Trade Gun VS Brown Bess

[John Spartan]

Thats the cool part of these guns. Like you ARE holding history. And you get to shoot it. Winning.
I just have to decide if I wanted to wait for the Pedersoli Baker or get a Bess now to join the French collection.

 

[Notchy Bob]

Thats the cool part of these guns. Like you ARE holding history. And you get to shoot it. Winning.
I just have to decide if I wanted to wait for the Pedersoli Baker or get a Bess now to join the French collection.

I think you should get the Bess now, and keep on saving your money up so you can get the Baker rifle to keep it company, when the Baker becomes available. You can't leave a gal like Bess alone with all those Frenchmen...

Notchy Bob

 

[oldwood]

I once read the history of F&I War era Fort Michillamackinaw , on the northern tip of Michigan. When they performed an archaeological dig , amazingly , one result was the calibers of musket balls found leaned toward .54 to .60 , with a few.75's thrown in , Not what I would'a guessed , since it was a British Fort. Back in those days , I bet there were few , if any rifled guns there ?? .47 to .62 , was common rifle calibers in the colonies. Indian muskets were known to be smaller calibers than you'd think.

 

[Carteret Kid]

The smoothbore I have been wanting is the Fusil Ordinaire aka the French Marine musket. It looks like the Fusil De Chasse, but it in .69 caliber. (16 guage)

 

[Carteret Kid]

This is non firing version. Just think, French ergonomics in big bore.

 

[Bushfire]

I once read the history of F&I War era Fort Michillamackinaw , on the northern tip of Michigan. When they performed an archaeological dig , amazingly , one result was the calibers of musket balls found leaned toward .54 to .60 , with a few.75's thrown in , Not what I would'a guessed , since it was a British Fort. Back in those days , I bet there were few , if any rifled guns there ?? .47 to .62 , was common rifle calibers in the colonies. Indian muskets were known to be smaller calibers than you'd think.

Maybe the lead was flying into the fort!

 

[FlinterNick]

If it were me….. I’d get both. You’ll find that in this hobby, you’re always looking for the next addition.

For me, my Brown Bess muskets are just part of my military reenactment collection.

Some military guns are ok for hunting, as for a Brown Bess, I’d go with a fusil or carbine.

Jim Chambers has a really nice English Officers Fusil.

 

[FlinterNick]

I own all three....
(three Dave? He asked about two...)
I have trade guns, I have full sized Bess..., and I have ...wait for it...., a Serjeant's Carbine in a smaller caliber than the full sized Bess..., not to be confused with Pedersoli's carbine, which is the same caliber as the Bess.

Depends as some have mentioned, on what you want to do. Hunting, Targets, Living History....,

Trade guns and Bess have large locks, which are very forgiving for new shooters. That means they are likely to have less misfires than say a factory rifle made with a small lock. All are robust and tend to take some punishment in the field.

As far as "kick" is concerned, that's physics..., both have metal butt plates, and while the ball for the Bess is larger than that for a 20 gauge carbine or trade gun, the butt on the Bess is longer and wider and more rounded on the edges in many cases, so the pounds-per-square-inch against your shoulder during recoil is mitigated more. IF you shoot an ounce of shot out of both using the same load, the Bess is actually softer.

What it really comes down to is easy of carry. Trade guns tend to be lighter in weight, and with shorter barrels and wooden instead of steel rammer, there is less leverage against your body when you are standing and shooting. The lighter weight also makes for an easier swing on a flying bird, if you should choose to go for upland game. You can get away with less shot and be successful on turkey or squirrels, which is a cost saving, and that is amplified if you decide to shoot a round of skeet or something.

So really, the trade gun is the choice if there is no Living History situation.

OH and some of the colonies had Bess muskets that they issued to Civilians, so not necessarily a no-no for a civilian to have such... but these would be much older models of the Bess than the Pedersoli.

LD

I think it depends on the bess. To me a pedersoli bess feels like a trade gun in terms of weight. The pedersoli bess weighs around 9 - 9.5 lbs, nothing like an original bess that weighed 10-12lbs. The .75 cal bore is ok but really wish they had options in .69 or .72, and the butt stock is just too high with the comb design.

My personal favorite military gun to hunt with is an 1816. I removed the bell sling swivels and replaced with screwed sling swivels so they don’t clank around and make noise. The .69 caliber barrel and lighter weight 42” barrel and butt stock with no rising comb really make it an ideal hunting military arm.

 

[Camphill]

I’d been considering a Pedersoli Brown Bess for the last few months and finally purchased one yesterday evening. The dealer had six for me to choose from and this one had the darkest, most authentic looking stock.
I don’t know how it would compare to a trade gun, but the build quality of this Pedersoli looks great to my inexperienced eyes.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

I’d been considering a Pedersoli Brown Bess for the last few months and finally purchased one yesterday evening. The dealer had six for me to choose from and this one had the darkest, most authentic looking stock.
I don’t know how it would compare to a trade gun, but the build quality of this Pedersoli looks great to my inexperienced eyes.View attachment 152768

I love my Pedersoli Bess Carbine…if you hunt, take it rabbit hunting. It shines…