Bowen Built OM .32-20 Nice Surprise
Mar 10, 2018 18:01:52 GMT -5
awp101, sheriff, and 7 more like this
Post by bushog on Mar 10, 2018 18:01:52 GMT -5
I got a little excited and gloated a bit a couple weeks ago when I won an auction for a Bowen .32-20 built on an OM .357 Blackhawk. Actually the price was about right for what the gun is (or so I thought) but I wanted it and since the seller unwittingly had the end of the auction coincide with the 4th quarter of the Superbowl I figured I'd oblige him. I honestly thought it would sell for more.
I noticed in the pics that the blue looked really good and lustrous and was in good shape.
Well, the gun arrived and it is in fact a beautiful early example of Bowen's work with only a tad of holster wear at the muzzle. The bluing was better than in the seller's pics. I was thrilled. I cocked it, held the hammer back as I squeezed the trigger and gave the cylinder the good 'ole "wiggle" and about fell out. This gun is darned near as tight as any 5 shot conversion I've ever seen and as tight as many. I looked at the gun in disbelief and did it again....
How could this be an OM gun tuned this tightly?
Now I' figure I've owned...maybe not 2 dozen but close to it in custom OM conversions by any one of the est smiths and nothing I've ever handled was like this animal.
A couple days later I sat down at the bench to drop one of the handy Clement's bisley hammers I have in it and had a surprise. There was an extra piece in the gun by the cylinder latch, the cylinder latch spring isn't there and there's a tiny sleeve over the latch pivot screw. Now, I'm no gunsmith but I'd say is the action has been blocked on this OM gun. I've never heard of or seen such.
Oh, and the Clement's hammer absolutely will not function in this gun so the hammer/trigger have been modified somehow too. Never had this happen before either....
Anyhow, look at the pics and maybe one of you Gurus can chime in. All I can say is that I thought I was getting a nice old build and it has turned out to be remarkable one....now I need to go shoot it....
Here are a couple pics of the guts. Top gun is the Bowen gun with block in place.
With the block removed (it's sitting on the frame to the left)
I noticed in the pics that the blue looked really good and lustrous and was in good shape.
Well, the gun arrived and it is in fact a beautiful early example of Bowen's work with only a tad of holster wear at the muzzle. The bluing was better than in the seller's pics. I was thrilled. I cocked it, held the hammer back as I squeezed the trigger and gave the cylinder the good 'ole "wiggle" and about fell out. This gun is darned near as tight as any 5 shot conversion I've ever seen and as tight as many. I looked at the gun in disbelief and did it again....
How could this be an OM gun tuned this tightly?
Now I' figure I've owned...maybe not 2 dozen but close to it in custom OM conversions by any one of the est smiths and nothing I've ever handled was like this animal.
A couple days later I sat down at the bench to drop one of the handy Clement's bisley hammers I have in it and had a surprise. There was an extra piece in the gun by the cylinder latch, the cylinder latch spring isn't there and there's a tiny sleeve over the latch pivot screw. Now, I'm no gunsmith but I'd say is the action has been blocked on this OM gun. I've never heard of or seen such.
Oh, and the Clement's hammer absolutely will not function in this gun so the hammer/trigger have been modified somehow too. Never had this happen before either....
Anyhow, look at the pics and maybe one of you Gurus can chime in. All I can say is that I thought I was getting a nice old build and it has turned out to be remarkable one....now I need to go shoot it....
Here are a couple pics of the guts. Top gun is the Bowen gun with block in place.
With the block removed (it's sitting on the frame to the left)
