What I Need to Look for

[WALKERs210]

Stopped at my favorite PAWN/GUN shop today, owner had to show me one of his latest collection. Didn't have a lot of time to go over the rifle completely because about the time he pulled it out to show me someone opened the gates and his business got swamped with customers. What I looked at and tried to make mental notes on is Smooth bore approximately 60cal, percussion lock, single trigger, metal butt plate that turns up over the top slightly. Barrel at the breech was octagon transiting into round, lock for bayonet, and it had two bands. First thought was it is a Springfield but there were very few markings and like I said didn't have a lot of time to look it over to gather all the details I would have liked to. Now just got to sweet talk the owner into turning loose of it, if for nothing else a very nice wall hanger with history.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Check the inside and outside of the lockplate for any markings. You may have to use a pencil rub on paper to bring out details if much rust is present. Then separate the barrel from the stock, and look for markings on the underside of the barrel, near the breech. If it is a foreign made gun, it will often show proof marks, and those in turn will identify the country of origin. :thumbsup:

 

[CoyoteJoe]

If you're thinking of it as a shooter be sure to go back with a drop-in bore light. Often old muzzleloaders which look pretty good on the outside have bores totally eaten up from many years of corrosion. This is especially true of percussions because the early caps were very corrosive.

 

[WALKERs210]

Thanks for the info on where to look and what to look for. The gun is is in fair condition and doubt that I would ever fire it without taking it to a very trusty gunsmith. Will attempt to get more infomation on the gun asap.