Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Africa Sauer Cape Gun

I just got a very nice old J P Sauer and Sons Cape Gun. It is chambered 9x57R X 12ga (2 �). Overall condition is very good. It came with some loaded ammo, 20 empty cases and reloading dies. The previous owner shot it a bit and I am already having great fun with it.



I do have several questions though. The serial # is 136XXX. Any ideas about how old it might be? The stock has a small (ivory?) medallion inlaid that says �R Muller Strand St. Cape Town�.



I understand that Mr. Muller had some type of shop. Would this medallion have been put into all rifles sold, rental guns, personal gun?
The shotgun barrel is marked �Fluss Stahl� and 13/1 with a 12 inside of a circle.
The rifle barrel is marked �Guss Stahl� and has 118/35.
Rifle side is also marked 2,7gGBP and ST.M.G.
There is also a crown over a U proof mark.
Under the forend, stamped into the shotgun barrel is a Crown over a G, on the rifle side is a similar Crown over S. There are also a few other marks including what looks like a man standing with a spear or staff.
Can anybody offer any translation of these marks. I absolutely love this gun and took a pair of squirrels with a right and left this morning.


Not too bad for its first walk in the woods in more than a few years! It is definitely a keeper and will be going back to Zim with me on my next trip. Thanks for any information that you can provide. JCS

Anybody got a line on properly headstamped brass?

I love that last pic with your pooch. It looks like he's oogling it.

Very cool indeed sir.

German combination guns are truly wonderful things. 9x57R is fairly rare in these guns but it is a great caliber. The traditional loading uses a .250gr SP at modest velocity making it a terrific rifle for boar, black bear, and deer out to 150 yards or so. Those express sights are fairly optomistic and at the extended ranges you would be firing a howitzer trajectory. It would also be a heck of a warthog wacker or for any plains game in heavy cover. If it is a 2 3/4 inch chamber then it should have a 70 mark on it somewhere (70mm = 2 3/4 inches). If not then it is more likely a 2.5 inch gun and I would NOT shoot any heavy (1 1/4 ounce) loads out of it. It also should have a three or four number date code on the flats somewhere (i.e. 1129 would be Nov 1929). Fluss Stahl means fluid steel. It was noted as a positive discriminator during the transition decades between damascus and fluid steel barrels. The gun was almost certainly made between the wars - probably the twenties. The receiver would have originally been case hardened and has been reblued at some point. A truly great gun.

cool gun.....really want a cape gun or drilling for hunting around here.....

Nice gun

Your dog looks ready to go

The serial number and the 118/35 would lead me to say it is a 1935 piece. I have a Sauer cape gun 2 barrel set in 12x12 and 12x8X57JR that was proofed in 1 of 1929 that has a serial # 148,8XX. The proof load mark for the rifle was the same as for your 9x57. The guy standing with the spear is Sauer's old trademark. It should also say Nitro somewhere.

The 13/1 is the choke designation Full choke. I bet if you mic it it will be .688" + or -.

I love cape guns...probably more than I do drillings. I have another in 16ga and 9,3X72R and recently sold a sweet little 16/9,3X72R Emil Kerner to a good friend. His wife fell in love with it. If not for that, he would never have gotten the gun.

Yours was obviously made for African trade. It has a definite cool factor.

well done

what a fine weapon. i would love to come across a deal on one myself some day.