Quote:
Originally Posted by Rick Losey
educate me please- doesn't a gun manufactured in the UK require at minimum a provisional proof prior to assembly??
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One would think so, but apparently not. The key is
where the gun was to be sold. If that location was outside of the UK or the Empire, proofs were not required. Many British-made guns sold in the US during the 19th century have no proofs.
This was probably a cost decision. Proof cost money. And if a maker wasn't required to submit for proof, save a few quid, and sell the finished gun where there was no proof anyway - like the USA - then why not?
If the gun was going anywhere in the Commonwealth, proof was required.