PC Rifles

[Old Charlie]

(Every rifle was a "custom" plain or fancy. It was a one of a kind, made for it's shooter. That's the definition of custom.)

I don't buy that. The gun maker turned out as many guns as his shop could and keep the quality up. That gun maker finished the guns. He had apprentice that did most of the building. Were the guns shipped to the voo custom made for a certain man? I don't think so.
Old Charlie

 

[bnail]

You're talking apples and oranges OC.
The guns Made for the "trade" were about as mass produced as you can get, but they were still individually made. regardless, If I, as a civilian, wanted a good firearm to replace my old service musket, I would probably do the same thing that I just did, contact a reputable builder, discuss the different cost factors, and take the appropriate measurements. if he had one in stock, fantastic, but he didn't, so now I'm on a list. I can't believe it was any different in the 18th C; neither can I believe that there was a colonial Walmart where I could peruse a variety of firearms.

 

[Old Charlie]

Most of the Mt. men that went west worked for a company. The Co. supplied them with all there goods, including their gun. They were not buying them custom made rifles.
Old Charlie

 

[TN.Frank]

I bought an inline to hunt with last season and couldn't even bring myself to shoot, just didn't seem right. I shot the inline that I bought for my grandson just to sight it in, after season I sold it and got him a percussion CVA Hawken 'cause it's easier to take care of then the inline was.
My gun of choice is an Austin n' Halleck flint Mt.Rifle that cost just over $500 with the Fancy wood, well below $1500 bucks and it still shoots like a house a fire. Currently I'm working on a poorboy 40 cal that I swapped a Ruger Old Army revolver for. I'd say even at todays prices there's not $400 bucks worth of parts in that gun. Most of the expensive in a custom gun isn't in the parts that make the gun, it's in the fit and finish and time that the maker puts into it.
I'd go so far as to say that most custom guns don't have over $500 bucks worth of parts in em', the extra $1000 that you pay is for the skill of the maker. Personally, after working on this poorboy for a couple days It'd take more money then that for me to make up a rifle from a stock blank and a bunch of parts. A lot of this stuff takes a great deal of skill, like inletting the barrel and lock and fitting the butt plate.

 

Like others have said "all" guns "back then" were custom in the sense we use that term today applied to guns. "Back then" has to be defined, in that by the late fur trade there were some PA "factories" like Leman and Henry turning out rifles and there were earlier mass productions of trade guns and military muskets. If you go into the 18th century and pick a civilian persona you most likely are looking at a "custom" made rifle or gun in the same sense as we face it today. There are plenty of ledgers and manifests that show that there were at least two classes of custom guns--plain and fancy. The plain guns typically cost half of a fancy one, whether figured in pounds, dollars or buckskins. [a third class were the truly masterwork guns made for the royalty or very wealthy.] A typical rifle "back then" cost a months wage for a high paid professional and up to a years earnings for some "po' folks". Some market hunters "rented" their rifles from their employers. We today are the richest country the world has ever known based on most criteria, especially the wages of the common man. We whine about a $1500 gun while pumping $50.00 gas into our $35,000 pickmup truck with the $25000 bass boat in tow! It is all in the PRIORITIES! Now, I realize that some folks are strapped--been there myself. My solution was to take a short course in ML gun building and make my own. I wouldn't take $2500 for my first rifle, and if I did it would only net me $13/hr labor.

 

[Roy]

:hmm:
barrel = $195+
lock= $125+
wood= :rotf:, unless you want something with no figure.
You will find that today the prices are a bit more than what they were a few years ago.

I finally got up all the parts to build a 1st model bess= $700 no kidding

 

[TN.Frank]

Dixie has decent barrels for around $120 and you can get a good L&R lock for under $150. A plain stock will run $100-$150 and then you can add around $50 for all the little extras like ramrod thimbles, trigger(standard pinned, not double sets)trigger guard, butt plate. You can get parts for around $450-$500 if you don't get real fancy or want a bunch of manure on your gun. Just a good basic rifle.

 

[bnail]

Dixie has decent barrels for around $120 and you can get a good L&R lock for under $150. A plain stock will run $100-$150 and then you can add around $50 for all the little extras like ramrod thimbles, trigger(standard pinned, not double sets)trigger guard, butt plate. You can get parts for around $450-$500 if you don't get real fancy or want a bunch of manure on your gun. Just a good basic rifle.

Kind of adds new meaning to the term "GPR," A "Good, Plain Rifle." :thumbsup:
The catch, though, if you're not handy, or set up, is the assembly cost. Still can't come in under a grand unfortunately.

 

[TANSTAAFL]

Ther is an adage along the lines, "Beware of the man who only owns one gun."

 

[TANSTAAFL]

I have made several guns for selling, never built one up custom for anyone. I built, if someone liked, they bought.

 

[Roy]

I'm sorry I thought you were talking about most custom guns.

I'd go so far as to say that most custom guns don't have over $500 bucks worth of parts in em'

 

[Old Charlie]

I bought this Lancaster made from a TVM kit by a fellow out in Cal. For $600. I know some say it is not PC. Well it is PC enough for me.
Old Charlie

 

[bnail]

OC, PC or not, that's a HECK of a deal! :thumbsup:

 

[Roy]

:thumbsup:

 

[TN.Frank]

Very nice rifle, excellent looking fit and finish. :hatsoff:

 

[Pittsburghunter]

Well boys got the Rifleman mag in the mail today and Dixi GW is now selling a copy of the 1795 "Springfield" for just over $1000. looks like a pretty nice gun.

 

[rebelyell62]

Purty rifle gun my friend, but the brass needs some age on it :hatsoff: :hmm: Love the finish on the wood

 

[TN.Frank]

That's something that's hard for me to understand. A mass production flintlock from Italy cost as much or more then a semi-custom rifle from TVM or Early Rustic Arms. Go Figure. :hmm:

 

[Pittsburghunter]

Frank have you seen any pics of it yet? I do not know if it is licenced or anything like that.

 

[John Wasmuth]

I got a Pedersoli KY. Looks a lot like many of the rifles they have on display at the Alamo, and yes, they were all built in the period, and even some of them belonged to several of the men that fought and died there. IMO, many of the replicas built today look much like you would expect them to be replicas of. if it got down to nutt cuttin, none of us are period correct, we are all very much alive.