The end result of 35 years of collecting, researching, and recording data from existing rifles, original manufactures' records and catalogs, this book demonstrates the mechanical and artistic details and workmanship that characterized the development and manufacture of the falling block, breechloading rifles.

The author has tried to fill in important gaps in the history and development of these guns. Readers will hopefully gain a new understanding and appreciation for these splendid examples.

The Table of Contents includes the following:

• Acknowledgments
• Contents
• Foreword
• Chapter 1 The Alexander Henry Rifles
• Chapter 2 The Alexander Henry Military Contract Rifles, 1866-1880
• Chapter 3 Some Early and Rare Falling Block Designs
• The Soper Falling Block of 1865
• Joseph Manton's Falling Block of 1871
• Thomas Bailey's Patent of 1871
• James Aston's Falling Block Rifles of 1871
• Chapter 4 The Farquharson Patent of 1872, and the John Farquharson, George Gibbs, Thomas Pitt and William Ellis Metford Patent of 1875
• Chapter 5 Westley Richards & Co. Falling Block Rifles 1872-1897
• Chapter 6 William Field and the Field Action of 1877
• Chapter 7 James MacNaughton's Rifles of 1879
• Chapter 8 The Daniel Fraser Rifle of 1880
• Chapter 9 The Rigby-Banks Falling Block of 1882
• Chapter 10 Holland & Holland and the Holland/Woodward Patent, 1894
• Chapter 11 The Charles Ingram-Julius Coster Rifle of 1897
• Chapter 12 Webley Rifles of 1897 & 1902
• Chapter 13 Birmingham Small Arms (B.S.A. Guns Ltd.)
• Norman Falling Block Design of 1921-22
• Chapter 14 Foreign Actions used by British Makers - The Comblain
• Chapter 15 Foreign Actions used by British Makers - The Heeren Actions
• Chapter 16 Foreign Actions used by British Makers - The Jeffery-Sharps
• Chapter 17 Thomas & J.S. Turner Ltd. & the "P.D." Farquharson, by W.J. Jeffery & Others
• Chapter 18 Recent Developments - The J.A. Shirley Action & Giles Whitcome Rifles
• Appendix
• Bibliography
• Index