What do you call it?

[54ball]

I hunted with my smoothbore for the first time last week. Its a 42" barreled .54 flintlock with some Southern and English influence. It has an octagle to round barrel with a turtle front sight. It came up in coversation, what do you call it? Smoothbore seems like a modern term. What did they call these guns 200 years ago? Fusil? Fuzee? Ive read that Washington used the term fuzee. Fowler? Ive always pictured a fowler as a long .62 and up, a fine bird gun. Musket? Musket in my mind is a large military arm like a Bess. Rifle? Its got some rifle lines I guess but it is not a "smoothrifle". Shotgun? That is another modern term. Firelock? Thats an era term but it could mean anything from a pistol to a blunderbuss. Other tham "my gun" what would be an era term for my smoothbore?

 

[RickD]

I just bought my first smooth bore a short time ago and have always called it a smooth bore..Now you have me wondering..

 

[Mike Brooks]

If it has a rear sight it is a smooth rifle. No rear sight it's a fowler.

 

[RickD]

I have a rear site so its a smooth rifle?

 

[paulvallandigham]

If it comes without a rear site, it is a fowler. If it has a rear site, technically it is called a smooth rifle. But many fowlers come with a rear sight, so you can call the gun either. Just snarl at any PC idiot that wants to make a point of it. Even the definition of a rear sight is called into question on some of the guns. It can be the traditional open notch rear sight seen on rifles, or just the tang scres with the screw slot lined up with the bore, or filed marks on the tang and sometimes the very back of the barrel to give the shooter some control over windage. Height control is like that of a shotgun, with your eye being the rear sight and consistency depending on mounting the stock to your face correctly each time you shoot.

 

[RickD]

A smooth rifle it is but at the range when one of the more modern guys ask what I`m shooting its called a smoothbore flintlock..

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

There are differences between a fowler and a smooth-rifle. A fowler is a fowler whether or not it has a rear sight. A smooth-rifle looks like a rifle with the exception that the bore is smooth. Period correctness only comes into play if you are a serious re-enactor or historic trekker. Folks involved in these endeavours tend to be knowledgeable and have a great respect for history. They also are happy to share their knowledge and experience with those who are just starting out as re-enactors. I have yet to meet one who was an idiot.

 

[hawk]

would trade gun fit?

 

[paulvallandigham]

You are a lucky man, Russ T Frizzen. I have not been able to avoid the idiots, and just deal with them.

Hawk2: No a trade gun is a particular style of gun made for the purpose of trading, usually with indians. NOrth Star Enterprises began to market a Trade gun, that had a fairly short barrel, lots of brass, with a brass serpent on the left side of the gun, and a distinctive square buttplate. There were earlier trade guns noted mostly because of their long barrels. For awhile, the traders demanded a stack of beaver pelts, as tall as the gun was long, in payment. Then, with competition between the English and French traders, that practice ended. The barrels got shorter.

An English fowler has certain classic lines. The French fusil is designed differently. And the German Jaeger was a totally different design. All were " smoothrifles " and eventually, gunsmiths started putting rifled barrels on the guns, and the designs were further modified.

 

[RickD]

A very interesting topic..

 

[tg]

In 18th century estate inventories I have seen the term "smoothbore gun" "smoothbore" "smoothrifle" I think "fowling piece" or "fowling gun"

Yours would not be a trade gun unless it followed one of the many patterns of that type, it would probably fall into one of the above types depending upon certain possibly small characteristics post some pics and some of these guys may have a pretty good idea of where it may fall.

 

[mark starr]

at the Museum of the fur trade the have what they
call the chiefs trade guns most are small bore 28
guage or 54 cal many of them are equiped with rear
sights. 20 guage seems to be a miniorty.just my 2
cents worth. :hmm:

 

Since you have asked a Period or Historical question, this PC Idiot will endeavor to answer your question. If your gun has rifle furniture and rifle architecture with a rear sight and a smooth bore you have a smooth rifle. If, on the other hand it has musket architecture i.e. no cheekpiece and the furniture is musket furniture i.e. no finger rail on the TG and no toe plate but the BP is round bottomed, and the bore is smoth without rifling, then you have a fowler or fusil or fuzee. These words were interchangeable for a fowling gun. A musket was a term used for military shoulder arms although one can say a fowler is a light musket. This should confuse you even further. :grin:
Paul, be nice. :winking:
Smooth guns and rifled guns have been in use simultaneously with sportsmen for centuries before the american longrifle came in to being. Rifling is not a 18th century invention.

 

[Wes/Tex]

...and don't forget "birding piece"! This may, if fact, be a 17th century term. Do recall seeing the term used in describing guns used for sniping officers on the other side, which I thought interesting since they would, by definition, be smoothbored guns.

 

[benvenuto]

Birding pieces could be rifled or smooth bored. Birding was shooting at sitting birds with ball, fowling was shooting on the wing or at birds on the water with shot. So theoretically a birding piece was smaller bore, with twin sights and made to shoot a ball (whether rifled or not) whereas a fowler was larger bore, and usually used for shot.
However the terms get used so interchangably in later literature the difference is moot.

Blome, in "the Gentlemans Recreation" (1686) says for shooting on the wing you should use a gun "about four foot and a half long in the Barrel, and of a pretty wide Bore somthing under a Musket". This is the first english book that mentions shooting flying birds.

 

[squirejohn]

To no one in particular - "just next in line".
As long as we're into definitions, what is the definition for "FUKE"/

 

Fuke is short for fusil or fuzee. Same difference. These terms are interchangeable as well for a light musket or fowler or trade gun as in Northwest Fuke.

 

[Okwaho]

The term Fusil is a French word pronounced Fuzee and in the 17th and 18th centuries was used to denote any gun using a flint ignition system.A matchlock was defined as a Mousquet.The English adopted the term to denote a slimmed down version of a musket usually carried by officers and Serjeants.This practice extended through the 18th century and into the early 19th century.Americans in the Revolutionary War also used the term in the same context as the English and several are illustrated in various books on Revolutionary War weaponary.They are sometimes referred to as "fusil muskets"I have an early Rev.War fusil musket which is a composite gun{ as many were} stocked in cherry with a 41" barrel of about .65 cal.The cherry stock indicates probable Conn. origin.

I have no clue as to the origin of the term "fuke" other than it may be a bastardized version of fusil or fuzee which originated in the Canadian back country.
Tom Patton