Smokey Plainsman
16"/50 Caliber
Torn between a poured pewter or browned iron nosecap for my Hawken build:
Which would you pick?
-Smokey
Which would you pick?
-Smokey
HELP!!! Hawken Nosecap Preference
- Thread starter Smokey Plainsman
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Phil Coffins
69 Cal.
Either is good but I prefer color case hardened.
What’s your reference for using a browned finish on the nose cap of a Hawken, or any part of it for that matter? Don’t know if pewter was ever used for their nose caps, but I’ve always read that steel hardware on Hawkens were color cased hardened and barrels were rust blued. Now rust bluing will take on a brown patina from use over time, so maybe that’s where browning idea comes from. Curious what the Hawken experts have to say.
Smokey Plainsman
16"/50 Caliber
I thought about all of that and did my research. Case hardened locks and hardware were most common with rust blued barrels and darkly finished plain maple stocks. They were not what many would call the prettiest rifle these days.
But this will be my rifle and frankly that’s all the reference I need. I like the looks of browned parts and flame maple much more. I’ve read some originals had silver plated nosecaps and today we use poured pewter sometimes. I am just torn between having a pewter one or browned. Also some originals found did have figured wood and the case hardening appearance and rust blued barrel would mellow to brown after years in the elements, as many have today.
Ok, so you’re building a fantasy Hawken from a modern perspective. Nothing wrong with that.
That is a tough choice. The good news is you'll probably be happy with either. The bad news is you may wished you'd have picked the other one. It's things like this that lead us down the slippery slope of buying or building more rifles.
Smokey Plainsman
16"/50 Caliber
Fantasy is a bit of a stretch.
You and I do not know the specifications of every Hawken rifle ever made. Experts such as Don Stith and others report examining Hawkens with figured maple stocks and I recall reading reports that some could very well have had browned barrels and mountings. A poured pewter nosecap is a good modern substitute for silver plated iron.
The Hawken Bros. ran a custom shop and they built to the buyer’s content. They did not produce standardized rifles en masse a la Deringer et al. Even if they started out case hardened and rust blued, as I already mentioned in enough years on the trail and after possibly hundreds of cleanings and shots fired, most would end up with a naturally browned patina and today even the tops of our field have difficulty in exactly determining the original finishes on extant specimens.
The rifle will be built by W. B. Selb and the architecture and construction will be anything but fantasy. You might well consider the above “fast and loose history” but it can be made to work and at the end of the day I enjoy browned n’ tiger striped, But shiny or browned nose? That’s a toughy and why I figured I’d call on the board to give thoughts and comments.
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Ok, will leave it at being built from a modern perspective, which I have no issue with and own quite a few guns in that category myself. I was just surprised with with your rationalization of not staying as historically accurate as possible with your build, based on your past posts about what others have done.
As gets said all the time, it’s your rifle, and as long as you are happy, everything is good.
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Jake and Sam, or Gemmer are no longer around to tell us what they actually used. Look and study some authentic examples and use what you like. It’s your rifle.
Prairieofthedog
40 Cal.
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Well if WB Selb is building it,by all means have him case harden the nosecap.
I've done both, and both look great on the rifles. I believe in the iron for authenticity. CCH is just plain wrong, IMNSHO!
Both are winners!!!!!!
I like Pewter
I like Pewter
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I plan on browning the nose cap on my latest build. All the metal parts will be brown.
So, yes, I will have a "brown nose" cap.
So, yes, I will have a "brown nose" cap.
Smokey Plainsman
16"/50 Caliber
I still prefer browned (or pewter). I know he does a good job at case hardening though.
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Celticstoneman
40 Cal
Browned.
hanshi
Cannon
The choice is yours to make based on your preferred aesthetics. I like the iron nose cap but that's just me.
I've never seen a modern re-production Hawken with case-hardened furniture but it's interesting. But if I were going to do such a thing I'd contact Turnbull to have the work done if they would, their case hardening is second to none.
Poured pewter looks like the wood was incorrectly mated to the barrel and it was made to look just lovely. Polish the wood and paint the stock or forget the pewter is my vote
My Hawken is browned.
