The Rimfire Report: The Last Quackenbush - Bicycle Rifle

Hello and welcome back to another edition of The Rimfire Report! This ongoing series is all about the rimfire firearm world and all of the different types of ammo, firearms, shooting sports, and history that it involves. Last week we talked about the extremely antique Hamilton Model 11 rifle often referred to as the “boy’s rifle.” Boy’s rifles were a subcategory of firearms back in the late 1800s and early 1900s that were intended to be extremely lightweight and inexpensive to serve as introductory firearms for youngsters - something I think we should bring back into vogue in today’s modern firearm industry. Throughout the years of writing this series on really old firearms like the Model 11, I’ve come to realize that boy’s rifles were far more prominent than I’d ever imagined during their height. In addition to the Hamilton rifle we talked about last week, companies like Stevens, Winchester, Marlin, and even Remington all made boy's rifles virtually all single-shot and all chambered in rimfire cartridges. This week we’re going to check out the last of Henry M. Quackenbush’s designs, the single shot Bicycle Rifle.

More Rimfire Report @ TFB:

• The Rimfire Report: A Series Of Tubes - The Hamilton Model 11
• The Rimfire Report: An (Almost) 100% Aftermarket 10/22
• The Rimfire Report: Do .22LR Bullet Coatings Matter?

The Rimfire Report: The Last Quackenbush - Bicycle Rifle

Henry M. Quackenbush founded the H.M. Quackenbush company in New York in 1871. With a natural talent for making weapons that were both simple and affordable, Quackenbush’s original claim to fame was in Airguns, specifically his first commercial success the Eureka air pistol. By the late 1800s, a new need emerged as the bicycle gained popularity as a mode of transportation around areas that were rapidly being urbanized and industrialized. Cyclists faced long journeys through rural and often isolated areas, where a lightweight, portable firearm could be invaluable. Whether for small game hunting, pest control, or personal defense, a compact firearm was an attractive solution for travelers on this hot new mode of transportation.

Quackenbush saw an opportunity and, in 1896, answered the call (as did many other manufacturers around the same time) with his own Quackenbush Bicycle Rifle. This single-shot rimfire firearm, chambered in .22 caliber was made in extremely small numbers between 1896 and 1919 with an estimated 4,321 Quackenbush bicycle rifles made. Although other Quackenbush designs like the single-shot Safety Rifle and the Junior Safety Rifle both saw greater commercial success, today the Bicycle Rifle is the most sought-after of all the Quackenbush guns simply because so few were produced to begin with.

The Quackenbush Bicycle Rifle was a marvel of design ingenuity, especially for its time. With a 12-inch barrel (before all the NFA nonsense) and an overall length of just 27 inches when the wire stock was extended, it offered the usability of a full rifle. When folded, however, it became even more easy to stow - measuring only 16 inches, small enough to be strapped to a bicycle frame or tucked into a pack. While maybe heavy by today’s standards for lightweight 22LR rifles, the Bicycle Rifle weighed only 31 ounces.

The action of the rifle was a pivoting breech block that swung to the side to load a single .22 cartridge. The right-hand side of this section also contained the cocking lever for the single shot mechanism. The swing-out mechanism also activated an extractor, making unloading just as quick and efficient as loading without the need for a pocket knife or tilting of the barrel to remove the spent cartridge. The retractable wire stock added a layer of versatility and in my opinion, made the Bicycle Rifle the coolest looking of any of the Quackenbush rifles. Extended, it allowed for shoulder firing like a traditional rifle but likely suffered from the same poor cheek weld that many modern stocks of the same design do. Retracted, it could still be fired and somewhat turned the Bicycle Rifle into a compact pistol-style firearm.

Auction results highlight just how prized these rifles have become. In November 2024, a Quackenbush Bicycle Rifle at Austin Auction Gallery was estimated to sell for $100–$200, but saw a final realized price of $375 - fairly inexpensive by my estimate. By contrast, a more recent February 2024 auction at Rock Island Auction Company featured a rare example complete with its original factory box and in exquisite condition, estimated at $1,000–$1,600 (I couldn’t log in to view the realized price). Meanwhile, Poulin Antiques & Auctions offered a well-preserved model with a starting bid of $750 and a projected value of $1,500–$2,250 - the realized price ended up being just shy of $1,100.

Even though they are rare, the condition seems to be the single most important factor determining the price of a Quackenbush Bicycle Rifle — well-maintained examples with original finishes and components often fetch the highest prices. Completeness is another significant driver of value; rifles accompanied by original accessories, such as the factory box, and original parts are particularly desirable as mismatched auctions seemed to go for about $400-$500 less. Obviously, working rifles are naturally more appealing than those requiring extensive repairs, and with Numrich once again being the only place where you can get new parts for these antique rifles - collectors highly value original parts. Other examples like the Rock Island Auction one have a bit of a triple threat with being in great working condition, in the original box, and a pedigree/story to go along with it.

Final Thoughts

Like other examples of the concept from around the same time, the Quackenbush Bicycle Rifle is entirely indicative of the era it was born. These small, collapsible, and weakly powered firearms were intended largely as tools meant to fill a perceived gap in the 19th-century bicycle traveler's toolkit. Whether or not these rifles were effective or even useful to their intended audience is largely unknown, but we do know that the Boy’s Rifle category would eventually die out as the United States and Europe slowly but surely began to adopt more negative views toward youth firearms ownership, as well as the rapid urbanization of the country which lead to fewer and fewer people using firearms for pest control.

I suppose today we have our modern equivalents of the concept but I don’t think anything quite scratches the itch that I have for a 10/22 with a collapsible stock like the one feature on the Bicycle Rifle. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on what a modern resurgence of these types of “Boy’s Rifles” might look like - if you could reintroduce the concept, what would it look like? Thanks as always for stopping by to read The Rimfire Report, we’ll see you again next week!