#HOLLAND & HOLLAND GUN MANUAL#
The patent is number 800 of Januand the mechanism, not only simple to build but also to adjust, is actually composed of only two pieces, a hammer-body and a spring – in addition, of course, to its extractor leg with head, which is a necessary element in any ejector, even in a manual one. Henry Holland patented one of the simplest and most functional ejectors, if not the simplest ever. The work still lacked an automatic ejector mechanism, which in those years was beginning to be considered essential to speed up the reloading of the gun. The name was a perfect fit, combined with the idea of King and Royal House, and lended an aura of distinction and exclusivity to the entire gun. The name “Royal” was filed for patent on and since then it has been marking H. This is how the “Royal” action that we know today was born, as far as the lock and its cocking are concerned. This complex system was, indeed, abandoned in 1885 and they started cocking also the right lock by opening the barrels through a single lever, as was already in use for the left lock. Its official purpose was to distribute the strain between opening and closing the gun, but I suspect they actually may have been afraid of infringing Anson & Deeley’s 1875 patent. This first Holland’s side-by-side with sidelocks had an ingenious but complicated mechanics that employed two different cocking systems, one cocking the right lock by means of two levers and closing the barrels, the other cocking the left lock by opening the barrels and using a single cocking lever. Sight of the internal mechanics of an original Holland & Holland Scott, supplied him with all the shotguns he sold under his own name in his elegant store located in the most exclusive district of London. It must be remembered that in those years Holland was not a manufacturer, he did not yet have his own factory, and Robertson, together with W. Together with Robertson, Holland registered four patents, which testifies to the close collaboration between the two. This realization was developed in collaboration with another giant among English inventors, John Robertson, who would buy the company “Thomas Boss“ a few years later and would introduce important patents, including the famous single trigger and the even more famous and celebrated “Boss” over and under. Also Henry Holland began to study his own action, and in 1883 he presented a first version of what would become his masterpiece, the “Royal” model. This was the birth of the famous Purdey action with self opening, which is still produced today practically unchanged by the company and which is considered a true gem of the gunmaking art of all time. He sold it to James Purdey, the most exclusive manufacturer of the time, who patented it under his own name in 1880. In 1879 he developed a particular system, which involved a lock that was cocked by means of springs housed in the action and pulled by the closing of the barrels. Frederick Beesley (1846 – 1926) was one of the truly brilliant inventors of those years, with dozens of important patents to his credit, so much so that he was recognized and acclaimed as “the main supplier of inventions and designs to the English hunting shotgun industry”. The hammerless sidelock actions of the 1870s and later were not particularly efficient, furthermore the side-by-sides made according to their schemes turned out to be heavy and ungainly. MARCO SEBASTIANO SCIPIONI, journalist, writer and passionate of fine arms and their history. HISTORY OF HOLLAND & HOLLAND-TYPE SIDELOCKS SYSTEMīy Doc.