W.E. Knoble of Tacoma, Washington is not a well-known gun designer, and was in fact not a successful gun designer. But he did enter a .45 caliber pistol in the 1907 US pistol trials, and in so doing put his name permanently in the annals of firearms history. In addition to that design, he also made a few other pistols and here we have a blowback .22 rimfire from his shop. The grip angle and shape, and the unique open slot in the front strap of the grip are very distinctive of Knoble’s gun, and this one is no exception. It appears to be functional, but was never given a finish and is still very much a prototype. Still, it is extremely rare to find Knoble pistols, and this is the first .22 of his that I have seen.