Miquelet rifle and pistol

[Mcat]

This is my first posting to a new thread. It will be in two parts. First is to show a rifle I bought from an online auction out of Alberta over a year ago.
it was not sold as an antique which I found strange since in Canada reproduction flintlock long arms are considered antiques. The advertisement suggested it might be a kit gun.
when I got it, the lock would not fire. Once I figured out how this new to me lock worked and cleaned and oiled it, it started working fine with lots of sparks.
i haven’t shot it much but at 50 yards it hits right where it is aimed. It is 54 cal. and so are most of my other muzzle loader long arms. I added the brass tacks, side plate and thumb piece. So this got me interested in miquelet lock guns and I’ve read up on them a bit. In my next posting I will show photos of a pistol I will be receiving next week and some questions for members.

 

[rickystl]

Hi John

Welcome to the Forum. Interesting find. Happy to hear it shoots well. I can definitely identify the lock on your rifle. The lock is from The Rifle Shoppe (TRS) #614, 1650's Spanish Miquelet. The lock is available in Kit form or finished. (Although I hear there is a one year wait list for a finished lock). There is no photo of this lock in TRS online catalog. There is a photo of the lock in kit form only in their printed catalog (which is very rare to find today). The stock on your gun does not look like any pre-carve from TRS. So it looks like the rest of the gun was custom built using a variety of muzzle loading parts available in the market. Hope this helps.
Here is a photo of a 1660's Spanish horse pistol I had built using the same lock, just for reference.

Rick

The Rifle Shoppe, Inc. - Spanish - James Lavin's 1650's Miquelet Lock (614)

 

[Mcat]

Thanks Rick. Yes, TRS was the only place I could find kits for a Spanish miquelet lock, but the barrels were in 62 caliber whereas my gun is 54. I agree that someone assembled it from parts but wasn’t really sure about the lock. Thanks for the information.
john

 

[Mcat]

Btw. Those are fine looking pistols. Where did the barrels come from? What caliber? Do you shoot them?

 

[rickystl]

Btw. Those are fine looking pistols. Where did the barrels come from? What caliber? Do you shoot them?

Hi John

Thanks for the kind comments. Actually, one of the two pistols belongs to a collector friend in California and resides with him. Haven't tried shooting mine yet. But it's ready to fire. The barrels were made to a custom profile by Charles Burton of FCI Barrels in Moorhead, Kentucky. They are .62 caliber smooth bore.

Rick