my little squirrel rifle

[BadHeart]

wow and double wow. beautiful shootin iron. I bet it is a real joy to shoot and carry

 

[Flash Pan Dan]

That is lovely work indeed, both the rifle and what's for dinner. Correct me if I’m wrong but I don’t see any carving. Interesting design feature all inlays no carving. I am just starting to study the design of rifles. I’ve only seen one other rifle with a similar feature. That was a rifle built in 1804 by Henry Walter in Ohio. Completely different style but it only had one carving on the buttstock everything else was inlays. Thank you for sharing the pictures.

 

[bushytail]

That`s a reeaal nice gun. :thumbsup: What would a gun like that be worth today? :idunno: I would imagine it would be hard to put a price tag on a gun like that. :hmm: Good luck with the tree rats. :wink:

 

[George]

Correct me if I’m wrong but I don’t see any carving.

You are right, no carving. but more inlays than I've ever seen on a gun. Even the rococo "C" which is so often carved behind the cheek piece is an inlay.

Spence

 

[George]

What would a gun like that be worth today?

I really have no idea, and I may never. Price is set when things are sold, and I doubt I'll ever sell that one.

Spence

 

[rkmeyer]

There are not enough words to express what a fantastic piece that is. I can't imagine how difficult the inletting was with so many long punctured pieces, and the engraving! unbelievable!!!!
Thanks for all of your information! :surrender: :surrender:
Dusty :wink:

 

[shmrck1]

Spence,
That is one beautiful piece of art and
craftsmanship! If I were to ever have such a
a rifle, it would probably be in a vult somewhere,and I would hunt squirrel with my
.32 Crockett. :hmm:

 

[caddo]

Leaves me speechless, never seen a squirrel rifle that beautiful. You lucky guy :bow:

 

[trent/OH]

It would take me years to kill a squirrel with that rifle. I'd never be looking for squirrels, just sitting on a log looking at the rifle. Eventually a dumb squirrel, or one who appreciates fine workmanship, would walk right up to me and beg to be shot by it. But like I said, that would take a few years to happen.

 

[Lipps1948]

I found and spoke with a man, Donald Davison, a long-time gun builder from Johnson City, TN, who knew all the people involved with my gun. He learned gun building and engraving from Lester Smith. He said Louis and Lester Smith were not related, but did work together. It is his opinion that at the time my gun was built it would been done by Louis Smith, then turned over to an expert in inlays, Buck Fleenor, for that part, then to Lester Smith for the engraving. Lester Smith died at a fairly young age somewhere around 1980, so he would have still been doing the engraving for Louis Smith at the time my rifle was made, sometime before 1975. He said Lester Smith's engraving was unique, and he was known for his excellent "wiggle" engraving. Here's a picture of it. Every edge of all the inlays is done in this fashion.

Spence

Sadly Don is gone now too, I grew with Don remember Lester Smith also. Hacker Martin's grandson was a best friend and same age as me. Hacker had worked with Sammy (grandson) building a 36 caliber cap rifle for Sammy when he was just 14 year's old. Everything was completed but no stock. He sold all the parts to my Dad in 1966. Dad then had Joe Durham assemble with a Joe built curly maple stock. This gun is now in my possession. My Dad paid Sammy the grandson $25.00 for all the parts all hand built at Hacker's shop in Virginia. Joe Durham then made the stock assembled and test fired twice. He charged my father $100.00. So $125.00 Hacker Martin caplock. Joe was a rifle maker for many years also helping Don Davison get started in the business. I grew up around all these guys here in the Gray, Tn area. Hacker lived here a long time owning a water mill in the Cedar Creek area of Gray before moving to Virginia.

 

[George]

Sadly Don is gone now too,

I'm sorry to hear that. I met Don only on the internet, never in person. He seemed a very nice guy, was a lot of help to me in figuring out the backstory of my little gun.

Spence

 

[J Sefchik]

Thirty-five years ago I bought a trim little flintlock .30 caliber rifle which as been my main squirrel rifle. It would be hard to make a better one. The rifle was built by Louis Smith of Johnson City, TN. It has a Wm. "Bill" Large 38" barrel which is 11/16-inch across, straight octagon and has a 1:56" twist. The lock is a Hadaway, made by "Doc" Hadaway in my home town of Louisville, Ky. I've never seen a gun with as many inlays and engravings as it has. It is so slender and trim that first glance makes you think it's a woman's or child's gun, but trigger pull is 13 3/4", overall length is 55" and it fits me very well. Weight is 7 lb., and it hangs well offhand. I shoot mostly .295" balls with .010" patch, sometimes .290". It handles 15 to 30 grains of FFFg well and is my most accurate gun out to about 40 yards. As the old boys used to say, "she will make 'em come!"

Spence

That is a beautiful work of art

 

[ETipp]

Thirty-five years ago I bought a trim little flintlock .30 caliber rifle which as been my main squirrel rifle. It would be hard to make a better one. The rifle was built by Louis Smith of Johnson City, TN. It has a Wm. "Bill" Large 38" barrel which is 11/16-inch across, straight octagon and has a 1:56" twist. The lock is a Hadaway, made by "Doc" Hadaway in my home town of Louisville, Ky. I've never seen a gun with as many inlays and engravings as it has. It is so slender and trim that first glance makes you think it's a woman's or child's gun, but trigger pull is 13 3/4", overall length is 55" and it fits me very well. Weight is 7 lb., and it hangs well offhand. I shoot mostly .295" balls with .010" patch, sometimes .290". It handles 15 to 30 grains of FFFg well and is my most accurate gun out to about 40 yards. As the old boys used to say, "she will make 'em come!"

Spence

It’s a beautiful rifle for sure. So much so that if I had one just like it, I could not, in good faith, take it to the woods here. My squirrel rifle goes through hell and it certainly shows it, too.

 

[oldwood]

Very nice.

 

[J Sefchik]

I wonder why the 1:56 inch twist ?? Was this number somehow scientifically calculated ?? Too bad nobody really carried on the "Johnson City" school.