1717 St. Etienne musket Kinda long

[KHickam]

So, what is the consensus? Is this a P/C musket for F & I War era or later? How is the gun for function?

 

[Wes/Tex]

So, what is the consensus? Is this a P/C musket for F & I War era or later? How is the gun for function?

I'd have to say "No" to PC since the few in North America were those in the hands of the Karre Regiment at Louisburg. Most of the muskets from Loyalist and Middlesex Village Trading seem to function well from the owners who post about them. The only real problem is their 'clunkiness' from too much wood.

 

[T.C.Albert]

I had a 1717 from Military Heritage...it was a great musket, especially for the money...however it was stocked more like a "bess" in its profile and not like the french musket should have been...no cows foot...and it had a thin steel ram rod...which was a proper retro-fit, but a thicker wood rod should have been used on a 1717 in my opinion...

So the ram rod pipes were way too thick as they were actually cast to take the thin steel rod on the inside, but retain the proper dimensions on the outside...

With some work on the bench, the 1717 could have been easily altered and antiqued to look more like a true 1717 or even a greniders musket...but one that was retro-fitted for the American Revolution and not the F+I[url] wars...in[/url] my opinion anyway. (B.T.W....I think the 1717 is technically accepted as usable by the companies of colonialFrench reenactors at DeChartez etc, though they prefer the later Charleville as first chioce)
T.Albert

 

[spudnut]

Mine is from Middlesex village and it does have the calf foot butt.I mostly shoot a Bess and whenever I show up with the Frenchy folks ask"What did you do to the Bess?" :winking: and I have to go through the whole story ..Mark

 

[T.C.Albert]

I wanted mine for Highland stuff...supposedly when France armed Bonnie Prince Charlies boys,
1717's were in the arsenal...figures the 1717 was Frances first regulation military arm, and set up to take a socket bayonet....and it was Cumberlands use of the "socket bayonet" against the Highland charge at Culloden that ended it all...now if the Black watch was armed with confiscated arms from Culloden, as they reputedly were, its easy to imagine a few 1717s amongst them...maybe even at Ticonderoga about 10 years later? (pure speculation on my part..)
T.Albert

 

[tg]

I would have to go with Wes on the PC part due to the lack of evidence that there were any here, and this "replica" of the gun itself does lack the forward strap on the stock that was unique to the 1717, I do think one might get by with working it over and calling it a 30 year old reworked grenadier.

 

[wallgunner]

I thought the 42nd had Brit muskets at Ti. I know early on some Scottish light companies were using captures French muskets, but they probably were 1728 or maybe even a 1746.
As for the 1717 being PC, it's no less PC than French troops running around with 1763 from Pedersoli, and Brits running around with so called Short Land Pattern from Italy. A lot of reenactors I see at events still carry those guns, and they didn't even exist during the F&I, so don't let too many peoply bother you for using a gun that at least existed during the said time period!

 

[tg]

It is true that many use guns and other gear that is not PC/HC to a time period but the question here was asked and the answers were given now the gentleman can make an infoemed choice based on history and the level he wished to take his persona.