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African Trade Gun

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ozark57

45 Cal.
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
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I picked up a Belgium made African trade gun today at a local shoot. It's a smooth bore flinter about .16 ga. Great shape. I don't know much about these guns. Lock looks like one from a Bess. I'll post pictures soon.
 
I had one a few years back. I picked it up at a show and thought it was a wall hanger repro. Turned out after a good cleanup that it was an 8 bore. The lock wasn't great, the bore was smooth and it looked like it had not been fired. I found reference to these things in an old Stoeger catalogue. The end of the story is that it shot pretty good, with qute a thump, and someone else is enjoying it now.
Mark
 
I've held one, never shot it. I have heard that these were in production until quite recently, as Africans were not generally allowed to own modern guns pretty much right through the colonial period (which shifted significantly in 1960). So there was a market for such guns.
 
I sent the Stoeger ad with the gun when I sold it but I want to say that it was an ad from 1954-55. I don't know how much longer they were produced. The one I had was Belgian proofed and imported by Kirkland Arms.
Mark
 
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Here's the pictures. Bore looks real good. Sparks good.
 
Sweet,A friend of mine has one that looks a lot like that except it's a whole lot more beat up.He pulled the breech plug and it looked good.Needs a bit of fine tuning on the lock.Gotta see if he ever refinished it.
 
that's one of the nicest ones I've seen most look like they were built in a middle school shop class.
 
I know a guy who has one of these except it has a more French look to the lock. He turned it into a shortened French musket and used it for reenactment.
 
I would like to find one of these and fine tune it for use. Any one out there have one for sale, or know someone who does? Thanks in advance, TOM
 
I know someone who had one for sale - not sure if he still does or not. I think he was asking around $450 and that the gun was about a 20 gauge. If you PM me your contact info I'll pass it along to him.
 
ozark57 said:
I picked up a Belgium made African trade gun today at a local shoot. It's a smooth bore flinter about .16 ga. Great shape. I don't know much about these guns. Lock looks like one from a Bess. I'll post pictures soon.


I once read a story in some gun magazine G&A maybe.
A bush African was making trade musket like guns using old steering columns from scrap vehicles for barrels.
They had a photo of him shooting one by holding it at arms length with the non-shooting hand gripping the buttstock. We can speculate as to why this shooting style was adopted.
These cheap Belgium guns are better than the home made variety. But not something I would shoot.
The arms of this type shipped to Africa were not particularly good quality. There was little chance that the injured would come to Belgium and get payback.

Dan
 
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