32 Barrels

[Jaxenro]

I was comparing the barrels on my top break 32 single action, double action, and hammerless and they all look fairly identical

Not that I want to do it but are they essentially interchangeable? Seems like they are the same design just the frame and action is different

 

[glowe]

Patent dates will be different. It is usually easy to tell if a small top-break had the original barrel by comparing top-rib stamping. A serial number is also found at the rear of the top strap that will not match the original frame numbers if changed.

Are they interchangeable? Yes, usually if you match the era the donor barrel was made to the original frame they will go together. The caveat to this is that all parts were hand-fitted during manufacture, so the gun may or may not work properly, have the correct gap between cylinder and barrel. The latch might not interact properly with the frame and could come open upon firing or not close at all.

 

[Jaxenro]

It was more of a design question of did they use the same barrels and maybe tooling on different models

Due to the hand fitting swapping even two hammerless barrels probably wouldn't be a good idea

 

[glowe]

It would be a trial and error process. The later the gun's manufacturing date, the more likely the swap would work out.