| Huvius |
| (.416 member) |
| 10/03/13 07:07 AM |
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Gibbs Farquharson #971
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This is the Gibbs Farquharson I recently bought which was mentioned and shown on the "Interesting little Gibbs" thread.
It is quite interesting as well.
This particular rifle is the fourth from the end of production of 974 total.
It was finished and delivered in 1910 and then subsequently rebarreled by Gibbs to 6.5.
It has the dial for a special sight (but not the staff itself) which is let into the comb of the stock. Only two others are known to have this type of sight.
It has a well worn case, but the trade label is what I think is a very rare one with the Bristol address and their Vancouver address. It also has cities listed in which Gibbs had won exhibitions. This label is different than the other case labels from late Gibbs Farquharson rifles and I have to say, is unlike any other Gibbs label I have seen which admittedly is not very many.
I will get more photos up as soon as the weather cooperates.
| texan72 |
| (.275 member) |
| 10/03/13 07:13 AM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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WOW! what a beautiful rifle gratz on such a fine rifle!
| Caprivi |
| (.375 member) |
| 10/03/13 09:55 AM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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Very, very nice. Nothing quite like the Gibbs rendition of a Farquharson.
Quote:
It was finished and delivered in 1910 and then subsequently rebarreled by Gibbs to 6.5.
Any idea of what it was before ??? It is the small action, maybe a .303 or a .360 ???
| Huvius |
| (.416 member) |
| 10/03/13 10:55 AM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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Actually, it is the standard sized frame common to the late actions.
My bet is that it was a 450/400 as you can see that the original barrel shank was larger than the current barrel.
One of the rifles very close to mine was a 450/400 and then rebarreled by Gibbs to 280 flanged.
Mark Crudgington should have the ledger for this rifle so I suspect its original specs can be brought to light. Will look into it.
| DarylS |
| (.700 member) |
| 10/03/13 12:00 PM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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Pretty nice, Huvius - I think you should Will it to me.
| MikeRowe |
| (.333 member) |
| 10/03/13 12:50 PM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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Ben, like I've said before, that rifle keeps getting better looking all the time. I didn't realize it had a case too.
When I examined it, the barrel appeared identical to a Steyr I have, same breech reinforce and taper. It's possibly a takeoff Gibbs used from one of the Steyrs they brought in.
Did you manage to get pictures of the diopter sight from Tom?
| Huvius |
| (.416 member) |
| 10/03/13 01:13 PM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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I am not certain of the origin of the barrel. However, the sights look to have been originally made for a rifle with a larger diameter barrel since there are small gaps at the edges of the bases - I will try to photograph this so you all can see what I mean.
The front sight is very H&H styled to my eye. Not like a Gibbs sight at all. Will include that in my next batch of pictures too.
| Caprivi |
| (.375 member) |
| 10/03/13 01:35 PM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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Well it fooled me...:):):)
Still very cool all around
| Huvius |
| (.416 member) |
| 19/03/13 02:14 PM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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Here are a few more photos.
The front sight is not like any Gibbs sight I have seen. Looks more H&H style to me.
See the gaps at the cornersof the sight base.
I like the checkering over the screws.
| TH44 |
| (.375 member) |
| 20/03/13 11:29 AM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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I take it you have seen the date list in Jonathan Kirton's "The British Falling Block Breechloading Rifle" which gives the first barrel number as 5517 and the second (1920) as 6648 (in .256 Gibbs Flanged)
"Sporting Rifle, Style "C" ordered by W.P.H. Jones for George C.L. Dewhurst, out 30 Jun. 1910"
Several of the previous numbered rifles were .450/.400-3 1/4 inch, others .303. I would have thought the .450/.400 would have been more likely but who knows?
Mark Crudgington must be your first contact, he was very helpful for my Gibbs/W.J. Jeffrey rifle
The extra/additional fittings could have been specified by the owner, or added at the discretion of George Gibbs Ltd.
A superb rifle of the best quality, the chequering on the butt screws is the epitome of the detail put in these fine rifles
TH44
| Rule303 |
| (.416 member) |
| 20/03/13 12:17 PM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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A very nice rifle. One that looks like it could tell a few stories.
Pardon my ignorance but what is the dial on the right side of the Butt Stock?
| Huvius |
| (.416 member) |
| 20/03/13 12:45 PM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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TH44, Mark has emailed the ledger page to me but interestingly, it makes no mention of the original chambering.
I need to look closer at it as it is not too easy to read to see if I can decifer it better.
I also thought it could have been a 450/400 originally but in retrospect, the swath of wood taken from the stock to allow for the sight in the comb would have probably precluded it being a heavy recoiling rifle from the start. Also, the barrel shank on a 303 would have been the same as on the 6.5mm I would think, or at least very close to it.
Rule, the little knob is for the sight. I don't know how it works but I imagine that it may have a little disc with graduations cut out of it so as to lock the staff at the prescribed heights/yardages. Maybe I will take a look some day. It would be nice to restore the sight to original some day.
This rifle doesn't have as deep a grip as the other two with this feature so I can't imagine the sight staff has a whole lot of vertical adjustment. Maybe this is the first Gibbs with this feature and it didn't acheive enough elevation, so the later examples had a grip that curved nearly vertical at the gripcap so a longer staff could be fit. Who knows...
| Rule303 |
| (.416 member) |
| 21/03/13 01:48 AM |
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Re: Gibbs Farquharson #971
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Quote:
TH44, Mark has emailed the ledger page to me but interestingly, it makes no mention of the original chambering.
I need to look closer at it as it is not too easy to read to see if I can decifer it better.
I also thought it could have been a 450/400 originally but in retrospect, the swath of wood taken from the stock to allow for the sight in the comb would have probably precluded it being a heavy recoiling rifle from the start. Also, the barrel shank on a 303 would have been the same as on the 6.5mm I would think, or at least very close to it.
Rule, the little knob is for the sight. I don't know how it works but I imagine that it may have a little disc with graduations cut out of it so as to lock the staff at the prescribed heights/yardages. Maybe I will take a look some day. It would be nice to restore the sight to original some day.
This rifle doesn't have as deep a grip as the other two with this feature so I can't imagine the sight staff has a whole lot of vertical adjustment. Maybe this is the first Gibbs with this feature and it didn't acheive enough elevation, so the later examples had a grip that curved nearly vertical at the gripcap so a longer staff could be fit. Who knows...
Thanks Huvius for that information. It would be nice to know how it works. If you ever do restore the sight please report and pictures.