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H&R Auto Eject Safety
dangt
Member Posts: 11 ✭✭
Jim Hauff and Bill Goforth,
A recently purchased H&R 38 Auto Ejecting revolver has a hammer blocking safety that looks like those on Secret Service Specials made by Iver Johnson. It is marked with the same patent date ( Pat. May 22 1917 ) that I see in Bill Goforth's Iver Johnson book. At first I figured that maybe someone used a Secret Service Special part to repair a stripped out hammer screw threaded hole but the holes look very professionally done and I now think it looks like an original feature.
In _Gun Digest, 1970_ , DeWitt E. Sell wrote an ariticle entitled American Revolver Safeties in which he describes H&R using such a device on limited revolvers. In this article he makes no mention of its use on Iver Johnson/ Sercret Service Special guns. In fact , he attributes the patent to H&R. My own revolver is marked only with typical Harrington and Richardson Company address. It has a 5 inch barrel with original target type , extended grips.
Have you seen other H&R's equipped with such a safety? Do you think mine was originally equipped with one as I am now thinking? Possibly this issue will be covered in the forth-coming H&R book, to which I am eagerly looking forward.
Dan Taylor
A recently purchased H&R 38 Auto Ejecting revolver has a hammer blocking safety that looks like those on Secret Service Specials made by Iver Johnson. It is marked with the same patent date ( Pat. May 22 1917 ) that I see in Bill Goforth's Iver Johnson book. At first I figured that maybe someone used a Secret Service Special part to repair a stripped out hammer screw threaded hole but the holes look very professionally done and I now think it looks like an original feature.
In _Gun Digest, 1970_ , DeWitt E. Sell wrote an ariticle entitled American Revolver Safeties in which he describes H&R using such a device on limited revolvers. In this article he makes no mention of its use on Iver Johnson/ Sercret Service Special guns. In fact , he attributes the patent to H&R. My own revolver is marked only with typical Harrington and Richardson Company address. It has a 5 inch barrel with original target type , extended grips.
Have you seen other H&R's equipped with such a safety? Do you think mine was originally equipped with one as I am now thinking? Possibly this issue will be covered in the forth-coming H&R book, to which I am eagerly looking forward.
Dan Taylor
Comments
if you read the second edition of my iver johnson book you will find i have learned a little more about the hammer block safety. this safety was patented by p. donadio and assigned to the fred biffar co. of chicago. until about the year 2000 this safety was not seen by me on any thing except iver johnson manufactured 'secret service special' marked revolvers. iver johnson made these revolvers for fred biffar co. since that time i have seen this safety on other revolvers one being an H&R, one being H&A and a meriden. all were models sold by fred biffar either as 'secret service specials' or under their own names.
i believe it is safe to say that fred biffar co. (who controled the patent) would add this safety to any revolver they sold. any revolver equipped with this safety was sold by its manufacturer to fred biffar co. and they added the safety to the revolver. the patent number for this safety is 1,227,531 dated may 22, 1917. fred biffar co. was a large mail order/wholsaler form the very early 1900's until sometime in the 1930's and i believe he at one time worked for sears, roebuck & co.
i hope this clear up who the patent belonged to and why other revolver have shown up equipped with it.
dewit sells and i were both wrong in our early thinking. mr. sells was one of the earliest researcher into companies such as iver johnson and H&R another was bill barlow fors.
bill
As 2009 gets nearer, I'm getting more excited about the new H&R book!
Thanks again,
Dan Taylor