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Stock Type
As of now, there are only two stock types.
Type 1 has a spring to help hold the barrel band in place.
Type 2 does not have this spring.
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Hammer Type
Type 1 hammer has numbers of the same font on the wedge and shank of the hammer.
Type 2 does not have a number on the wedge but does have one on the shank
Type 3 does not have a number on the wedge or the shank in the normal place but does have one just above the mounting square. So far, there are two on the site that has this number above the square. Seems to be associated with Type 2 and Type 3 hammer.
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Hammer Pin Types
Type 1 is one round head pin.
Type 2 is 2 stealth type pins that are very hard to see
Type 3 is 2 flat pins that are raised. As more info is learned I may merge the Type 2 and Type 3 together.
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Hammer Crown Type
The Type 1 shows the crown of the wedge as an oval where it slides up into the hammer
The Type 2 shows the crown of the wedge as it would slide onto the hammer from the front or up from the bottom.
My belief right now is the Type 2 is the earliest method of attaching the wedge to the hammer.
The Type 1 is the most common and seen on most of the Needhams present today.
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Wedge Joint Type
The Type 1 crown on the wedge goes up through an oval hole milled in to the hammer.
The Type 2 can be slid in from the front of from the bottom.
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Wedge Heel Type
Type 1 is rounded to the base of the hammer
Type 2 is cut-off and squared to the base of the hammer.
Type 2 may have been cut off to allow more clearance as the hammer enters the receiver.
Type 1 is by far the most common
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Hammer Shield Types
Type 1 has a curved shield stamped into the thumb piece.
Type 2 has a straight edge
Type 3 has no shield, just checkering
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Breech Block Types
There were issues with the firing pin breaking on the earlier Needhams. One of the fixes was to change the location of the firing pin retaining screw.
The Type 1 is the closest to the middle of the breech block.
The Type 2 is closest to the forward edge of the breech block and is the most common type found.
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Rear Sight
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