January 2026 Vintageguns article: The earliest days of the British breech-loading game gun.

[Londonshooter]

This is just a masterful and wonderful article on the early days of black powder cartridge guns by CGN's Stephen Nash. A story that starts with the big bang then takes you through a crystal palace before settling in with detective work on the origins of the first British cartridge-firing sporting guns. Spoiler alert: the British were super late to the breechloading party.

www.vintageguns.co.uk/magazine/lefaucheux-lang-and-beringer-

 

[brybenn]

Lefaucheux. What is the correct pronunciation?

 

[dan belisle]

Lefaucheux. What is the correct pronunciation?

I think "le-fo-sho". Could be wrong though. - dan

 

[jpc]

--breechloading party--

Thanks for sharing ☺

 

[Mike Webb]

Good article on a little known topic.

 

[rosebl]

This is just a masterful and wonderful article on the early days of black powder cartridge guns by CGN's Stephen Nash. A story that starts with the big bang then takes you through a crystal palace before settling in with detective work on the origins of the first British cartridge-firing sporting guns. Spoiler alert: the British were super late to the breechloading party.

www.vintageguns.co.uk/magazine/lefaucheux-lang-and-beringer- Retro Bowl

How did being late to adopt breechloading technology affect the development and competitiveness of early British cartridge-firing sporting guns?

 

[Londonshooter]

How did being late to adopt breechloading technology affect the development and competitiveness of early British cartridge-firing sporting guns?

It was a top of my head comment, not a criticism of British makers, and probably spoiler was a poor choice of words. I found it interesting that Stephen points out that the earliest adoption by the Brits of the French system did not happen until 20 years after the first continental breech-loading guns were built.
I'm a fan of the British percussion game gun and I can identify with a sportsman from the 1840's who was quite happy with the technology he had without an interest in those new-fangled contraptions. Likewise I'm a fan of the history and development of the latest and greatest (largely British) black powder cartridge guns of the following 50 years. I shoot mine from that period regularly.
In the January issue is another excellent article on the patents of James Purdey the Younger. Vintageguns online magazine is just an amazing resource for me. In a more perfect world there would be something similar entirely about British muzzleloading sporting shotguns but if it exists I haven't found it.

 

[iron cat]

Lefaucheux. What is the correct pronunciation

I think "le-fo-sho". Could be wrong though. - dan

Yes, that is the correct pronunciation , Dan
Cat

 

[brybenn]

Yes, that is the correct pronunciation , Dan
Cat

Lef awk o was how I thought but im not good at spelling or pronunciation of non simple words
Thank you

 

[Stephen Nash]

How did being late to adopt breechloading technology affect the development and competitiveness of early British cartridge-firing sporting guns?

Interesting question. The French beat the Brits by about 20 years in practical, self-contained cartridges, and it was the French who developed the first 'modern' centrefire cartridges and guns around 1853. The incorporation of a 'base wad' into shotgun cartridges was patented in France in 1849, making cartridges and chambers gas-tight thereafter. The first British breech-loading guns, say, 1854-1860, were a mixed bag. They copied /bought/stole French designs, but makers were not quick to figure out how to handle increased pressures. Mainsprings were weaker than their French counterparts, and chamber sizes and cartridge materials/sizes were far from standardized —what fit in one gun might not fit in another. Cartridge quality differed batch-to-batch, and misfires and split cases were common. However, there was enough public attention and demand to force gunmakers and ammunition makers to improve their game, and by about 1860, many of the problems with breechloading guns were ironed out; it took more years before cartridge ammunition quality improved. It should be remembered that for the all-important 1860s, breech-loading shotguns were a toy of the rich, and while made-up ammunition could be bought from gunmakers, most bought primed hulls in bulk and had their butlers/footmen prepare and load their cartridges with their favourite powders and shot.

There was a LOT going on in those early years, in terms of design, manufacture, chemistry, and social changes. Eventually, Britain caught up and (some might say) surpassed its Continental competitors, but the USA, with its factory production tools and strategies, was also aiming to win the race.

A little-known aspect of the development of British cartridge guns was the push to adopt improved smokeless powders, which happened much earlier than is commonly recognized. I wrote about it here:

https://www.vintageguns.co.uk/magazine/gun-cotton-and-pinfires