I've bought from Czernys for years and you are right, you have to keep all that in mind or it would be super easy to overpay. Shipping is exciting because only UPS will ship for them. It used to be cheaper when Fedex would still do it but now.... UPS charges about 100 Euros fee for carrying any kind of firearm from Czernys no matter the age. Shipping for this latest package of two short muskets and a lock was about $500. The 100 Euro fee doesn't include parts so you can buy locks without the fees. Buyer's premium is about 22% and VAT of 21% of the buyers premium will also be added. UPS added about $40 customs fee when it got to the states. It's still cheaper than buying the same things in the states, if you can find them, but it can be a hastle and don't be in a hurry. This package sat for about a month waiting on the Italian government to give an export license for it. I would join your group private message but I'm not much of a threat. I wanted an example but I can't afford to collect them per se.
I will this year. Previous sales it just hadn't been worth the trouble
Neither can we! Lol!
It is, I haven't bothered removing it yet but I know it is wrong
It may not be wrong. . .
Interesting that it is common. One I got at auction had flint in both jaws too. I doubt it would work when the sparks on a wheellock are opposite from a flintlock? Its the rock creating sparking, not the metal. Some of the early attempts at snap locks (the correct kind lol) used pyrite too.
Thats what i thought at first as well. However, if the wheel is hardened as it should be then it would still make sparks as a flintlock does. Of course over time the wheel would wear. I found veteran arms has flint now that should be just like what they would have used. I use it for my miquelets as the geometry of the flint striking is so different from a french lock. They look like they would work well for a reverse wheellock.
Very intriguing. Would be an educational test for someone that has a wheellock they are willing to risk.
!
That does sound thoroughly Victorian. A perfect addition to sawing the barrel down and covering the stock in poorly carved mother of pearl. *shudders*Doh … flints are a good way to DESTROY an otherwise functional wheellock IMHO. I won’t advise the use of ferrro-rods, as I’ve seen them dull a wheellock wheel too!
But, to each their own
And although I can’t prove it, I’d bet it was NOT done way back when, but was likely something done in the Victorian age when it was all the rage to have one’s house or manor decorated with arms, made of bits and parts of real arms.
“Hey Malcom, I have this wheellock replica for ye … whaddya want me to put in the **** (dog)?” “Oh heck mate, just stick me a chunk of flint in thar’ … “
Heck, I wouldn’t even put it past the Auction Houses, as the only thing they pay homage to is $$$$$!
Agreed on the fault/ignorance of auction houses! Too much trouble/expense to find pyrite when they must have a wheelbarrow full of flint. It's "Practical decoration". A missing "anything" in the dog jaws is like a smile with a missing front tooth. The object is to get the firearm sold and out the back door!
