Pedersoli flintlock .45 Cal Mystery rifle

[Sharpie44]

So I was in my friends shop yesterday and a guy came in looking to sell a rifle he had for whatever he could get. It had a bit of rust and i didn't know anything about it so I threw out $125. He took the offer but i don't know which of us got the deal.

Turns out It's some sort of Pedersoli but i can't find one like it. So I don't know if i got a deal or a dud.

The main issue with it is the lock is awful. The pan is tiny and it doesn't spark well with any of the flints i have. I made a quick video to show what I'm dealing with.

If anyone has any info on this gun I would appreciate it.

https://youtu.be/AHlIiAHLgWI

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHlIiAHLgWI&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]

 

[Bearkiller]

Video doesn't work for me

 

[Sharpie44]

Guess i can just link it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHlIiAHLgWI&feature=youtu.be

 

[nwtradegun]

its one of the crapper early rifles. l and r make a replacement lock that might fit.

 

[Sharpie44]

Who can make a replacement lock? I'd certainly like to get one that sparks better.

Edit: Think I found the one you are talking about on Track of the wolf.

 

[Sunkmanitu Tanka]

That is an early Pedersoli Kentucky rifle ... I have one (bought in the seventies)...

 

[Loyalist Dave]

The good news is..., you paid very little for the rifle. PLUS you have room to have the pan enlarged if you wish (as you also mentioned).

I'd suggest that you find a person who can properly reharden the entire frizzen, NOT just surface harden the face of it with Kasenit or Cherry Red. The early Pedersoli locks were normally made with good metal, but improperly finished in many cases. If that doesn't work then you may need to the frizzen re-faced with some proper steel.

ONLY AFTER getting the frizzen to spark should you then worry about the pan. If it's sparking well but the sparks simply don't hit the priming powder right, then modify the lock.

LD

 

[Sharpie44]

Well I know a blacksmith that is only about 45 minutes away. So I might ba able to get him to harden it for me.

I'm more concerned about the lock geography on it. The flint has to be tiny for it to even work properly. I'm strongly considering putting a new lock on it just because of that. I've never seen a historical rifle with a lock that small.

 

[rdstrain49]

I have a new version of that rifle. I would advise caution before spending much money on it. Even if it's a pain, shoot it first. My rifle, although nicely balanced and fun to shoot is a real boat anchor when it comes to any kind of accuracy. Mine has a 48" twist and won't shoot patch and ball, even reduced loads of 40 gr. of 1 1/2f Swiss. See if it shoots well first then do whatever. Good luck.

 

[hanshi]

You can certainly enlarge the pan yourself but will need help with the rest. I had a Pedersoli Cub that was a great shooter but had the crappiest flint lock I'd seen. It's the short version of that "Pennsylvania you have only mine was a fairly recent production. They use the very small flints in those locks. I had the same problem as you describe. I did end up killing a couple of deer using the flint lock but eventually had to get a percussion lock for it. Even with tiny flints the frizzen wouldn't close all the way when it was at half cock. I'm not a fan of small locks in the first place. A knowledgeable smith can probably tune the lock and get it working but choose a smith who has experience with flintlocks; a general gunsmith won't know any more than you do.

 

[Sharpie44]

I can tune a lock no problem. That's way simpler then what I do with lever guns. However like you said there is only so much you can do on such a small lock. Also I think the pan is soft so I would have to have someone harden it. The main spring is also kinda weak as well so that doesn't help and there isn't anything I can do about that.

I agree on the lock size. I didn't get my other rifles out but all of them have large locks on them as you can see from my pistols. It seems like the bigger the lock the more reliable it is when it comes to flintlocks.

 

[hawkeye2]

I had one of those that I got back in '76 and friends had them too. They aren't accurate reproductions of anything but they are not junk either. The lock is the weakest part of the gun. Get used to having to find small flints which was never that difficult. None of us ever had any issues with the size of the pan, it held enough prime and caught the sparks well enough when there were sparks. A little work with a Dremel and a stone wouldn't hurt though. The mainspring is weak and I had to replace one on a friend's lock after I broke it (first and last time I ever used Vise Grips on a spring). I got a generic replacement from Dixie Gun Works and cut the tab down and did a little minor fitting too, big improvement. The frizzen is the big issue, the factory hardening wasn't very deep and wore fast. Check its fit to the pan and cam over point and then have someone give it a good hardening. Do a normal tune up after and you should be good to go. Don't be too concerned about the size of the lock, it's big enough to get the job done. Oh, a little work on the wood, sights, nose cap and a darker stain and it will come out looking much better, if you have a little free time it's worth it.

 

[Sunkmanitu Tanka]

The one I have is a good shooter ... I did well in several club matches... It is a light and handy gun... Like most guns it' s a question of finding the right patch and lube ...

 

[bpd303]

From the proof date XXX your rifle was proved in 1974. I have one that's a later model and it shoots fine for me.

 

[Zonie]

Your rifle looks very much like the "DIXIE DELUXE PENNSYLVANIA RIFLE" shown in the Dixie 1980 catalog.

The ad says it has a .45 caliber, 40 inch long, 13/16" across flats barrel.
It has a single trigger and the same (or very similar) patchbox.
The stock was a, "chestnut colored and of plain straight grain maple wood."

It may not be one of the Dixie guns as they usually had the maker stamp the Dixie logo on the guns they sold but back in the 1970's there were a lot of different small companies importing muzzleloaders from Italy.

 

[Kansas Jake]

The 48 twist in and of itself should not be a problem with getting accuracy with a patched round ball. I have a number of rifles with that twist and they all do well with a round ball. For a 50 caliber, a 50 grain charge seems to be a good load for target shooting at 50 yards. I've also used 80 grains at 100 with decent accuracy. Definitely deer accuracy. There may be other issues with a barrel. I've found a tight patch/ball combination works well with TC's, Traditions, CVA, and Ardesa San Marco with 48 twist and fairly shallow rifling.

 

[rdstrain49]

I have a number of 45s by different manufacturers. Any one of them will shoot rings around my Pedersoli. It's quality is only so so, lock is OK, performance is pathetic. It is a huge disappointment, as I really like the way the rifle handles and feels.

 

[Kansas Jake]

That is a shame. Usually Pedersoli's stuff is pretty good.

 

[rdstrain49]

Agreed, I shoot a Pedersoli 45-70 in Buff Gum matches, it will hold MOA at some very long distances. Perhaps my expectations were a bit too high, but I really thought the Pedersoli would at least shoot better than my TCs.

 

[Kansas Jake]

Maybe it is time to have it bored and re rifled. Or maybe even a smoothie.