16-gauge fowler

[trigger mortise]

I acquired this old 16-gauge fowler recently, 44

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

What is the size of your groups at 50 yards? 60-70 yards is about maximum for a smoothbore, anyway. You might consider working up some shot loads too. 13 pounds is a bit heavy for a 16 bore. Maybe someone had their thumb on the scale. Pretty gun no matter the weight.

 

[trigger mortise]

Russ, it

 

[Maestro]

60-70 yards is about maximum for a smoothbore, anyway.

My learnin' would concur with that... I've heard (and also heard repeated on this forum...) that a smoothbore is about as accurate as a rifle out to about 50 yards - beyond that it's a "knuckleball". (In my own experience, I've only ever used my fowler for shot.)

I'm just curious, (anybody...) - would this be considered a "smooth rifle" instead of a fowler, considering it has a rear sight?

 

[tg]

Typicaly a smoothrifle has a cheekpiece, griprail, maybe a patchbox, the rear sight is only a part of the picture, it is a gun that has some or all of the characteristics that allow the arm to be aimed rather than just pointed, and the barrels were usually thicker than fowler barrels allowing the use of stiff charges with buck and ball.

 

[Mike Brooks]

You may want to try a .648 ball for best accuracy if your fowler is a true 16 bore. Keep in mind it was originally made to shoot shot, so chucking round balls a hundred yards accuratly is asking a lot of it.

 

[flintlockmdj]

Rifle the barrel and mount a scope for 100 yd acuracy :imo: :results:. BTW since you are throwing it away (it's on the trashcans!) send it to me I have an extra large trash can. :crackup: :crackup: :crackup: :crackup: :kid:

 

[flintlockmdj]

:imo:A smooth rifle is a gun built as a rifle that has a smooth bored barrel. This was obviously built as a fussel type gun.

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

Looks like an 1830-1840 fowler, only they usually aren't this heavy.

 

Looks like an 1830-1840 fowler, only they usually aren't this heavy.

I've got to agree with Rusty on this - looks like an english game gun, 1820's through 40-ish. Course with that Tryon style lock, who knows.

My 16 shoots .648's, but only if you patch them thin and ram them with a brick. Try to find some .640's and patch 'em thick, says I...but only from my experience with a Colerain 16ga barrel. Nice gun, though. Sounds AWFULLY heavy for a 16ga, too, though. Interesting.

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

The back-action lock does seem out of place, doesn't it? The trigger guard appears similar to some Hawkens, but I think it is an English style. I believe British gun makers did use back-action locks on occasion. It would be nice to know the vintage of this piece. The fact that there are no markings anywhere and the weight makes me think it might be newer than supposed.

 

[trigger mortise]

Whitebear.
Don

 

[Mike Brooks]

That rear sight was put on some time after the fowler was first made. It was made with no rear sight.

 

[trigger mortise]

Mike,it looks like the sights are original to the gun.

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

Market gunners preferred bigger bore fowlers. In the period that this gun represents, the 16 bore was a relatively small gauge. That's why the weight is an issue. Every original 16 gauge fowler that I've handled weighed in at 6 to 6.5 pounds. It is difficult for me to understand why any one would build a 13 pound 16 gauge gun. A six or eight bore, maybe.

 

[big bore 75]

Here's a thought could this thing of your been bored out at some time? who knows could of also been rebarreld at one time or another . bb75

 

[trigger mortise]

Everything about the gun looks like it is in original condition and was build this way, it could have been a custom order, but without any markings or history on the gun it would be difficult to grasp the reason for it.

 

[arcticap]

It's not indicated whether the muzzle appears to be choked or not. I think that might be an indication as to it's purpose to some extent. Could it be possible that this may have been a more specialized type of deer gun meant to be loaded with large buckshot loads as well as large single balls. Or maybe it's designed to reach out to smaller flocks
or high flying birds with double large loads of large shot. One thing seems certain, it's definitely made to handle some heavy recoil and to aim straight at relatively longer ranges, hence the sight.
Could it be the equivalent of an African game rifle like Val Forgett (Navy Arms) & Sam Fadala used to bring down nearly every 4 legged creature imaginable including elephant?. The caliber (guage) seems about right, and didn't they shot conicals of very heavy weights? If it is a safari bush smooth rifle, then extreme longrange accuracy maybe wasn't quite as important as knockdown ability, versatility and easy reloadability. What a beautiful eace:!!!!

 

Another weird thing about this gun, it has an extra rear flip up sight, for that 200-yard shot?? :shocking:

Now THAT is optimistic! Intersting, though...the sight is reminiscent of an Enfield military site, but it's missing a leaf. If it is, that leaf is for 300 yard shots, and the 500 is missing.

Mysterious gun...but pretty cool

:youcrazy:

 

[Stumpkiller]

13 pounds! That's a heavy fowler. I think I'd describe your firelock as a Buck & Ball Gun. One .66 cal ball and three .36 cal ahead of it. That load will kill any man or beast in North America within 50 yards & a bit better. They were very popular in the North East in wooded cover.

My question is, what would I need to do to make this gun shoot a little better at 100-yard with a round ball.

Tighten the patch/ball and up the powder or down the powder. I have this theory that one of the things leading to the "knuckle ball" effect from smoothbores is that the ball has turbulance as the pressure wave from transiting the sound barrier effects it's flight. If you either load heavy enough so that it is still moving at 1,000 fps at the target it will not have to pass back through the barrier outside the barrel, or, if you load light, it never gets ahead of the sonic pressure wave.

I used to shoot .650" balls in my 0.662 (16 bore) fusil with 0.018" patches & 75 gr FFg. At 100 yards I couldn't keep all my shots on a sheet of typing paper, but I could keep most of them there. That's with no rear sight and a bayonet lug near the front of the 42" barrel. At 50 yards I could hope for 6" groups, and that was fine for my purpose.

Are you using FFg? You should be. With the 1 oz balls from a 44" barrel you're throwing a larger granulation (slower powder) may help.