1801

Outstanding Rare Vickers & Armstrong, Pedersen Designed .276 Caliber Self-Loading Semi-Automatic Rif

Currency:USD Category:Antiques / Firearms & Armory Start Price:7,000.00 USD Estimated At:14,000.00 - 22,500.00 USD
Outstanding Rare Vickers & Armstrong, Pedersen Designed .276 Caliber Self-Loading Semi-Automatic Rif
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Estimate: $14000 - 22500
This is a beautiful example of a very rare Pedersen Self-Loading Rifle designed by John D. Pedersen made around 1930 and manufactured in England by Vickers-Armstrong. In 1923 the Army hired J.D. Pedersen to design a semi-automatic rifle as a replacement for the Model 1903 and Model 1917 rifles. The first Pedersen self-loading Rifle was approved for testing in 1924 with Springfield Armory manufacturing twenty Pedersen rifles for initial field tests in 1927. These field tests were intended to be run concurrent with the .276 caliber semi-automatic rifle developed by John C. Garand. The Pedersen rifle performed well in the initial service tests and in 1929 Pedersen contracted with the Vickers-Armstrong Company to manufacture the Pedersen Self-loading Rifle in England, so that the English-made version of this rifle could be used in the final Army tests between the Pedersen and Garand rifles. In 1932 the Army selected the Garand rifle for limited procurement and development of the Pedersen rifle for the Army ceased. Vickers-Armstrong manufactured less than 200 Pedersen Self-Loading Rifles for testing by China and Portugal. This example is chambered for a .276 caliber cartridge tentatively approved in 1927 by the U.S. Army as a replacement for the .30-06 cartridge. The rifle features a delayed blow-back action with toggling breech-block design that uses a 10-round, en-block clip similar to that used in the M1 Rifle. The left side of the receiver is roll stamped "PEDERSEN SELFLOADER PA/VICKERS-ARMSTRONGS LTD". The serial number, "124" is located on the right side of the receiver, and the top of the receiver ring is stamped with a circled "C2" marking. The rifle has a distinctive half round barrel with spiral cooling fins that is covered by a steel hand-guard/heat shield with fourteen cooling holes on each side and is fitted with a Model 1917 type pattern upper barrel band. The bolt toggle has a sliding bar safety marked "REDY" on the left side of the bar and "SAFE" on the right side. The rifle is fitted with a one-piece walnut pistol-grip stock with finger grooves on the side of the forend with a series of cooling holes on the underside of forend that extend from the upper barrel band to the trigger guard. The rifle is equipped with a unique fully adjustable rear sight, that uses a rotatory-drum mechanism for elevation adjustment with a sliding-bar/rear sight aperture for the windage adjustments. Both are graduated in half-minute of angle adjustments. Any examples of a Pedersen Self-Loading Rifle should be considered very rare and certainly a center piece of any British or early U.S. marital rifle collection. As noted this rifle comes complete with 16 full boxes of original .276 Pedersen ammunition in the red and brown boxes with 10 loose rounds and four original stripper clips, stored in a green ammunition can.
BBL: 24 inch round
Stock: walnut
Gauge: 276
Finish: blue
Grips:
Serial Number: 124
Condition: Excellent with 97% plus of its original dark blue finish overall with edges and high spot wear. The stock is also very good plus with a nice dark brown color overall, with minor handling marks and scratches overall with a slightly larger scratch/gouge on the left side. The ammunition as noted is all original and is still in it's original brown and red boxes. Just a superb example of a very early semi-automatic rifle complete with lots of original ammunition.