Help from the experts?

[LongTee]

The coolest guy I ever knew, good old Cousin George, "Peppy" Ormsby bought the farm on his motorcycle in 2004. I was surprized when his son showed up on my doorstep tonight from California and told me that I had been bequethed this beautiful firearm.

I'm a central Texas bird hunter and would look way cool toting this in the field among my friends with their Citoris and 1100s..

I'm looking for any help I can find on it; year and model.. Serial Number P133905. Is it safe to shoot and do I need special ammo? Both sides of the barrel look clean with no obvious nicks or scratches inside..

I would not look nearly as cool and my wife would be... a tad bit irritated if it blows up in my face..

Any thoughts?

[Jay Huber]

You have an 1894 Model Remington Double Gun made in 1905. It is Damascus Barrel so shoot at your own risk. Jay Huber RSA

[Researcher]

Your new prize is an A-Grade or AE-Grade, if it has automatic ejectors, Remington Model 1894 hammerless double, as Jay says made circa 1905. Here is my canned Model 1894 response --

Remington Hammerless Doubles -- Two patents were issued on the same day, October 30, 1894. No. 528,507 pertaining to the milling of the frame was granted to R. C. Fay of Ilion, New York, assignor to the Remington Arms Company of same place; and No. 528,508 pertaining to the automatic ejectors, to R.C. Fay and G.E. Humphreys of Ilion, New York, assignor to the Remington Arms Company of same place.

If the gun is absolutely plain with no engraving, just "Remington Arms Co." stamped on the side of the frame it is an A-grade if a Model 1894. Model 1894 serial numbers were in the 100,000 range and often preceded by a P a Remington stock letter. Also perfectly plain was the lower priced Model 1900 with serial numbers in the 300,000 range, and often a stock letter of Q. These were also known as the K-grade.

A Model 1894 B-grade had just a bit of borderline engraving. As the grades went up C-, D-, and E-grade the engraving became more extensive, the stock wood and checkering finer, and the overall workmanship better. There is normally a grade letter stamped on the left side watertable, or on "bridge-frame guns" (usually 103,500 and lower serial numbers) on the bridge. Also, if you remove the trigger guard, the grade letter is often stamped in the wood after the serial number.

If a Remington Model 1894 is fitted with automatic ejectors the the written grade designation has a letter E added to it and if it has Remington Steel barrels an R or Ordnance Steel Barrels an O -- AE-grade (A-grade with ejectors and the regular Damascus barrels), AER-grade (A-grade with ejectors and Remington Steel barrels), BO-grade (B-grade with Ordnance Steel barrels) or CEO-grade (C-grade with ejectors and Ordnance Steel barrels). I’ve never seen these extra letters stamped on the gun’s watertable. In the Model 1900s things are reversed. Remington must have considered their Remington Steel barrels standard and appended a D if the gun was equipped with 2-blade Damascus barrels -- KD-grade or KED-grade. "Ordnance Steel" is normally stamped on the top of the barrels on AO-/AEO- and BO-/BEO-Grade Remington doubles and engraved on higher grades.

You need to check out Charles G. Semmer's book Remington Double Shotguns. It is available from the author 7885 Cyd Drive, Denver, CO 80221, for $60 plus $5 shipping and handling. It is invaluable if you are going to shoot, invest, collect or play in the Remington double gun field. Remington supplied a number of different pattern Damascus barrels on these old doubles. A picture of their salesman’s sample of the various styles of Damascus available is shown on page 275 of Semmer's book.

Remington Arms Co. stamped the actual pellet counts of their test patterns on the rear barrel lug of their Model 1889 hammer doubles and their Model 1894 and 1900 hammerless doubles. If the number is three digits, that is the count, if the number is two digits a leading 3 is implied. From surviving hang-tags we know the standard load they used to target 12-gauge guns was 1 1/4 ounces of #8 going 511 pellets to the load. My 12-gauge KE-Grade Model 1900 is stamped 33 on the left and 24 on the right. That would be 333/511 = 65% left and 324/511 = 64% right, or about improved modified in both barrels. The chokes measure .027" in both barrels of that gun.

[LongTee]

Any notion of whether or not or where I can buy ammo for it?

[Researcher]

No one can tell you over the internet what loads may or may not be safe in any given gun. That can only be done by a competent double gunsmith with the gun in hand. And, I don't mean just any old parts replacer down the street who calls himself a gunsmith! I don't shoot Damascus barrel guns, but many people do.

My Father shot a Remington Model 1894 AE-Grade similar to yours, but about ten years older, from when he got it during WW-II until he quit hunting in 1988. He used all manner of Western Super-X, Federal Hi-Powers and Remington Nitro Express shells along with Federal trap loads, and the gun is still just fine. The gun my Father had for a decade before WW-II was a Remington Model 1900 KED-Grade. Dad gave it to his youngest brother when he returned from WW-II. That KED was finally damaged during the early days of steel shot when my cousins were using it goose hunting and the steel shot bulged the chokes and broke the solder holding the barrels and ribs together out near the muzzle.

Sherman Bell has done a series of articles in The Double Gun Journal where he attempts to blow up various junky old doubles. The usual result seems to be it takes shells generating over 30000 psi or a barrel obstruction to blow them up.

These folks specialize in making shotshells for vintage guns, and produce great products -- http://www.rstshells.com/shotshells.htm

Not cheap, but they can be delivered to your door.