Hy Hunter Zouave

[Night Raider]

Has anyone ever heard of such a gun? I was in a local gun store and came across this. Not having my glasses with me, I couldn't read any of the barrel markings. But the sales tag said "Hy Hunter Zouave." It's a .58 caliber, 2-band percussion gun. It has a flip-up/down rear sight. The metal ramrod was threaded at the end opposite the loading jag end. It did not bottom out when I reversed it, as when loading.

From what I could tell, again w/o my glasses, the blondish wooden stock looked in good condition, the lock and hammer too. I cocked the gun and the trigger broke smoothly w/o being overly heavy. The crown and end of internal barrel looked good. The length of pull fit me very well. The gun felt like it weighed around 8-9 lbs. They are asking $350.

My 2009 Standard Catalog of Firearms lists a "Hy-Hunter, Inc." of Burbank, CA. But there is no mention of a Zouave model.

What do you guys think? Appreciate any help I can get as this question seems to have stumped everyone I've checked with.

What I want to really know is (1) is this gun safe to shoot/hunt deer with and (2) is this a good price, would you buy it for that? Thanks folks. My first post and you got a nice site here.

[Ron/The Old Reb]

Night Raider

Hy Hunter inc. Firearms Mfg. Co. is in Hollywood Califorina. They sell SA handguns that are made in West Germany. Don't know about the Zouave. Go back with you glass and look for the proof marks and any letters on the barrel like AA AB AH and so on that will tell the date that it was manufactured and where. Back, I think in the 60's Zoli made Zouave for Sears that had blone stocks on them. Could be a Zoli. If it is a Zoli and in good conditon, $350 is not a bad price. If it is not a Zoli I would be a little leery of it. The ones that I have seen that were made for Sears had Zoli stamped on the barrel.

[Jesse Painter]

I still have my dad's Hy Hunter Zouave. He bought it new in '62 and skirmished with it till he shot the rifling out. As far as I know they are no longer approved by SAC because the bolsters were brazed on instead of welded, and i think there was some that blew off?
I have shot it a little in the last couple years and it feels and looks identical to a Zoli, but not sure if they made it or not.
Jesse

[Night Raider]

So, this could be a Zoli Zouave imported/distributed by Hy Hunter? Also, I'm not sure what a "bolster" is. Is it the lock/drum area? How could I tell by looking whether it's brazed or welded? Finally, is there a way to find the SAC regulation pertaining to this gun? I'm gonna try and get back down to the store tomorrow.

[Fearless Frank]

Strangely enough yesterday I saw for the first time a Zoli that looked like a Zouave except it had a smoothbore, a cut down fore end and a ladder style rear sight. The owner told me it was made for Massachusetts because at one time in Mass. you could only hunt deer with a smoothbore shotgun or a smoothbore muzzle loader. It had a brass Zouave style patchbox, a brass buttplate and a brass nosecap.

[Ron/The Old Reb]

Night Raider
The bolster is the bulge on the barrel that the nipple screws into. If it is brazed on you should be able to see a thine line of bronze next to the barrel. I can not believe that Zoli would make a barrel with a brazed on bolster.

[John Holland]

Night Raider -

There have been several in-depth discussions regarding the Hy-Hunter Zouaves on this BB. Perhaps you could locate them by searching for "Hy-Hunter".

Simply, Hy-Hunter quit importing the Zouave some 40+ years ago. The N-SSA banned their use in the late 1960's, unless they were marked as having been made by "Zoli". The early Hy-Hunter Zouaves were made by Sile, and were purported to have the bolsters attached to the barrels by brazing. The bolster is the "lump" on the side of the barrel that has the cone screwed into it for the percussion cap. Oftentimes if you scrape the underside of the bolster with a knife point, where the bolster meets the barrel, you can see the yellow toned braze. I used one years ago in the N-SSA and fired thousands of rounds out of it before its use was banned. If you have no intention of using it in the N-SSA it is a moot point. If you do wish to use it in the N-SSA, just replace the barrel with a N-SSA approved replacement barrel.

John Holland
Small Arms Committee

[Night Raider]

Thanks for the info everyone. I will go back to the store today and learn more about the gun's markings...this time with my glasses. :cool:

[Night Raider]

Well, the gun didn't have any of the A. Zoli brand markings nor did it have the "W" that later versions had, indicating the bolsters were welded instead of brazed. It had the Hy Hunter stamp and Hollywood, CA address. There were a row of symbols on the left-side breech and it was stamped "Made in Italy." I passed on the gun. Back to the drawing board.

[Night Raider]

Not to beat a dead horse to death, but John did you say you fired thousands of rounds through a Hy Hunter Zouave with a brazed on bolster before it was banned by N-SSA without any problems? I do not want the gun for reenacting, just for deer and elk hunting. Also, my research shows Sile was a distributor, just like Hy Hunter, so I am even more confused as to the manufacturer and/or lineage of the gun.