smoothbore). Also sometimes a syn. for cylinder bore.
Longuesse - forestock
Longuesse à poussoir - Anson forend (forestock with pushrod release)
Longuesse-sous-main amovible - underlever
Loupe d’accrochage - doll’s head
Lunette - scope
M
Maniable - easy to the hand/handy
Moitié armé - half cocked (for hammer guns)
Mono-canon - single barrel
Mono-coup - single shot
Monodétente - single trigger
Manouvrable - handy
Monteur à bois - stocker
Moulage (m) de chambre - chamber cast
Moulé(e) - molded
Mouture - grind; version
Muni - fitted
N
Nickelé(e) - nickel plated
Noix - Hammer axis
NY d'Imphay? - (some sort of alloy?)
O
Oeilleton - peep sight
Or - gold
...Or fin - fine gold
Doré - gold plated or gold applique
Oreille - Sideclip
Organes de visée - sights
Orné(e) - ornamented
Ouverture par clé devant pontet - underlever
Ouverture sous pontet - underlever
Oxydation - oxydation
P
Paire - pair of guns
Pente - drop
...Pente au busc - drop at comb
...Pente au talon - drop at heel
Percussion centrale - center percussion, center fire (hammer gun)
Percuteur - Firing pin
Pièce d’armement – Cocking dog (American); Cocking sear
Pierrage - honing
Pique - pitted
...Piqûres - pitting
...Petites piqûres - light pitting
Planchette - back sight folding leaf
Plaque de couche - butt plate
Plaqué(e) - plated
Platine - side lock
...Platine Holland - front lock as made by H&H or others
...Platine arrière - back lock
...Platine avant - front lock
...Platine démontable - hand removable sidelock
...Platine encastrée - embedded locks
...Platine rebondissante - rebounding lock
Plein--full (as in choke)
Plomb - lead (shot)
Poids de la détente. - trigger pull
Poignée (f) - pistol grip, grip
Poinçon - stamp
...Poinçons réglementaires - legal stamps
...Poinçons d'épreuve - proof marks
Poire à poudre - powder horn; powder flask
Poli(e) - polished
Polisseur - barrel grinder
Polissage en long - longitudinal honing
Poncée huile (Crosse) - sanded with oil finish (stock)
Pontet - trigger guard
…Pontet-Serpent - type of underlever also called Clé Beringer
…Pontet à volute - trigger guard with volute in front
Portée - range (as in shooting distance)
Poudre - powder (gunpowder)
...Poudre blanche--smokeless powder
...Poudre pyroxylée - smokeless powder (French)
...Poudre sans fumée - smokeless powder
...Poudre Vive - smokeless Powder ( Belgian)
Poussoir - push rod (forestock)
Propre - clean, nice
Q
Quadrillage - Checkering
Quadrilleur - Checkerer
Queue d’aronde - dovetail (old French for"swallow tail")
R
Rallonge de crosse - stock extension
Rayé à chargement par la bouche - muzzle loader rifle
Rayures - striation or shallow rifling
Réamorçoir - shotshell priming tool
Recuit - annealed
Recul - recoil
Relevé - cocked
Relime - steel parts shaping (by chisel or file)
Relime soignee avec filets - double line with breaks (engraving term)
Relimeur - tradesman shaping the action and other parts
Repoussé en - decoratively hammered
Revenu - Tempering
Ressort - spring
…Ressort à lames - Coil spring
…Ressort spirale - spiral spring
Restauration - restoration
Réticule - Reticle (scope)
Rinceaux - leaves and branches (engraving)
Rosaces - rosettes (engraving term)
Rouille - rust
...Rouille légère - light rust
S
Sabot - butt pad
Sabot - sabot projectile
Scène de chasse - hunting scene (engraving)
Sécurité - safety
Sécurité à la poignée - grip safety
Sécurité dès qu'elle est arméee - safety automatically on when cocked
Serré - tight
Sertissage - crimp/crimping
SGDG - see Brevete SGDG
Similor - alloy; 100 parts Red copper; 12 parts zinc
Soudure - solder
…Soudure d’argent/à l'argent - Silver solder
…Soudure à l’étain - Tin solder (lead and tin mixed)
…Soudure de cuivre - Copper brazing (red coper, old silver, antimony, zinc, etc.)
Stéphanois - from Saint-Etienne region
Successeur (also abbreviated to "succr") - Successor to
Souplesse de la gâchette - trigger pull
Sûreté - safety
T
"T" Anglais - Jones underlever also known as “Fermeture en T"
Talon - heel
Talon de crosse - upper point of the butt plate
Tempérage - tempering
. .Procédé de trempage - tempering process.
Tete de Poupée (f) - Doll's Head
Tirant de Crosse - Stock attachment bolt
Tire-cartouche - extracteur
Tirette - action rod
Tombac - alloy; 16 parts copper; 1 part zinc; 1 part tin
Tonnerre - place where the ignition happens
Trempé (past tense from verb Tremper) - quenched - hardened
Traité thermiquement - Heat treated
Triple verrou Greener - Triple lock of a double Purdey bite and a Greener 3rd
Triple verrou Purdey” - Triple lock in case of a Purdey nose 3rd bite.
Triple verrou - triple lock
Triplette - 3-gun set
Tromblon - blunderbuss (or bad shotgun)
Tube - barrel tube
Type anglais - English style
U
Usiné - machined
V
Valise - Case
Verrou - lock, also bolt
Verrou de fermeture - closing bolt
Verrou vertical - rising bite
Verrouillage - locking system
Vernis - varnish
Vis - Screw
Last edited by Argo44; 04/27/24 11:51 PM.
