Hi, Jim Hauff and guys,
I picked up this rare collector's item yesterday and it is marked Iver Johnson so I am sure you know all about it. I am sure it is valuable as it is much rarer than a common gun like the Colt Paterson.
Seriously, it is an IJ small frame barrel installed on a frame of unknown make, apparently as a proof of concept for a, well, unique cylinder stop system. The gun is in poor shape but probably was not that way when the work was done. The additional top strap part that holds the mechanism is riveted and soldered on. The IJ barrel has been altered, then fitted and pinned into the frame. To make things more "modern" the inventor installed a coil mainspring. All in all, a decent piece of workmanship. The idea seems to work, though the gun itself would have been obsolete when it was worked over.
The spur trigger is conventional, as is the cylinder pin, but the barrel had to be drilled out to accept it. The hammer is made for a rimfire cartridge, and the cylinder will accept .32 RF rounds. No, I did not fire it!
The gun is out of time (naturally), but the idea should have worked at least as well as some other cylinder stop systems.
Jim
I picked up this rare collector's item yesterday and it is marked Iver Johnson so I am sure you know all about it. I am sure it is valuable as it is much rarer than a common gun like the Colt Paterson.
Seriously, it is an IJ small frame barrel installed on a frame of unknown make, apparently as a proof of concept for a, well, unique cylinder stop system. The gun is in poor shape but probably was not that way when the work was done. The additional top strap part that holds the mechanism is riveted and soldered on. The IJ barrel has been altered, then fitted and pinned into the frame. To make things more "modern" the inventor installed a coil mainspring. All in all, a decent piece of workmanship. The idea seems to work, though the gun itself would have been obsolete when it was worked over.
The spur trigger is conventional, as is the cylinder pin, but the barrel had to be drilled out to accept it. The hammer is made for a rimfire cartridge, and the cylinder will accept .32 RF rounds. No, I did not fire it!
The gun is out of time (naturally), but the idea should have worked at least as well as some other cylinder stop systems.
Jim