One can only speculate as to how Parker Bros., Colt, and Hunter Arms got a bunch of Birmingham Laminated Steel tubes around 1890. It should be noted that this product is different than the "English machine-forged 3 rod Laminated steel" that was the big winner of the 1st Phase of the Birmingham Proof House Trial of 1888-1890
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...t?pref=2&pli=1
By 1890 Siemens and other fluid steels were being increasingly used on good (but not "Best") guns and Laminated Steel was going out of fashion, so the U.S. makers "got a deal".