Found an original flintlock!
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From the looks of the photos you posted, it looks like it may have a Damascus barrel on it.
Some time ago, I bought a .50 cal. Belgian caplock which had a similar stock shape to your pistol and the barrel looked like it might be Damascus. I applied a light acid etching solution which clearly highlighted the different strips of metal which were wrapped in a spiral pattern.
Unfortunatly, there were areas in the bore where some of these layered strips had been corroded so badly that pieces were missing.
Although I consider my gun to be unsafe for firing a full power load, I did shoot a loosely patched roundball over 10 grains of powder in it and it survived.
I wish mine were a Flintlock like yours.
zonie
Some time ago, I bought a .50 cal. Belgian caplock which had a similar stock shape to your pistol and the barrel looked like it might be Damascus. I applied a light acid etching solution which clearly highlighted the different strips of metal which were wrapped in a spiral pattern.
Unfortunatly, there were areas in the bore where some of these layered strips had been corroded so badly that pieces were missing.
Although I consider my gun to be unsafe for firing a full power load, I did shoot a loosely patched roundball over 10 grains of powder in it and it survived.
I wish mine were a Flintlock like yours.
zonie
Seems to be "same family" as yours Zonie. Yes, mine is also damascus. Sounds like a good idea to etch out the pattern. Mine is in pretty good shape I think. Went to the range yesteday for first try-out. Used Swiss fffg up to 28 grains (to much kick) and sticked to 24 grains. Loose patched with a 0.020 Chris ´Tanner patch. Fast ignition with Tom Fuller flint.
ARILAR :grin: :thumbsup:
ARILAR :grin: :thumbsup:
Now why is that rear sight angled from side to side like that, I've never seen a back sight angled ever on any gun. It is very clear it was filed/manufactured that way and not bent judging on the base. I wonder if it is for glare reduction? Kurt/IL
When I said I etched the barrel, I was speaking of the underside where it wouldn't be noticed.
I did it only to see if there actually were laminations of different steel twisted around or if it was just something phony done to fool people.
As the different strips of material etched differently, it proved to my satisfaction that it indeed was Demascus.
I sure wouldn't recommend that anyone should etch their barrel for other reasons.
I did it only to see if there actually were laminations of different steel twisted around or if it was just something phony done to fool people.
As the different strips of material etched differently, it proved to my satisfaction that it indeed was Demascus.
I sure wouldn't recommend that anyone should etch their barrel for other reasons.
Zonie said:
I was referring to his close-up picture in which the striping is apparent. To me, it is evident that it is not a phony effect.
In simulated damascus steels, the faux damascus effect is created by applying an etchant onto the surface in a zebra-stripe pattern (or, in some cheapo fake damascus knives, it's stamped into it). The steel itself is all one homogenous color, the etching technique just selectively erodes the polish and affects its reflectivity.
In a genuine pattern-welded barrel, the steel is not homogenous. Most simply, it is a spiral of steel that has been forge-welded into a long, solid tube. The carbon picked during the forging process doesn't diffuse evenly throughout the barrel. The carbon content of the steel at the "seams" varies from that of the steel between them. (Yes, Dan...duh...we know this...what's your point?)
Anyway, my point is that the pattern welds not only give the steel a variegated hardness (and erosion resistance), but also a variegated color. Even when polished uniformly, the color variation in the steel is often detectable.
In the photo, it looks to me like the stripes are, at least in part, due to variations in color of the metal rather than just variations in reflectivity.
Dan
