Ever heard of an EIG derringer?

[JohnKSa]

It's a small (under 5" overall length) four barrel .22 derringer with a revolving firing pin.

On the handle, there's an EIG logo which is the three letters in a circle. EIG (European Import Group?) imported guns from Europe from the 50's to the 70's--I'm guessing that the GCA of 1968 shut them down.

It is marked "USF Standard" and caliber marked for 22 Short, Long, or LR.

On the right side of the barrel assembly the gun is marked with the EIG logo, 'Italy' and a serial number '662XX'.

On the right side of the receiver just above the trigger opening, there is a small number '7' oriented so that it is right side up if the gun was set on its barrel.

There is a star in circle (Italian proofmark) next to a PSF proofmark.

Also, there is a star in circle above a shield with a symbol inside it --I've seen this marking on Uberti and Beretta pistols. Gunmarks says it's an (Italian?) proofmark used since 1951.

I've looked at every Shooter's Bible I can get my hands on. I've looked at Fjestad's Blue Book and the Gunmarks book. No one anywhere mentions "USF Standard" and very few mention 'EIG".

It's not my gun, but a friend of mine asked me what I could tell him about it and I'm absolutely stumped at this point...

Any information on manufacturer, etc. would be appreciated.

 

[James K]

FWIW, I think Eig was the name of the company founder. They imported some less than high quality and less expensive firearms (read "cheap junk"). GCA 68 shut most of it down. The company lasted a while, but I am not sure if they evolved into something else or went out of business.

That derringer was an imitation of the Sharps derringer, and very few worked to the extent of actually firing all the barrels. If it works, it can be fun, but don't count on it for serious purposes.

The PSF is the Italian smokeless powder (polvere senza fumo) proof. As with all European proof marks, this means only that the gun stood up to firing an overcharge load. It is not an indication of overall quality or durability over the long term.

Jim

 

[D. in VA]

EIG Derringer

Several (four) of these have been offered for sale in Virginia in the past year. Gunparts acquired the parts after EIG's demise, and several remain in their big catalog. The one I tried key-holed at 15 feet, and no two barrels were alike. It's really a poor copy of the Mossberg Brownie.