Rare Iron Frame Robinson 1st Model Repeating Rifle by Adirondack Firearms Co. (Model 1870)

Description:
Serial #28, .38 RF, 28" octagon barrel with a very good, bright bore that has some minor freckling within the grooves towards the muzzle. This handsome rifle was built on Orville Robinson’s May 24, 1870, patent and utilizes a manually-operated bolt that rides within a rectangular mortise that opens at the rear of the receiver. The bolt is manually retracted by the firer via knurled "ears" that project rearward and flank the centrally-hung hammer. The hammer must then be thumbed back to fully cock the action. The barrel and magazine tube assembly retain about 30-40% of the original blue with the balance faded to a mellow plum-brown patina with silvering at the muzzle and along the edges of the barrel facets. The iron frame retains a commensurate amount of original blue and the balance turned to a dull plum-brown color with some silvering along the edges. A period German silver front sight blade and a more modern semi-buckhorn rear sight are installed. The walnut buttstock is in very good shape, with minor handling marks and small blemishes present in the original varnish, and there is a small chip missing at the toe. The elaborate brass trigger guard and buttplate are in fine shape with an even, ruddy-ochre patina throughout. This is a fine example of a very rare, practical early American repeating rifle design, and would make a great addition to any collection. Antique ;;b>Orville Moses Robinson was an upstate New York gunsmith and inventor who received three US patents for breech-loading and repeating firearms. In 1870 Robinson, in partnership with A.S. Babbitt and two others, formed the Adirondack Firearms Co. to manufacture rifles based on his patents at their manufactory in Plattsburgh, NY. The firm is known to have employed Daniel Wilkinson (possibly J.D. Wilkinson, another upstate New York gunmaker and inventor)) and Robinson’s son, William (who would’ve been about 10 years old at the formation of the company!) Adirondack Firearms Co. operated until 1874, ultimately producing what is thought to be slightly fewer than 1,000 rifles of all types, when it was purchased by the Winchester Repeating Arms Co. and permanently shut down. The Adirondack Firearms Co., and Robinson’s repeating rifle designs, represent an interesting footnote in the then rapidly advancing field of repeating breechloading long guns. ;

Antique: Yes

Price: $9,195.00