POTD: One Bang, Six Shots – R.L. Hubbel Volley Fire Trap Gun
Sam.S 10.11.22
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a fantastic beast of a trap gun. This is a Hubbel Volley Fire Trap Gun. We have talked about trap guns before but it has been a while so here comes a refresher. Trap guns are typically off-looking devices that are muzzle-loaded (like this one) or use a cartridge. They have a trigger that is very different from a finger-actuated trigger. Usually, it is a long rod with a hook, spike, or loop. In this case, a brass spike in which meat, cheese, or some other form of bait is placed on it. When the wolf that has been pestering your flock or bear that has been rummaging through your trash takes a big ole bite, the Hubble Volley Fire Trap Gun fires six shots and takes its own bite back.
“It is marked with an “R” and “HILLSDALE MI R.L. HUBBEL’S PATENT 1882″ on the side of one of the six barrels. The gun is meant for use as a trap gun, likely for bears. The barb on the front would have been stuck into some bait and serves as the trigger. When an animal takes the bait, it pulls forward on the barb which drops the hammer onto the percussion nipple which ignites the charges in the barrels and quickly dispatches the animal by launching up to six .44 caliber bullets/balls into its face. It could have also been setup with a trip wire connected to the barb for use as an alarm or burglar trap. This is the only known example. No details on Hubbel or his patent have been found. Provenance: Gillespie collection.”
Lot 2072: R.L. Hubbel Patented Percussion Volley Fire Trap Gun – Incredibly Scarce R.L. Hubbel 1882 Patented Percussion Volley Fire All Brass Trap Gun. (n.d.). Rock Island Auction Company. photograph. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/72/2072/rl-hubbel-patented-percussion-volley-fire-trap-gun.
