Overview of Danish Schouboe .45 & .32 Caliber Pistols
Fancy & Presentation Guns
•
18m
In 1903, Danish engineer Jens Schouboe began developing an automatic pistol for the Dansk Rekylriffel Syndikat in Copenhagen (later to become the Madsen company). He made the guns in both .32ACP and also in a proprietary Danish .45 caliber based (I believe) on the centerfire conversion of Denmark's 1867 pinfire revolver. The .45 cartridge used a wood-cored bullet of only about 55 grains weight, traveling at some 1600 fps. Schouboe's pistol was a simple blowback design with a shrouded hammer and 6-round magazine (10 round in the .32 caliber models).
About 400 or 500 Schouboe pistols were made between 1903 and 1917, but never in a true mass production series. Every known example differs in small details, in addition to the existence of three major patterns (1903, 1907, and 1910, plus potentially a 1916 model). Today we're going to look at an assortment of Schouboes across this developmental timeline, including two presentation models and one with a holster stock.
Up Next in Fancy & Presentation Guns
-
Extra-Fancy 20-Shot Pinfire Revolver
The pinfire cartridge was a popular development in Europe in the mid-1800s that never saw much exposure in the United States. A huge variety of pinfire revolvers were made by a myriad of large and small shops, with Liege Belgium being one of the biggest manufacturing centers.
Guns ranged from ...
-
Adventures in Surplus: Chromed Argent...
When I got this Model 1891 Argentine rifle, I assumed it was the unfortunately result of someone's experimenting with chrome plating parts. All the small parts are chromed and then heavily worn, while the barrel and receiver remain blued. Frankly, I think it looks awful, but it was in the lot wit...
-
Walther Q5 "Arabesque": Art in the Fo...
Engraved pistols are not just the domain of antiques; they are being made right now, on the most modern platforms. This is the "Arabesque", a project between Walther and Bottega Incisioni Giovanelli. The base gun is a Walther Q5 Match, and engraver Dario Cortini put nearly 140 hours of work into ...
