1810

Rare "COMBLAIN BREVETTE" Swing Breech, Rotary Magazine, Trials Rifle

Currency:USD Category:Antiques / Firearms & Armory Start Price:1,000.00 USD Estimated At:2,500.00 - 5,000.00 USD
Rare  COMBLAIN BREVETTE  Swing Breech, Rotary Magazine, Trials Rifle
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Estimate: $2500 - 5000
This is a very unique and certainly one of a kind prototype or early trials rifle, that would certainly be worth doing some further investigation, as this could be the real sleeper in this auction. The only markings on the side of the action a "COMBLAIN/BREVETTE/2". The rifle has a very unusual, strong top loading action, with a very early rotary magazine. The mechanism is operated by grasping the large lever on the right hand side of the action, which retracts the hinged top cover, raises the locking breechblock, located under the rear section of the top cover and withdraws the round cylindrical bolt located inside the action to the rear of the action. Once the bolt is fully locked to the rear, the spent cartridge is ejected out of the top of the action, which in turn rotates the rotary magazine to position the new cartridge inline with the chamber. Then the handle is lowered/moved forward and in turn, the bolt moves forward and pushes the cartridge forward into the chamber, while at the same time lowering the locking block down in place behind the cylindrical bolt. When firing the rifle the full backward thrust bolt is carried against the large breechblock, giving the rifle an extremely strong action, similar in theory to the Martini action. The rotary magazine is another unique feature that was unheard of at this time, which was really not fully developed or adopted until the 1920s or 1930s with the advent of the Johnson rifles. The rifle is chambered for a rimmed, straight taper 8mm cartridge of some type and magazine actual holds "7" rounds, (what we would call a large capacity magazine today) again this was really not adopted until the 1940s or 1950s. The right side of the trigger guard has small single lever that the firer can rotate the magazine at will to make sure he is fully loaded. The action has a single lever on the left side that locks the rotary magazine so that it can be single loaded. The rifle is fitted with a 31 1/2 inch long, straight taper round barrel with approximately 7 or 8 lands and grooves with a small octagonal breech end where it fits into the action. The barrel is fitted with only a blade type front sight, mounted 4 inches from the muzzle. It has a walnut stock and full length military forend that is held on by two large steel barrel bands, with a large musket style flat buttplate on the end of the buttstock. The rifle is complete with what appears to be an original ram/cleaning rod. The complete action and metal is still in the white as produced by the factory and the stock and forend have an ice oil finish.
BBL: 31 1/2 inch round
Stock: walnut
Gauge: 8mm
Finish: in the white
Grips:
Serial Number: 2
Condition: Very fine overall with all the original "in the white" factory finish overall with some minor old browning and spotting overall. The markings are clear and sharp as when originally manufactured. The stock and forend both retain most their original oil finish with minor light pressure dents and handling marks overall from actual use and handing with the original tight wood to metal fit, exactly as when originally manufactured. A very unique rifle that would certainly be worth doing further research on.