[anyone know if hammerless, Damascus barreled, Baker Batavia Leaders were made in a coach or Lupara configuration? Maybe a Wells Fargo or Pinkerton contract?]
Thank you, for reposting your questions separately.
AFAIK:
For all Batavia, NY made Baker Leader Grade SxS double shotguns -
ALL were hammerless
All were made with "twist steel" barrels
All were made from 1898 - 1915
All had serial numbers from 75,000-156,000
I presume by "coach or Lupera" you mean that the barrels have been cut off to an extremely short length - maybe even below what's legal under current Federal Law.
FWIW - I would not accept such a gun as being a factory alteration w/o a letter of authentication from either a Baker collector/historian, or a Wells Fargo/Pinkerton's archivist/collector/historian.
Those major companies also marked their weapons in a very particular manner, that not all fakers understand, and that an expert in them will spot at a glance.
The reason I would not accept one as genuine w/o substantiation, is that (besides fakers) many private concerns and individuals modified whatever double shotguns were on hand for guard duty at banks, mines, assay offices and on freight wagons & stage coaches.
I've even made a few myself, albeit not Baker's, for home defense purposes.
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