Baker Black Beauty Special
- Category
- Shotgun
- Barrel
- 660 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.30 kg
- Introduced
- 1916
About
What it is, and why it matters
The Baker Black Beauty Special is an American hammerless side-by-side double-barrel shotgun built by the Baker Gun & Forging Company of Batavia, New York. A true sidelock design comparable to the L.C. Smith in quality and price, it was an upgraded, engraved rendition of the standard Black Beauty, offered in 12- and 16-gauge with barrels from 26 to 32 inches. Blued barrels, a case-hardened receiver, black-oxide sideplates and a walnut stock defined its appearance, while automatic ejectors and a single trigger were available at extra cost.
The Black Beauty and its dressed-up Special sibling were among Baker's better sporting doubles, prized by early 20th-century American upland and waterfowl hunters as an affordable alternative to the L.C. Smith sidelocks they closely resembled.
Following the sale of Baker Gun & Forging Co. to H. & D. Folsom Arms Company in December 1919, Folsom continued assembling Baker guns into the early 1920s; Folsom-era catalogues listed the Black Beauty Special around $62, or $77 with automatic ejectors.
Specification
Everything measured
IdentityWhat it is, who built it and when.
- Manufacturer
- Baker Gun & Forging Company
- Category
- Shotgun
- Country
- United States
- Status
- Discontinued
- Produced
- 1916 to 1930
DimensionsAs issued, without a magazine or an optic.
- Barrel
- 660 mm
- Overall length
- 1120 mm
- Weight, empty
- 3.30 kg
ActionHow it cycles, what trips it, and what feeds it.
- Action
- Break action
- Firing mechanism
- Internal hammer
- Trigger
- Double trigger
- Capacity
- 2
MaterialsEach swatch is the material itself, not a colour chosen to stand for it.
- Frame
- Steel
- Barrel
- Steel
- Stock
- Walnut
- Finish
- Blued barrels, case-hardened receiver, black-oxide sideplates
BallisticsFrom the service cartridge, not a handload.
- Muzzle velocity
- 400 m/s
- Muzzle energy
- 2560 J
- Effective range
- 40 m
- Maximum range
- 275 m
Trajectory
What the round does downrange
Solved from the muzzle figures and the bullet. The dashed rule is the effective range on the record, and the crosses are the steps the solver returned.
No load solved for this record yetThe flight path is computed from a cartridge and a bullet. This record has no ammunition filed against its chambering, so there is nothing to solve.
Features
What it has
What the record lists as fitted, drawn from the catalogue.
Side-by-side double barrel
Hammerless sidelock action
Top-lever break-open
Optional automatic ejectors
Optional single trigger
Engraved sideplates
Standing
How it compares
Each figure against the firearms of the same type and cartridge that record it, or of the same type where that cartridge has too few. Positions are read to the nearest tenth.
| Measurement | This firearm | Median | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty weightAmong 622 12 Gauge shotguns | 3.30 kg | 3.29 kg | Near the median |
| Overall lengthAmong 570 12 Gauge shotguns | 1120 mm | 1150 mm | Shorter than about 60% |
| Barrel lengthAmong 650 12 Gauge shotguns | 660 mm | 711 mm | Shorter than about 70% |
| Magazine capacityAmong 647 12 Gauge shotguns | 2 | 3 | Holds fewer rounds than about 70% |
Answers
Questions about the Baker Black Beauty Special
How much does the Baker Black Beauty Special weigh?
The Baker Black Beauty Special weighs 3.30 kg (7.28 lb) empty.
What caliber is the Baker Black Beauty Special?
The Baker Black Beauty Special is chambered in 12 Gauge.
How many rounds does the Baker Black Beauty Special hold?
The Baker Black Beauty Special holds 2 rounds.
How long is the Baker Black Beauty Special?
The Baker Black Beauty Special is 1120 mm (44.1 in) long overall, with a 660 mm (26.0 in) barrel.
Who makes the Baker Black Beauty Special?
The Baker Black Beauty Special is made by Baker Gun & Forging Company (United States). It was designed by William H. Baker.
When was the Baker Black Beauty Special introduced?
The Baker Black Beauty Special was introduced in 1916 and discontinued in 1930.
How does the Baker Black Beauty Special operate?
The Baker Black Beauty Special uses a break action, and its firing mechanism is internal hammer.
Compatibility
Which parts fit this firearm
Studio
Every part that mounts on this, resolved
Not a list the maker typed out: the answer comes from the mounts this firearm exposes and the interface each part needs, so it stays right when either one changes.
- Every part that mounts on any firearm in the catalogue
- Interface standards, platforms and fit overrides
- The same answers through the API and the MCP server
Requires a signed-in GunSpec account on the Studio plan. The answer is computed per part, so it is not part of the public record.
Provenance
What the record holds
Every figure above was taken from one of these pages. The confidence reflects how much of the record came from a page a claim can be checked against.
Provenance
Confidence in this record
72%
Stockists
Where to buy
Offers link straight to the shop. GunSpec never takes the order.
No shop has listed this firearm yet
Stock and prices come from the shops themselves. If you sell this firearm, you can list it and it appears here.
List a firearmMCP
Ask an assistant about it
The same record, reached the way a person asks for it rather than the way a program does.
Ask GunSpec
Works with
Point an MCP client at GunSpec and it answers from the catalogue rather than from memory. A free key covers the read tools.
API
The call that returns this record
The same fields, in the same units, from the same endpoint the page reads.
curl --request GET \ --url 'https://api.gunspec.io/v1/firearms/baker-black-beauty-special' \ --header 'X-API-Key: your_key'{ "id": "baker-black-beauty-special", "name": "Baker Black Beauty Special", "manufacturer": { "id": "baker-gun-forging", "name": "Baker Gun & Forging Company", "countryCode": "US", "foundedYear": 1887, "website": null, "logoUrl": null, "description": null, "status": null, "defunctYear": null, "stateOwned": null, "makesFirearms": null, "parentId": null, "predecessorId": null, "createdAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "updatedAt": "2026-06-21 23:00:46", "version": "70476c038193c5329ade98eb04032209e42e6ab9e48eb58e1994095f95313ea1" }, "category": { "id": "shotgun", "name": "Shotgun", "description": "Smoothbore firearms designed to fire shot or slugs" }, "country_of_origin": "US", "year_introduced": 1916, "barrel_length_mm": 660, "weight_empty_g": 3300, "action_type": "break_action"}