Double Rifle Gunsmiths or Gunmakers?

M275

Well-Known Member
I have an old British hammerless double rifle that's causing problems, does anyone know of any gunsmiths or gunmakers who could diagnose and repair it? It could require re-barrelling but I'd like an expert opinion or two before having to pay for that, assuming I could find someone capable of doing it at price I could afford. I'm not exactly in the Holland & Holland or Purdey price league.

There are good bolt-action people and good shotgun people, but I haven't heard of anyone experienced with double rifles.
 
You could also try Ivor Dadswell, Old Mill Guns, Petworth, W.Sussex. He specialises in large calibre rifles.
 
Try Rupert at R J Blackwell they build a few doubles or Wilson and Wilson in ramsgate kent big dealer in doubles
 
What calibre? Headspacing on a double rifle firing rimmed cartridges is, obviously, off the front of the rim. So the other checks to be made initially might be:

1) It may be, perhaps, that this has been converted from a rimmed cartridge...let's say .300 H & H Flanged Magnum to the latterly more easily obtainable .300 H & H Magnum?

2) It may be that it is in one of those calibres where X used a thicker rim than did Y on their proprietary version of what, otherwise, is the exact same cartridge.

3) It may have been altered to take a thicker "basic" cartridge that is then formed into the cartridge that it is actually chambered in but the rim left the same.

So the initial question would be what is it supposedly chambered for? And by what maker is the rifle made.

I'd give a call to Kynamco in Hertfordshire who might initially be useful to chat to about issues that may be cartridge related and a good starting point for contacts if it's not that?
 
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Paul Roberts is your man, he’s about as local as you can hope for (relatively speaking) and what he doesn’t know about doubles isn’t worth forgetting, give him a shout.
 
Many thanks for the help, I'll post some more details once it's been properly examined and a course of action worked out.
 
The other chap to try is Diggory Hadeoke at Vintage Guns - Vintage Guns.

Or speak with Phil Turner at Bozzards - Products - he has done work for me in the past and realistic at what can, cannot and needs to be done.

At risk of teaching granny to suck eggs, doubles head space off the Rim, rather than the shoulder in a bolt action rifle with rimless cartridges. I have had problems in the past with once fired cartridges - the case lengthens to fit the chamber. When resizing its quite easy just to stop when die hits the shoulder, rather going that last 1/2 mm to bump the shoulder back. In a break action this is enough to stop the gun snapping closed. You wouldn't notice this with the camming effect on a bolt action.

The gun might need rejointing to bring it back on face, and depending on how this is done then it might require a slight machining on the extractors / chamber.

If the barrels are shagged, then you might get better value from overseas - try Gerhard at http://www.zimmermann-waffen.info/40641.html
 
Lee Butler is the man you want he’s very capable and builds fantastic doubles I’ll be guideing a lad with one of his on Thursday everyone he builds is stunning but also very functional
 
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