Just bought my first grrw trapper ser# 69 will post pics when it gets here just wondering who's got one and the details on it. Pics would be great also !
Frontiers: Any record of GRRW selling barrel to Browning for the JB Mountain Rifle?someone already asked the person I had in mind!
These are always fun requests to try and help out you folks. I hear from "muzzlestuffer" every once in a while about a GRRW gun.
Here's what I found in the old GRRW Record Book.
GRRW Trapper Pistol
Ser. No. #69
Barrel: Smooth-bore, .54 cal.
Lock: Siler Lock - percussion
Gunsmith: Greg Roberts
Build Date: 1979
Del. Date: 1980
Sent To: The Powder Horn, New Hall, CA.
Speaking "old GRRW Record Book" is an interesting story in itself. When GRRW closed it's doors the bank guys throw out allot of things including this book. The employees were allowed to go in the building and get their personal things, tools, etc. First employee of GRRW - Carl Walker gathered his personal items then happened to look in the dumpster outside. About half way down in the dumpster he saw paper and look into what he was seeing - the GRRW Record Book had been thrown out by someone, Carl grabbed it taking it home. If he hadn't of retrieved the book the information above would be unknown.
I talked to Carl Walker by phone last night. He said the record book did not include the date when P-69 was finished. He had guessed that it was 1979 from information he had on other guns. I sent him the material I presented above on my P-68 and P-97 pistols for him to consider. I'm waiting for him to look at that material and respond back to my emails.Phil any more info on this yet ?
Do we have a rough idea of know quantity at this point ? I'll bet not all of those guns survived I doubt there's more than fifty or so in existence?
Frontiers: Any record of GRRW selling barrel to Browning for the JB Mountain Rifle?
Thanks
Nit Wit
Would be interesting to put together a log of sorts to determine what guns out there maybe a private type of deal where people can record their grrw guns in a new ledger to have a up to date record of what's out there just a thought.I don't think there is anyway of knowing how many Trappers Pistols have survived. I'm sure there are a bunch that are tucked away in closets, drawers, chests, gun safes, etc. that haven't seen the light of day for decades. Most of the GRRW guns I've seen for sale are from an estate or someone too old and/or ill-health to enjoy them anymore. As time goes by, we'll see more of them come to the market. There are some that are being passed down in the family.
I'm sure some have been lost or destroyed. I heard about one pistol that was so heavily modified by a previous owner that it was being restocked. It's not lost, but it isn't in its original form, either. I've seen more GRRW rifles like this, though.
I've seen several rifles that have had the barrel changed in them. A rare few were worn out by shooting, but most were neglected and bores ruined. Some replaced the perfectly fine factory barrel with something else they thought would shoot better. There is a GRRW Hawken I see frequently at the local gun show that belonged to Ron Long. He replaced the factory barrel with one of his own make that was .40 caliber with a fast twist to shoot slugs for target shooting. Another person I know had his factory barrel replaced with a barrel that had a gain twist. These guns still survive, but I wouldn't call them GRRW guns anymore. They're some kind of hybrid now.
I don't really know, but I think your estimate of fifty pistols still in existence is low. I've got no basis for this other than a gut feel.
Is it possible to get a copy of the ledger entries for our guns it would be a great benefit to have for the future to keep for our records ?I talked to Carl Walker by phone last night. He said the record book did not include the date when P-69 was finished. He had guessed that it was 1979 from information he had on other guns. I sent him the material I presented above on my P-68 and P-97 pistols for him to consider. I'm waiting for him to look at that material and respond back to my emails.
It is possible that the box and the label on the box that the seller has with P-69 has been erroneously influencing the assumed date of manufacture.
That label, and the box itself, may not be from Green River Rifle Works. I don't know how the company packaged and shipped their pistols, but the original boxes I have seen that rifles had been shipped in were plain, inexpensive cardboard boxes. Address and other information was written on these rifle shipping boxes with a Magic Marker (a Sharpie for the younger generations). It is possible that the label on the box is something that a gun shop created some years after the pistol was manufactured.
Would be interesting to put together a log of sorts to determine what guns out there maybe a private type of deal where people can record their grrw guns in a new ledger to have a up to date record of what's out there just a thought.
Is it possible to get a copy of the ledger entries for our guns it would be a great benefit to have for the future to keep for our records ?
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