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30 Newton
Furseeker
Member Posts: 7 ✭✭
After my fathers passing my brother and I divided up all of his guns. I ended up with a rifle I didn't know my father had. It's a 30 Newton, it has double set triggers, facing the same direction. From what little research I've done on it, I believe it to be a model 1916. It is not drilled and tapped for a scope. The blueing is almost perfect. The only real wear is on the bottom of the magazine floor plate and steel butt plate. The stock is in great shape as well. I'm planning on running a bore scope through it to get a good look at the inside of the barrel. I have a few boxes of old ammo for the gun as well. Does anyone out there know more about these rifles.
Comments
We can't give you any specific help regarding your rifle, without quality photos. There is a "Sticky" at the top of the forum with instructions for posting photos.
The following comes right out of the "The Rifle in America" by Phil Sharp". The "New Newton Rifle" became available in April 1916. "This original Newton was a mighty fine rifle and some of his earlier guns were built with extreme precision". The locking lugs were of interrupted screw-type pattern. "Newton continued to make this rifle for a number of years and the quality of his later arms left a great deal to be desired".
The barrels were made by Marlin and the actions by someone else, Sharp does not say who. Large orders for WWI production caused his contracts to be canceled, so he was forced to mfg. the guns in his own factory. It appears this is when the quality went down.
These guns were made in a number of configurations and calibers. Some research should be quite interesting.
The ammo is probably safe to shoot, however if the ammo is original, particularly in the original boxes, it could be quite valuable. I would not shoot the original ammo just for that reason.
I'm not sure about the brass for reloading but I will look into that.
Larry Wales: lswales@hughes.net
http://www.newtonrifles.com/OrderForm.htm
Here is a link to the NRA show in which he won First place.
http://nrablog.com/post/2009/10/13/Following-up-with-the-NRA-Gun-Show.aspx
In January 1916 Marlin canceled their barrel contract with Newton at which time he obtained his own machinery. His barrel making operation was overseen by none other than Harry Pope.
Incidentally, barrels with segmental rifling mentioned above were marked as such:
O-O Buffalo, N.Y.O-O
square cut rifling was marked with three O's O-O-O
From my limited research on the net it appears to me that these Newton's have a loyal following to this day.
I'm not a collector of old guns. It's nice to have and own a piece of history like that.
But I'm wondering if the old Newton might mean more to somebody else out there.
Best thing to do, IMHO, is to put it on the auction with a lot of quality photos, if you don't intend to keep it. The quality photos are the key to maximum bids, for something as desirable as your Newton. No collector is going to put up big bucks unless they have quality photos of what they are bidding on.
That said, the way things are in the toilet now with the economy, it would probably be best if you waited awhile before putting the Newton, on the block.
If you haven't already figured it out by now, from the stuff you find on the internet, Newton was one of those early firearms geniuses that brought this country, commercially anyways, into the modern 20th century of firearms. He pretty much gets credit for developing the .250-3000 and .300 Savage cartridges which were, in their day, sales kings.
His rifle company didn't fare as well simply due to timing. When he got it going full bore was when we were entering WWI. Material and manpower had to be dedicated to that. From what I've seen, the .30 Newton is a beltless, rimless case slightly larger in diameter than the .30-06. And about the same power, or slightly less than the .300 H&H. Developed in 1913 and sold initially as the Adolph express, it bacame the .30 Newton when He opened is own company. From what I understand Newton was a genius in the firearms design forum, but he wasn't much of a businessmann.
Anyhow, here's a link (you may have read it already):
http://tinyurl.com/yzxf2yj
My own take on him is that he was way ahead of his time and anything he designed or his company produced is going to have a good value. I think if it was your father's rifle I would hang on to it for sentimental reasons.