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John Hopkins & Allen Falling Block

mkhornbeckmkhornbeck Member Posts: 4 ✭✭
edited March 2008 in Ask the Experts
Folks I NEED your help I had a person ask me today to place a value range on a John Hopkins & Allen 12 Ga. shotgun that he told me was a falling block. I went to look at the gun and it is a 12 ga. falling block. I can find no reference material on this gun in a shotgun. The barrel markings are John Hopkins & Allen - Pat. June 28-85 and Oct 2-88. The serial number is 24X. It has a 28 1/2" barrel that appears to have not been cut. Steel front bead, Shotgun butt with steel butt plate but also pistol grip with checkering on the pistol grip and the fore piece. Now the strange part is it contains a saddle ring on the right side of the receiver. Everything appears to be factory original but I would say that the checkering could be non factory and done later. The bore is mint so it has not been fired much and contains no rust. The barrel blue is 90%+. The person is in his early 70's and told me that the gun belonged to his grandfather who worked for a railroad company out in the west in the late 1800's. He said that the railroad company gave his grandfather the gun to shoot coyotes when he was working on the train. I can find no other markings on the gun other than what is on the barrel. What are your thoughts?
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Comments

  • swearengineswearengine Member Posts: 1,308 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    $100.00-$175.00 Fjestads Blue Book of gun values.
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  • hrfhrf Member Posts: 857 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Just Hopkins & Allen, no John and the "saddle ring" is on end of a takedown bolt.
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  • mkhornbeckmkhornbeck Member Posts: 4 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Thats what threw us off. The barrel stamping does spell out John Hopkins & Allen and not the typical J. Hopkins and Allen or the typical Hopkins and Allen.
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  • hrfhrf Member Posts: 857 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Can you post a photo of markings? Have never seen any H&A long arm or handgun with John or J. prefix to marking, and according to their history, no John in the partnership:

    "The Hopkins and Allen company was founded in 1868 by S. S. Hopkins, C. W. Hopkins and C. H. Allen. The company experienced financial difficulties and in 1898 was reorganized as the Hopkins & Allen Arms Co. A fire in 1900 hurt them and in 1901, they were forced to merged with the Forehand Arms Company. The manufacture of Hopkins and Allen firearms ceased in 1917 when the plant was taken over by Marlin-Rockwell Corporation for the war time production of Browning automatic rifle components. Hopkins and Allen was well known for the many models of inexpensive revolvers and shotguns."
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  • mkhornbeckmkhornbeck Member Posts: 4 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Thank you for your reply. I do agree with your information and that was why I started to question the falling block when I saw the barrel markings with "John" spelt out. I will get a picture of the barrel markings early next week
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