Author Topic: Jamestown rifle?  (Read 2996 times)

Offline Shreckmeister

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Jamestown rifle?
« on: October 21, 2016, 04:52:09 PM »
This rifle has some features of a Jamestown rifle to my eye.  Am I just seeing things.



Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add 'within the limits of the law' because law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual.

Offline mbriggs

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Re: Jamestown rifle?
« Reply #1 on: October 21, 2016, 06:04:55 PM »
Shreck
The stock looks correct, but the trigger guard is not the typical one.  They made so many rifles that I have seen a number of them with different trigger guards, usually on the later rifles.  Between 1840 and 1860, the four largest shops combined were producing 1,100 rifles per year according to the census of manufacturing.

Michael
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Offline Molly

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Re: Jamestown rifle?
« Reply #2 on: October 21, 2016, 09:16:47 PM »
Strange, some people are "seeing things", but I'm not seeing anything!

Offline Shreckmeister

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Re: Jamestown rifle?
« Reply #3 on: October 21, 2016, 10:34:28 PM »
Mike,  The broken wrist may answer the question of why it has the wrong trigger guard.  How about the rest of it?
Anyway, this rifle surfaced at the Jack Vye estate auction.  After the recent discussion on ALR about Jamestown, the
stock architecture of this one said Jamestown to me.  How about the patchbox finial?
« Last Edit: October 21, 2016, 10:36:53 PM by Shreckmeister »
Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add 'within the limits of the law' because law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual.

Offline mbriggs

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Re: Jamestown rifle?
« Reply #4 on: October 24, 2016, 05:44:07 PM »
It is hard to tell much from two small photos.  The cheek-rest is typical for the later half-stock rifles from the Jamestown School.

Most of the patchbox is not visible in the photo, but the finial is not typical and unlike anything I have seen on a rifle from that school. 

I have seen or owned 40 Jamestown rifles that were full-stock, flintlock, and had a patchbox.  3/4 of those have a twisted star patchbox finial with a daisy engraved around the screw.  I have seen or owned six Jamestown rifles with Eagle patchboxes.  All six were made by William Lamb.  I think he was influenced by the Vogler family of gunsmiths 20 miles west of him in Salem.  Thaddeus Gardner also made some rifles with non-typical patchboxes.

I would not usually expect to find a half-stock Jamestown rifle with the round cheek-rest that also has a patchbox, but then I found a rifle made by Chordy Whiteheart of Caswell County, North Carolina that has both...so what do I know.   

Michael   
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