Need help: really old stuff

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smellie

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Hi, Guys!

Sorry I haven't been on but I got lost on a mid-Atlantic knarr back in 985 and couldn't escape for 1,800 pages. But the thing is written, at least.

In my sneaking about, picked up a trio of real oldies and I have serious queries about all three of them. So, here goes:

1. Does anyone have a source for a tumbler axis pin for a Martini-Henry Mark II? This is a Zulu War type, not altered later, just badly beaten-about.

2. On a Pattern 1853 rifle, Tower make, 1857 date, what is the significance of BOND on the inside of the lockplate (very tiny letters, all caps)?

3. On a Mark III Snider, evidently BSA make (they did the action, everything else is Birmingham proofed and inspected, correct Government markings but NO stock stamp or lock cypher (or date, for that matter))......
what is the significance of these stamps on the left side of the barrel, just below the rear sight bed. Stamps are 1/8-inch in height, quite plain, not done at the factory but certainly contemporary with the issue of the rifle. They are NOT modern. They look like this: N S
D I R

I seriously doubt that there's any faking going on; these came out of a barn, I'll post some pictures once I get the red paint off them and a couple of pounds of dirt.


One more matter: I REALLY need a single round of .276 for the Pattern '13 rifle and a single round of .280/.30 for the EM-2. Writing an article, as you might have surmised. If no-one has a round to let go, is it possible to obtain at least a photo, with a .303 and a .30-'06 included for comparison?

Verily, I grovel.

Thanks for your help, all.
 
Aaarrrrrgh!

First line capital N followed by capital S, quarter inch of space between them.

Second line is BELOW first line, everything centered nicely, and it is D followed by I followed by R and they, also, are separated. If someone were to beat the lines together, likely they would read like this: D N I S R..... and even I know that a Snider might be big, but there are not too many dinosaurs that you could flatten with one.

Again, thanks.
 
"N . S" on the barrel means Native Service. Usually underneath that would be initials for the country of service (ex. my MH Mk II. has N E P for Nepal). No clue what country DIR is. Native Service weapons tended to be second or third grade that were not suitable for the British and were shipped off to the colonies.
 
RE: 2) BOND lock & 3) N S / D I R

Was " BOND" a known lock maker of that era? As a Mk III are we talking mid /late '70's, and if so, Nova Scotia ? D I R ???
What province was the barn in and what is available for info on past owners /occupants of the property? Kayceel
 
Far as most books go, the Mark III went into production early in 1867, which was when Nova Scotia still was an independent country (colony), only recently federated withCape Breton Island. I wonder about the NS stamps as well, especially being that "Canada" as confederated wasn't until July. Is this a relic of pre-Confederation rearmament in the face of US/Fenian aggression??????

REALLY want to know! If only this thing could talk!

The barn is in Manitoba; the rifles, all three, were dumped at a gunshop with an asking price. Fortunately for me, the owner of the shop is a friend, let me pay it off out of my disability pension over 4 months. I then drooled all the way home. I know nothing except that it was a local phone call (from Brandon) to reach the guy who wanted rid of them.

Next Summer, going to be some SERIOUS powder burnt.

As to the P.-'53, it appears that BOND is the lockmaker; I just know nothing about them. Was Aston-Martin in business in 1857? I do know that the Tower Armoury often used parts from the Trade. Likely the barrel came from someone else, so I'll be back again, begging for help.

Thanks, everyone who wrote in.
 
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