I took delivery of a fowler a few years back, my first flinter, came with an exceedingly poor fit with respect to lock and barrel.
I went out of my way a considerable distance to bring it back in person. Took about fifteen minutes to fix the gap between pan and stock by setting the lock deeper. Unfortunately the top of the lock is now set deeper that the surface of the stock and worse, the cock now angles over the barrel such that unless I offset them, flints gouge the barrel.
The vent hole on the barrel sits some distance above the pan, I was not aware of the poorly set barrel until folks on forums like this pointed it out.
I think the problem arose in the first place because I requested a round-faced Chambers Colonial Virginia lock rather than the usual large Siler, which may have thrown off the semi-skilled guys on the production line.
The gun does work and I use it often, but ignition is commonly slow and I do have to offset the flint.
The thing is, I met the man in person, and he handed that fowler as it is now back to me personally, with a smile.
But the BIG thing I find totally unethical is that fact that TVM uses partially or totally untapered barrels on their fowlers and makes NO mention of this. Basically newbies like myself get sucked in out of ignorance.
Besides unnecessarily clunky lines and total period incorrectness, this makes for a heavy and poor-handling fowler with an especially poor sight picture (all you see is the top flat of the octagon section, nothing at all of the round section, and the top part of the front blade floating out somewhere in space).
The other thing adding to weight is that the ramrod channel is routed 1/4" below the barrel; probably easier for mass production but making a slim forestock impossible.
Anyhoo.... lemonade from lemons, I had a rear sight put on my 9lb "fowler" and called it a "smooth rifle", as such it now does regular duty in front of the Alamo :wink:
When folks ask tho' I always caution them about TVM. Perhaps they also sell used cars on the side.
YMMV, and apparently does.
Birdwatcher
