Blunderbuss ID help

[James Adkins]

 

[James Adkins]

more pics

 

[Loyalist Dave]

From the lock and barrel markings, you seem to have an original, British military, coach gun. But...

The lock is odd... it's the lock found on a third model Bess, BUT the side plate opposite the lock is the rounded sort found on First Model Long Land Pattern Bess... and the touch hole placement in relation to the pan on the lock is horrible.

It may have been at one point two or more guns, as I don't like the tang fit at the stock either..., The trigger guard is made to accept a sling swivel, but I don't see evidence of the upper swivel on the forward portion of the stock, which also looks like used parts combined to make a "new" gun.

That doesn't mean that it's not antique. Detail of the engraving of the plate on the stock-wrist may shed some light on the origin.....

LD

 

[PathfinderNC]

Maybe a British naval arm with that brass barrel? Our own @dave_person would probably be very helpful in evaluating it. Very nice old gun - how did you come upon it?

 

[PhDBrewer]

Looks like a London city control barrel marks ( V & P with crown), meaning "viewed" & "proofed", but not sure of the year. The WS with crown I have seen before but do not have access to the reference material currently.
Nice collection of parts!
It might be shootable even with the misplaced touch hole. If all else functions well and the barrel is sound, I would install a vent liner, redrilling the center of the liner back far enough to cover the original hole. Of course, check to make sure it is not loaded and that the bore is deep enough to accommodatethe new location.
Sorry to hear of your loss...

William

 

[Capt. Jas.]

Put together using parts from at least three guns, all English.

 

[dave_person]

Hi,
As James wrote, it was cobbled together from salvaged parts. The lock is from a pattern 1809 Brown Bess so that dates the gun to the early 19th century. There seem to be older musket parts used as well.

dave

 

[James Adkins]

Maybe a British naval arm with that brass barrel? Our own @dave_person would probably be very helpful in evaluating it. Very nice old gun - how did you come upon it?

My dad has had this in his possession for a long time, probably 40 years or so, family heirloom from what I can gather. I don't know who originally owned it. I plan to ask his brother/cousins about it. They're all from Georgia now but originally from, I believe, North Carolina before the War of 1812.

 

[James Adkins]

Here's a higher res pic of the proof marks.

 

[Capt. Jas.]

The barrel is 18th century. At a glance I thought it was one of the William Staples fellows but both of theirs was in cartouche

 

[Sam squanch]

I read in another forum about how a lot of these were put together from spare British parts in Portugal, as lawlessness was rampant after the napoleonic wars. People liked short handy guns for protection there.