Indians For Guns

I wish to know the make of this rifle, single shot 303

Greener Martini. Are you sure its 303? that would make it a PB!

Martini-Henry falling black action. Difficult to pin point the caliber. I've seen quite a few .22 rimfires too.

Yes, appears to be as above, Martini-Henry. If I had to guess, cut down or "sporterized" from a military weapon. Be a little careful with ammo, some .303 MH were made for blackpowder rounds at an operating pressure of not much over 20,000 psi, some were made for modern smokeless powder operating at about 40,000 psi. If you haven't fired it yet, check it by pulling the trigger with a string or something from a distance, put a piece of paper on top of the action, you can see if it is leaking gas, if it is, it usually always comes out the top of the action.

Unusual for a rifle is the lack of a rear sight and simple bead at the muzzle, it looks more like a shotgun. Without the action dimensions no one can say whether Greener was the manufacturer, or whether it was converted from a military Henry-Martini. Martini actions were commercially produced in many sizes, and by a number of makers, both in Britain and in Belgium. The ones produced in Switzerland and Germany had slightly different designs.

Yeah after TwoRivers comment I went back for a better look, I didn't zoom before. The lever doesn't look like a military lever, and is that a cocking lever on the left side?
I have several military MH and never saw a lever like that, just the cocking indicator.

Could be chambered for the .410 Indian Musket round...which essentially is a .303 casing with a stretched mouth/neck.

cottage cheese wrote:Could be chambered for the .410 Indian Musket round...which essentially is a .303 casing with a stretched mouth/neck.

That, too, seems unlikely, since it is obviously a sporting gun, not a military or guard weapon. And .410 Musket seem an unlikely cartridge to be chosen for that.

Vik wrote:Yeah after TwoRivers comment I went back for a better look, I didn't zoom before. The lever doesn't look like a military lever, and is that a cocking lever on the left side?
I have several military MH and never saw a lever like that, just the cocking indicator.

That's a safety.

Its W.W. Greener Martini 12 bore .