Charles Lancaster, 151 New Bond Street, London
16 bore Back action, Sidelock Ejector
no. 5175
Date of manufacture: 1882

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Heritage Guns' Comment

This gun is an extremely rare, small bore, early ejector from this preeminent gun maker and furthermore is in unusually fine condition. It has survived 130 years of use fantastically well with most of its engraving still in fine crisp condition and we believe that the stock and forend wood is the original which is a credit to the original materials and reflects the lack of abuse. All in all, this is a very important gun for any enthusiast of the very best and most interesting products of the London gun trade and represents a very rare opportunity.
The gun has been very recently re-proofed for 2 3/4" cartridges which makes it a safe and pretty gun for game and clays.

WE REGRET THAT THIS GUN IS NOW SOLD. IF YOU ARE SEARCHING FOR A SIMILAR GUN, PLEASE CONTACT US.

The action is of Needham's design and features:
Double triggers bolted by an automatic top tang safety slide;
'Leg of Mutton' back action locks; Interceptor bents;
Westley Richards style top lever opening with a 'dolls head' rib extension;
Needham's patent ejector and split extractors
and Hacket's snap-on forend catch.
Gun weight 6lb 11oz
Engraving style Best Foliate Scroll with Fluted fences.
Lockplates engraved 'CHARLES LANCASTER PATENT'.
Top rib inlaid with '1' in white metal
and engraved 'PATENT CARTRIDGE EJECTING HAMMERLESS GUN'.
Trigger pulls measure approximately: Front trigger 4 lbs Rear trigger 4 ½ lbs
The Damascus to Steel sleeved barrels are 28 1/2" in length, chambered for 2 3/4" (70mm) cartridges and are of brazed 'dovetail' lump construction with soft soldered ribs. Top rib is of the concave game type.
London reproof for 70mm nitro powder cartridges in 2011.

Approximate barrel measurements at date of publication:

 
Nominal Proof Size
Bore Diameter 9" from Breech
Minimum Wall Thickness
Choke Constriction
Right Barrel
16.8mm (0.661")
0.662"
0.027"
0.008" (IC)
Left Barrel
16.8mm (0.661")
0.662"
0.027"
0.020" (Mod)

Straight Hand Stock and Splinter Forend are crafted from highly figured walnut. We believe that the stock and forend wood are the originals or antique replacements, judging by the very high quality of the inletting. There is one inlet repair to the forend wood and it features an engraved metal tip. The stock is cast off for a right-handed shot and is fitted with a chequered 1" ebonite extension. There is no metal oval.
Highly Figured Walnut

 

The bold 15 lines per inch chequering has been freshened and is to normal sidelock pattern that closely follows the outline of the lock plate. The stock is finished with a traditional linseed oil based preparation as used on best guns by one of the top English makers. This finish uses no grain fillers to achieve its deep, smooth lustre, only many hours of alternate build and flatting off of the surface.

Approximate stock measurements at date of publication:

Pull to Heel
Pull to Bump
Pull to Centre
Pull to Toe
14 7/16"
14 9/16"
14 1/2"
14 7/8"
Drop at Comb
Drop at Face
Drop at Heel
1 3/8"
1 5/8"
2 1/4"
Cast at Comb
Cast at Heel
1/8" (approximate)
3/8" (approximate)

For the purposes of these measurements, 'Drop at Face' is the 'drop' measurement taken on a line perpendicular to the
line joining the trigger and centre of the butt at approximately 8" from the trigger (front trigger on a double trigger gun).

Patents Exhibited include:
Joseph Needham's ejector & extractor patent no. 1204 of 1874;
Westley Richards's bolting patent no. 1572 of 1871;
Hacket's forend fastener patent no. 964 of 1878.