Re: Please Help ID this thing it's driving me insane!!! Archived Message
Posted by SGT on July 24, 2008, 5:32 pm, in reply to "Re: Please Help ID this thing it's driving me insane!!!"
"It does have line engraving, around the edges of the locks. There's a sort of figure eight looking pattern on the release lever and where the lug meets the receiver there's some more light line engraving as well as on the trigger guard. Nothing fancy though. There's something sort of resembling a vine or something that comes up around the barrel lug pin. The hinge pin itself has an 8 pointed star engraved into it".
Simple line engraving is typical for Quality/Grade 2 guns from this period; and without pulling out my references, I believe I am correct in stating that the Quality/Grade 2 was the lowest grade hammerless gun Hunter cataloged in 1890.
"Thanks for alerting me to the engineering drawings, I measured the breech balls and though they look somewhat like the Fulton ones, they're 3/4's of an inch in profile which is what the Syracuse made guns are(according to the drawings)".
Given that early Hunter made Smith guns are found with several different size/style frames, the way to distinguish a Syracuse produced frane from one produced by Hunter is not by measuring the size of the breech balls (breech ball size varied by gauge and weight of gun ordered); but rather by examining the location of the top of the lock/side plate in relation to the back side of the breech balls. Lockplates on Syracuse addressed/made guns will almost touch the back side of the breechballs; whereas those on Fulton addressed (Hunter made guns) will be set back from the lockplates approximately 1/4 inch. Check the grades photos button; but judging by lockplate position, your gun definately has the later Fulton frame and is not the very early Syracuse style.
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