Robert,
Thanks for responding to the concerns raised above. It is good to hear the other side.
Especially since I own a MH musket and have so far found that I got what I payed for. It has been noticed by people who have the same or similar guns from you since without a problem.
So far, I have enjoyed your musket. Aside from a bent cock screw (damaged in shipping), having to rethread the ramrod (and the bent cock screw) and some filing to get the bayonet to fit over the lug, I have found precious few nits to pick.
Again, I paid a fairly low price and was quite willing to do a bit of finish work. These are not complaints, but rather an honest statement of my experience with your product.
I am considering the purchase of some more guns from you for our group.
In discussing your guns with others who are involved with re-enacting events, several people have raised issues which might have caused me some concerns. However, most of these were people who had a vested interest in selling very high dollar custom guns and felt threatened by your arrival upon the scene with a lower cost product.
I would also add that the loudest complainer about your muskets reversed his noises when I put my (your) musket in his hand and told him that he was welcome to disassemble it in front of all present so that we all could witness the result. He looked at it for a moment expressed admiration for your product and suddenly remembered other work that needed doing which precluded his unbreeching of the gun at that time. A shame, but I guess that I will do this myself -- someday.
In order to allay these "concerns" can you please address the following points:
1. While your guns are sold without ventholes drilled, the implication is clearly made that this is merely a legal requirement but that the guns will safely stand up to being shot with normal loads of round ball or shot pellets without trouble. In fact, they were designed for this purpose.
2. Specifically, the breech is made to withstand being shot without a problem. It is deep enough and has a thread type that is intended to withstand these pressures.
3. If one were to unbreech the gun, there would not be a problem with the threads. One would not find a situation where pressure caused BP fouling intrusion into the threads which would cause eventual failure through corrosion.
4. If there is a problem MH will stand by its product.
These answers should diffuse this lingering odor which seems to have unfairly clouded the reputation of what I believe to be a fine line of products.
YMHS,
CrackStock