aj aubrey shotgun - The Firearms Forum

poole · 02-19-2006, 09:51 AM

can anyone give the age and or value of an aj aubrey 12 ga. sxs shotgun? Seriel no. 34690. Thank you.

Xracer · 02-20-2006, 07:52 AM

Hi Poole........welcome to TFF.

Your A.J. Aubrey shotgun was made by the Meriden Fire Arms Co. of Meriden, CT for Sears, Roebuck.

The Meriden Fire Arms Co. was a subsidiary of Sears, Roebuck & Co., actually manufacturing guns for sale exclusively by the parent company. They also imported guns from Germany and Belgium under their name. Sears sold the Meriden factory for to Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing company in 1915, and the factory appears not to have made guns again.

The A.J. Aubrey shotguns were made from about 1906 until the factory was sold in 1915, so your shotgun would've been made in that time frame.

They made a number of different models ranging in price from $ 13.85 to $ 26.75.

As for value.....what gauge is it? What kind of condition is it in? Is it complete, do all the parts work? How much of the original finish is left? Does it have any engraving?

FYI.....this a blackpowder era shotgun, made to fire blackpowder shotgun shells ONLY! Do not, under any circumstances try to fire modern smokeless powder shotgun shells in it!

jonathan1173 · 07-18-2009, 03:08 PM

I have a "New White Powder Wonder" 12ga single that some have told me it was a A.J. Aubrey/ Meriden. Serial #50390, choke-bored. Is this an accurate assumption?

RJay · 07-18-2009, 11:37 PM

The Name White Powder Wonder and New White powder Wonder was owned and used by Sears and Roebucks on shotguns they procured through the lowest bidder. Since the term White powder refers to smokeless powder your shotgun was probably made just prior to or just after WWI . Who made it , don't have the foggiest, Both the New White Powder Wonder and the White Powder Wonder was made by Iver Johnson, Crescent, Davenport, Meriden and possibly Stevens. Your photos are not clear enough for these eyes, you might try and match it up with pictures at some of the parts sites such as Numrich or Jack First. Value, While Your shotgun has sentimental value it doesn't have a great deal of monetary value. If it was in excellent condition , I have seen these single barrel trade name shotguns sell for a hundred dollars. Now if you're not confused on the maker , then you haven't been paying attention.

jonathan1173 · 07-19-2009, 09:17 PM

I'm a better photographer than I am a gunsmith! I have it narrowed down to those manufacturers you mentioned. I have been pouring over Numrich catalog for about a week now and have not found a perfect match. Unfortunately Numrich does not have pics of Meriden shotgun. Anyone know of an old Sears gun catolog on website or a photo of meriden shotguns?

02-19-2006, 09:51 AM	#1
poole Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 1	aj aubrey shotgun can anyone give the age and or value of an aj aubrey 12 ga. sxs shotgun? Seriel no. 34690. Thank you. -->

02-20-2006, 07:52 AM	#2
Xracer TFF Admin Staff Mediator Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Minn-eeee-sota, ya, sure, you bet! Posts: 9,144	Re: aj aubrey shotgun Hi Poole........welcome to TFF. Your A.J. Aubrey shotgun was made by the Meriden Fire Arms Co. of Meriden, CT for Sears, Roebuck. The Meriden Fire Arms Co. was a subsidiary of Sears, Roebuck & Co., actually manufacturing guns for sale exclusively by the parent company. They also imported guns from Germany and Belgium under their name. Sears sold the Meriden factory for to Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing company in 1915, and the factory appears not to have made guns again. The A.J. Aubrey shotguns were made from about 1906 until the factory was sold in 1915, so your shotgun would've been made in that time frame. They made a number of different models ranging in price from $ 13.85 to $ 26.75. As for value.....what gauge is it? What kind of condition is it in? Is it complete, do all the parts work? How much of the original finish is left? Does it have any engraving? FYI.....this a blackpowder era shotgun, made to fire blackpowder shotgun shells ONLY! Do not, under any circumstances try to fire modern smokeless powder shotgun shells in it!

07-18-2009, 03:08 PM	#3
jonathan1173 Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 8	Re: aj aubrey shotgun I have a "New White Powder Wonder" 12ga single that some have told me it was a A.J. Aubrey/ Meriden. Serial #50390, choke-bored. Is this an accurate assumption? Attached Images

07-18-2009, 11:37 PM	#4
RJay Advanced Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Arizona Posts: 3,487	Re: aj aubrey shotgun The Name White Powder Wonder and New White powder Wonder was owned and used by Sears and Roebucks on shotguns they procured through the lowest bidder. Since the term White powder refers to smokeless powder your shotgun was probably made just prior to or just after WWI . Who made it , don't have the foggiest, Both the New White Powder Wonder and the White Powder Wonder was made by Iver Johnson, Crescent, Davenport, Meriden and possibly Stevens. Your photos are not clear enough for these eyes, you might try and match it up with pictures at some of the parts sites such as Numrich or Jack First. Value, While Your shotgun has sentimental value it doesn't have a great deal of monetary value. If it was in excellent condition , I have seen these single barrel trade name shotguns sell for a hundred dollars. Now if you're not confused on the maker , then you haven't been paying attention. __________________ RonJames Last edited by RJay; 07-18-2009 at 11:39 PM..

07-19-2009, 09:17 PM	#5
jonathan1173 Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 8	Re: aj aubrey shotgun I'm a better photographer than I am a gunsmith! I have it narrowed down to those manufacturers you mentioned. I have been pouring over Numrich catalog for about a week now and have not found a perfect match. Unfortunately Numrich does not have pics of Meriden shotgun. Anyone know of an old Sears gun catolog on website or a photo of meriden shotguns?