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Hello All, just another old guy looking for other old guys with knowledge of Guns by F. Dreyse. I have collected German Schutzen and Drillings for years but I have a puzzle. A Dreyse Combination (Cape Gun) that I think is 28 gauge. Right barrel is full rifled and has set trigger. Can y'all comment please thanksIMG_2571.jpg
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MTR,
I'm another old guy, but unfortunately I know very little about F. Dreyse guns. There are others here that will be more able to help you than I. We are happy to have you with us and happy you are sharing your very interesting gun with us. A 28 ga rifle was fairly common at one time. They are sometimes confused with old 58 caliber American cartridges. Cases for 28 ga. rifles were offered in different lengths. I almost always use "nitro for black" loads in my old black powder rifles, but if I had this one, it would be an exception to that rule. I'm sure someone else will come into the conversation shortly.
Mike -
Thanks Mike, Need to see when they started making the 28 ga.... the chambers are 2 1/2" I think. and the individual Cock/De-Cock firing pins can be cocked like a Blazer. Wood is Extra + and the trigger guard has silver inlay and high relief carving. I would guess about 1870 - 1880 ????IMG_2572.jpgComment
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According to another blog, the 28 ga. has been around from the 1870's, give or take.Comment
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I know some Dreyse collectors I can ask. But some questions must be answered before:
Is the inscription on the barrels "N. Dreyse" (pre - 1864) or "N. v. Dreyse" (post-1864) or "F.v.Dreyse" (post-1867)?
Is the Serial number "1641" or "4641"?
Are there extractors ?
Any inscription on the watertable?Comment
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The name on barrels F. v. Dreyse
S/n is 4641
There are extractors or Lifters
Proofs I can see are Crown R & Crown Usn.jpgIMG_2577.jpgComment
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MTR,
The crown R and crown U proofs show it underwent some significant( unspecified) repair work and a "View" proof after early 1893.
MikeComment
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good info, do you know of any 28 ga. guns, or did they have a metric version back then ?Comment
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I do eventually need to assign a value for an appraisal so any idea. I will guess first $ 2,500.00 - $ 3,000.00 Because of the gauge and it's a combo gun, and condition is VF antique NRA rating ?????Comment
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Your F.v.Dreyse cape gun can be dated to 1867 to 1870, as it still has the separate locks of his father. As the inscription " .64" Randschlussspiegel" shows, it started out as a needlefire, using Franz v. Dreyses improved needlefire cartridges.
These cartridges used a rimmed base wad, (a,b in Zimmer's drawing,) called Randschlussspiegel by F.v.D., for obturation. To this base were glued the paper primer container (d,e) and a thin paper case. The hole for the firing needle was covered by a small guttapercha wad (f) to seal the needle hole against powder gas. The Dreyses then did not use gauge numbers, but gave all measurements as Rhenish/old Prussian Zoll, the German word for inch. But that Zoll was slightly larger than your inch, 26.15 mm instead of 25.4 mm. A Prussian Zoll was 1.0295 inches, so the .64" marking converts to 16.73 mm or .659", pretty close to today's 28 g base diameter.
Much later, after 1893, the gun was converted to use centerfire cases, evidenced by the crown/R = repair and crown/U = inspected proofmarks.Comment
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Axel E. thanks great info. I planed to dump a 28 ga. shell and just pop a primer to make sure it was not still a needle gun, may still do that. The major repair I guess was the conversion from needle. Have you seen one sell lately, I do need an estimated valve?Comment
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Can anyone advise me of an estimated $ range as to the value of this piece. I need to advise the owner so he can decide if he want to sell it?Comment
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