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Walter Roper started me lusting for one of these, when he wrote in Pistol and Revolver Shooting on page 101 (in regard to the as he put it "doomed" Straightline, another gun I will own one day):
So I read that and thought... Roper in an off handed way describing something as little short of perfection? What? What on earth is this gun? I must know!
From what I can gather these guns were built by Casimir Weber in Switzerland, and "designed" by Fred Adolph in New York. I've been informed by a guy knowledgeable about old custom guns that Fred Adolph had a penchant for claiming credit for other people's work. Odds are this is all, or mostly, Weber's doing, with Adolph just taking orders for them and hawking them in the USA.
I'm having a hard time coming up with much information. There's some mention of them in the Gun of the Month section of the February 1959 issue of Guns magazine: http://gunsmagazine.com/1959issues/G0259.pdf
The A. L. A. Himmelwright book mentioned in the article is available here: Pistol and Revolver Shooting by A. L. A. Himmelwright - Free Ebook
Apparently they made some chambered in Newton .22 High Velocity. One came up for auction recently: EXTREMELY RARE CASED ENGRAVED ADOLPH-WEBER CAMP PERRY MODEL SINGLE SHOT TARGET PISTOL.
And then there is this post: Adolph Weber 22 Match Pistol
So what I we have here is a design from sometime at the start of the 20th century, with proto-Roper stocks, easily adjustable target sights (which are big enough to actually be seen unlike others of the era), enough weight that you can shoot it accurately, what appears to be thought put into the balance of the gun, custom built in Switzerland based on the needs of American competition shooters and the still popular free shooting competitions popular in Europe and of course at the Olympics.
This seems to me to be something a little bit ahead of its time. I can't help but wonder if the gun didn't inspire gunsmiths and designers who handled them for years to come. It certainly seems to have inspired Walter Roper.
As a weirdo who adores the pre and just post WW2 world of target shooting modifications, this thing is just catnip to me.
My bride of a bit over a year gave me the nod when I told her for the first time in our marriage that something had come up that I needed to own. She sighed, told me to go ahead, that she knew this about me when she married me.
My camera is missing a hood, so the pictures a little more washed out then I would prefer, but they came out ok. When I figure out where the rest of my camera stuff is I can get better pictures. Also when my cleaning supplies and screwdrivers are in this house I can take it down completely and give it the cleaning it apparently hasn't had in many decades.
The only real sad bit is that the stocks need love. I'll certainly have to get into talks with one of the stock magicians around here to get them restored.
The gun is everything Walter Roper said it was. It feels so ridiculously nice in the hand that it's strange. It feels and points like a much heavier gun. It's so nicely balanced and fills the hand so well that when I shoot it I'm confused by how much I actually feel the .22lr recoil. It's just kind of a weird sensation. The thing is like a laser beam too, it shoots way better then I do.
Walter Roper said:
So I read that and thought... Roper in an off handed way describing something as little short of perfection? What? What on earth is this gun? I must know!
From what I can gather these guns were built by Casimir Weber in Switzerland, and "designed" by Fred Adolph in New York. I've been informed by a guy knowledgeable about old custom guns that Fred Adolph had a penchant for claiming credit for other people's work. Odds are this is all, or mostly, Weber's doing, with Adolph just taking orders for them and hawking them in the USA.
I'm having a hard time coming up with much information. There's some mention of them in the Gun of the Month section of the February 1959 issue of Guns magazine: http://gunsmagazine.com/1959issues/G0259.pdf
The A. L. A. Himmelwright book mentioned in the article is available here: Pistol and Revolver Shooting by A. L. A. Himmelwright - Free Ebook
"A.L.A. Himmelwright said:The Adolph-Weber pistol designed by M. Casimir Weber, of Zurich, Switzerland, is a high grade hand-made arm that can be supplied by Mr. Fred Adolph in accordance with any specifications that the marksman may desire. Fig. 16 illustrates it conforming to the rules and regulations of the U. S. Revolver Association. It has a strong, durable, tip-up action resembling in principle that of the Stevens, and when closed the barrel is securely locked in position by a cross bolt, actuated by a button on the left side.
Apparently they made some chambered in Newton .22 High Velocity. One came up for auction recently: EXTREMELY RARE CASED ENGRAVED ADOLPH-WEBER CAMP PERRY MODEL SINGLE SHOT TARGET PISTOL.
And then there is this post: Adolph Weber 22 Match Pistol
So what I we have here is a design from sometime at the start of the 20th century, with proto-Roper stocks, easily adjustable target sights (which are big enough to actually be seen unlike others of the era), enough weight that you can shoot it accurately, what appears to be thought put into the balance of the gun, custom built in Switzerland based on the needs of American competition shooters and the still popular free shooting competitions popular in Europe and of course at the Olympics.
This seems to me to be something a little bit ahead of its time. I can't help but wonder if the gun didn't inspire gunsmiths and designers who handled them for years to come. It certainly seems to have inspired Walter Roper.
As a weirdo who adores the pre and just post WW2 world of target shooting modifications, this thing is just catnip to me.
My bride of a bit over a year gave me the nod when I told her for the first time in our marriage that something had come up that I needed to own. She sighed, told me to go ahead, that she knew this about me when she married me.
My camera is missing a hood, so the pictures a little more washed out then I would prefer, but they came out ok. When I figure out where the rest of my camera stuff is I can get better pictures. Also when my cleaning supplies and screwdrivers are in this house I can take it down completely and give it the cleaning it apparently hasn't had in many decades.
The only real sad bit is that the stocks need love. I'll certainly have to get into talks with one of the stock magicians around here to get them restored.
The gun is everything Walter Roper said it was. It feels so ridiculously nice in the hand that it's strange. It feels and points like a much heavier gun. It's so nicely balanced and fills the hand so well that when I shoot it I'm confused by how much I actually feel the .22lr recoil. It's just kind of a weird sensation. The thing is like a laser beam too, it shoots way better then I do.
But then, you are a strumpet too.... 
