Cooey: The Unassuming Canadian Workhorse
Cooey: The Unassuming Canadian Workhorse
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Cooey is a brand name that will be immediately recognized by Canadians, but pretty much unknown everywhere else. Founded in 1903 by Herbert Cooey, the company would produce a series of simple and practical firearms that became hugely popular and common in Canada. The basic models were the single-shot .22 Model 39, the bolt action magazine-fed .22 Model 60, and the break action single-shot Model 84 shotgun (and the Model 64 semiautomatic .22, made after the company was sold out of the Cooey family). These are not particularly exciting firearms, but they are ubiquitous across Canada, having served Canadian families reliably for a
century now.
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I had a 12g cooey as my first shotgun here in the uk, i was always impressed how even the plate that holds the forearm latching spring etc was all colour case hardened, great gun well made if not a bit painfull to shoot…
Dude I’ve got 2 cooey in my collection
Some were branded as Lakefield. My first firearm was a model 64 under the Lakefield name. Heavy trigger but a great way to learn the basics on the farm.
Weirdly, there’s no article in Wikipedia for Herbert William Cooey
My first shotgun was a Cooey .410. My Mom was from Canada and married my Dad in 1943 (He was an American Naval officer). Her Uncle sent me a Cooey .410 for my 12th Birthday in 1061.
I really enjoyed this one Ian! Thanks!
My grandmother had a model 60. She always kept it loaded behind a tv in the corner ready for any squirrel or intruder. My sister and I learned about gun safety by not going behind the tv and touching the gun. When I got older she let me shoot it a couple times, pretty cool gun.
My go-to rifle for livestock protection on my property is a Cooey Model 60 .22. simple, and it works well.. and i got it for free many years ago
Thank you for shedding some light on these Canadian collectibles. Along my travels, I have been lucky enough to acquire a Model 39 & Model 84 (12g) and BOTH are pre-Winchester and are in very good condition.
Just a minor correction, they sold the parts Lakefield Arms not Lakeside. Located in Lakefield, Ontario. I also own a rare 1973 Mossberg 500 AB in great condition made by Lakefield Arms in Ontario.
What are you calling it a weapon? It’s a firearm
the first firearm I ever shot was the Cooey single shot that my father got for his 12th birthday in 1955 (in Northern Alberta.) My dad is gone and the old Cooey is mine now. It still shoots laser straight. A lot of grouse, rabbits and squirrels have fallen to that rifle over the past 67 years, and will continue to. A complete classic workhorse.
My 16 gauge is cooey, my 22 is cooey, my 410 is coey, and i have never know it…
First time ive ever owned every gun on the table
Thanks for this video 🇨🇦
As a proud Canadian firearm owner I love that you did a quick review of this awesome gun company I’ve owned many Cooeys and plan on doing videos of my collection along with many other guns
These remind me a lot of the Savage Model 15’s. They were also made by Springfield, Sears, and many others in the 1930’s through 50’s. I bought one at an antique store for $20. Manufactured from 1930-1935. I love these simple single shot rifles. They’re so under-appreciated nowadays. Might have to see if there are any of these rifles for sale here in the US. Love these to death.
Just a small correction, the new company was Lake Field not Lake Side, but otherwise a very interesting history especially for we Canadians. I have several different models and for "dime store" plinkers all shoot as well as my current models.
I live in VT which is in some ways an extension of Canada, and I have never heard of a Cooey.
Have all 3 and use them regularly lol.
This was most likely made by my family who some of us had that very same name as our last names and my grandpa had over twenty of these he collected them
the single shot shotgun is pretty much a Stevens model 94, the Stevens company, funnily enough, also got bought by savage
In near future, in Canada, all weapons will be forgotten. That’s sad..
Lake field arms not lakeside!
I have all 3
cooey model 60 with machine assemble all step by step
"Simplicity is Elegance Incarnate".
Everyone and there Grandma has one of those bolt guns.
Fun fact they just found a meth lab in the old coey plant. My how the times have changed
I shot my first ruffed grouse on the wing with a sawed off Cooey 12 gauge last year!
first gun i ever shot was my grandfathers Cooey 60 which i ended up inheriting and still own. pretty beat up these days and the action is damn stiff but i still shoot it from time to time.
love my cooey 12 gauge 👌
I also just occurred to me when I looked more closely at that single shot that Winchester already made a gun almost identical to that in function. I have one, it was my grandfathers. A Model 67. It was made in 1934, first year of production. It looks almost exactly like that, only maybe slimmer, and all the parts look slightly different. Same sheet metal trigger guard and sight. It even sounds the same. It is a semi-takedown, stock held on by a knurled screw, the bolt/striker is one part, and the extractor/sear is the other. A single flat spring under the receiver holds it all in place. Wonder why Winchester would want to buy Cooey, unless they were even cheaper to make.
Great video Ian, I purchased a new 12 ga 840 when just 15 years old for $50 canuck bucks at Danny,s Hardware Store, Yukon Territory, 1974. One nice feature of that model is it ejects the shell.
I think you meant Lakefield, not Lakeside.
I have a model 60 that was my first gun. Today I took my 11 year old son to the range for the first time and it became his first gun. I had an ear to ear grin on my face when I tested it before giving it to him. 20 years sitting in the safe and it still shoots like a dream!!
"Every other Canadian house has one in it" Hi! 😀
I live a mile from Canada, I now want one. My FFL and a form 7. Also about 10 calls to U.S. Customs to finally make them realize I can legally import them!
i love cooey bolt 22s
I use to have a Cooey 600 in my teenage years that I paid 35$ Canadian. I also had a 28 gauge single shot shotgun made by them as well. Good firearms.
Just by watching this video I now know that my first gun is a Cooey 60. It’s name is Ranger. I’m very excited to fire later with my friend. Thank you for the info. It really makes it clear.
Hey man thanks for doing a video like this. I’m from Canada but I’ve actually just started learning about Cooey myself after buying a Savage Model 64 recently and then also finding out my dad picked up a Model 84 20 gauge. They’re amazingly simple and reliable designs. I think that model 84 shotgun is one of the most solid basic shotgun designs I can imagine. I’ve told my dad that it’s going to become an heirloom and never to sell it to anyone but me lol Just an FYI, the company was Lakefield Arms, not Lakeside. But otherwise, great stuff.
Looks just like a Stevens model 15
Got a new cooey 64 b winchester with 4x weaver scope and 2 10 shot steel mags. Very accurate little semi auto, no jams , no misfeeds, no lightprimer strikes , no failed extraction, no failure to feed. My cooey 64b winchester runs flawless victory.
I have a model 60 and model 84 in 12 gauge I’m currently piecing back together.
That was my first .22 and my first 12 gauge Nice to see you did a segment on them!
Pretty sure the 22 is the gun we used at summer camp when I was in the boy scouts
Jst like a cricket or my iger Johnson topper 410
I dont own a Cooey exactly but I do own a Savage Mk II bolt action .22 (which I like very much) that I got for $127 brand new ten years ago, which Google tells me is made at Lakefield, Ontario. Would appear that Lakeview is a slip of the tongue. So anyway I own a sort of a cousin to a Cooey. I like it because it shoots more accurately than I can, and it is very small and light and handy, seems to be sized for the youth market (I am not very large myself), and is cheap enough that I dont have to worry much about it. Although I see the MSRP as of today is almost twice what I paid for it. Progress. What I found interesting at the time was that they were selling a bolt action and a semi-auto .22, using identical stocks, magazines and probably barrels, for exactly the same price. I bought the bolt action because I think they are more fun to shoot (I like a manual transmission as well), which most people seem to think is weird. I think it is weird to enjoy just pulling the trigger repeatedly more than the satisfying feeling of working a bolt! I guess I like operating a firearm more than I like putting holes into targets, or something. Maybe muzzleloader is cut out for me… (j/k, i have a .36 percussion revolver and it is mostly just a PITA)
Our ole 4/10 Cooey was a partridge grim reaper! Never jam and if your bird was behind any brush, the Cooey wasn’t informed and didn’t care. You just went and got your bird. lol
Just bought one. Labbeled Eatonia .22cal
At the age of 12 I was given my first .22. A short barreled rifle my dad had bought in 1935 for shooting rats in the barns. It was labled "Eatonia", a Cooey manufactured single shot short/long for the T.Eaton Co. stores. It was actually known as the Boy’s rifle and he bought it because it fit handily behind the seat of his old 32 Chevy farm p/u. Although an accurate rifle It was hard to "shoot" accurately because it was so light that just your heartbeat would cause the front sight to bob slightly so you timed your shots carefully. 😎