• Friends, our 2nd Amendment rights are always under attack and the NRA has been a constant for decades in helping fight that fight.

    We have partnered with the NRA to offer you a discount on membership and Muzzleloading Forum gets a small percentage too of each membership, so you are supporting both the NRA and us.

    Use this link to sign up please; https://membership.nra.org/recruiters/join/XR045103

Flintlocks and the CLA

Muzzleloading Forum

Help Support Muzzleloading Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

dbutch

58 Cal.
Joined
Feb 12, 2009
Messages
2,187
Reaction score
6
Attended a trade fair today lots to see....
At one of the tables set up was a long rifle collector and he was representing the CLA(Contemporary Longrifle Association) drumming up new membership.
He had 7 long rifles and Fowler,s on display along with pistols and horns.
High end contemporary builders. Frank & Hershel House Jerry Scales etc.
It was a pleasure to see and feel(don't tell my wife) these slim trim rifles....not one ounce of extra metal or wood on any of them...I have seen the light ! :shocked2:
Time to fire up the belt sander and hand grinder on all my T/C,s :grin:

Slim and trim with Figured wood wins the day.... :thumbsup:
This is an eye opener for me........
My factory guns will never look the same. :surrender:

Just another step on this flintlock journey...
 
Cool, The Wife and I went to the show in Lexington Ky. year before last. They (The CLA) rent space in the convention center at the U of K. It's a sight to see,some of the guys on here were there as well. I'm not sure how far you are from Lexington,but if you aren't over a days drive it is well worth the trip. We go and spend the night then travel back the next day,it's just a good get away for us.Its coming up again I think in June. :thumbsup:
 
Already tried to get him there SMO, Too far past the Mason Dixon or some such reason. :haha:
You really need to make the trip Dan, Take lots of cash because you will want everything you see.
 
You know what they say...."remove all mat'l that doesn't look like a MLer". Mainly concerns the wood...TC's are a little "fat", especially in the butt. Does that mean that you intend to start on a LR w/ "slimness" as the main goal?.....Fred
 
SMO..I think your road trip sounds great!

LH..Your right I need to go!

Oh The Madness! :grin:
 
Fred.... That's a good analogy!
No rifles...Just sealing up the 10 ga. Fowler.
Thanks for asking..
Just very impressed with the workmanship seen today!
 
makeumsmoke said:
SMO..I think your road trip sounds great!

LH..Your right I need to go!

Oh The Madness! :grin:

Dan,I haven't been to the trade fair you speak of, But the CLA show is first class in every way.I have been to several smaller events but never anything to compare with the CLA show. It sounds like you just got a small taste of what is in Lexington. I don't have any way of knowing how many Craftsmen/Ladies are there but it's close to 300 or more I would guess. I have never seen anything like it. The best part was there are some great deals there on quality items. There's plenty of rifles,horns,bags,stocks,barrels,knives,straps...Did I mention rifles? :shake: Check out their web site if you haven't already. You won't be sorry you made the trip, plus it's some nice corn country to ride through on your way down. :wink: :haha:
 
well its time for dissapointment ... I guess im gonna be waiting for my smooth rifle... I learned a long time ago....dont let someone pressure you into buying something .....so time to wait :( can someone give me an average of cost for a made rifle? I see these fancy names like allan martin....but i dont wnt now do i ahve 3000 $$ to spend on a rifle....anyone know of a place where i might be able to find a quality used gun?
 
Keep checking the clasified ads here on the Forum. They show up there all the time. :hatsoff: And in all price ranges as well. :wink: :thumbsup:
 
Bryon said:
well its time for dissapointment ... I guess im gonna be waiting for my smooth rifle... I learned a long time ago....dont let someone pressure you into buying something .....so time to wait :( can someone give me an average of cost for a made rifle? I see these fancy names like allan martin....but i dont wnt now do i ahve 3000 $$ to spend on a rifle....anyone know of a place where i might be able to find a quality used gun?

Also, keep in mind that you're on a waiting list to have your rifle built. It was 2.5 years from my first contact with my builder and when I took posession of it. With discipline, 2+ years is plenty of time to save when the time comes for money to exchange hands.
 
Bryon said:
:( can someone give me an average of cost for a made rifle? I see these fancy names like allan martin....but i dont wnt now do i ahve 3000 $$ to spend on a rifle?

Depends a lot on what you want and whether you want/need a big name builder. There are a lot of fine builders who are part time, do outstanding work, and sell nice truly custom rifles for $2500 or even less.

I'd spend a lot of time before deciding on a custom rifle. What do you want it for? Hunting, plinking, target? Hunting what? These things will determine caliber and weight. Re-enacting? That will determine style/era.
 
Trench said:
I know exactly what you mean.

My factory guns all have Rice,Colerain,Green Mountain barrels and shoot great..Glad I started with them..Guess the learning curve just a little longer for me... :grin:
Sure do enjoy this hobby-lifestyle.
 
Design the gun to the mission. You wouldn't grab a 34" barreled single shot trap gun as your first choice for a home defense shotgun would you? Same goes for ML'ers.
 
The best of the best, Allen Martin , bill shipman, luckenbill, emig etc... Are easy 4k plus. My opinion if you don't have that kind of money, a tvm or similar. Other than that, find good not so well known gunmakers, my example in nc pennsylvania, don yerks, Nate mckenzie, etc....and if your lucky you can get it done in 4-6 months. Like if they have David keck profile your stock and inlet the barrel, saves time and guarantee Dave does an awesome job, I've see some of the bests name on a number of blanks with barrels taped to them.
 
Bryon said:
well its time for dissapointment ... I guess im gonna be waiting for my smooth rifle... I learned a long time ago....dont let someone pressure you into buying something .....so time to wait :( can someone give me an average of cost for a made rifle? I see these fancy names like allan martin....but i dont wnt now do i ahve 3000 $$ to spend on a rifle....anyone know of a place where i might be able to find a quality used gun?

Sir you would be the first person I have seen with that spelling that I can recall.

By the way my name just happens to be Bryon..
 
Blackbruin said:
The best of the best, Allen Martin , bill shipman, luckenbill, emig etc... Are easy 4k plus.

No offense meant, but each of those guys....with the exception of Bill maybe, will build a simple, unadorned or "Schimmel" gun for less than $4K.

Allen's are particularly nice as his grasp on architecture makes for a gun that needs no embelishment.

My opinion if you don't have that kind of money, a tvm or similar.....

As you indicated in the rest of your post, there are many very good custom builders, especially those who have not made a "name" for themselves yet, who will build a nice gun at very competative prices. The key is seeking them out. Know what you want up front and be prepared to negotiate.

I.M.O. the semi-custom outfits are for the impatient who don't want to do the research or fear the unknown of the custom builder. They build good solid guns but most are cookie cutter examples.

Enjoy, J.D.
 
jdkerstetter said:
As you indicated in the rest of your post, there are many very good custom builders, especially those who have not made a "name" for themselves yet, who will build a nice gun at very competative prices. The key is seeking them out. Know what you want up front and be prepared to negotiate.
Enjoy, J.D.

Excellent advice. There are a number of fine builders out there who do not yet have the market exposure to become well known names with high demand (& high prices) for their work. To find these people, you must go to shows & personally examine their work. Keep in mind that when others give advice that they are not intending to mislead anyone but that one man's "good" or even "great" gun could easily be a "fair" or "middling" gun to someone else with either more knowledge & experience or a better eye for detail & a higher budget. The same gun could be a great deal for $2500 or attempted robbery at $5000. Likewise, it could be a great hunting rifle but unsuited for reenactment purposes. The more guns you personally see, the better your judgement calls. As a bonus, its always fun to go see nice guns. :wink:
 

Latest posts

Back
Top