Author Topic: Steel and brass furniture mix  (Read 1921 times)

Offline bowkill

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Steel and brass furniture mix
« on: April 17, 2019, 02:41:30 AM »
Are there any examples of steel and brass furniture guns out there? Like brass pipes with steel handguard. Been looking but not seen any..
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galudwig

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #1 on: April 17, 2019, 03:32:00 AM »
Right now over on the Contemporary Longrifle Association site on Facebook, there are pictures posted of a mixed metal Tennessee rifle by JB Duggar & E Smith. Most all the furniture is brass, but the trigger guard is iron. It is a really beautiful rifle. Elisha Bull also mixed brass and iron in his rifles. I have pictures of one that I used as inspiration for one of my current builds. It has iron butt plate, toe plate, side plates, and trigger guard with the rest of the furniture (including patchbox) in brass. There is also a mixed metal Baxter Bean rifle on the covers of Randal Pierce's book "Kentucky Rifles of the Great Smoky Mountains." That one is another awesome rifle! In that same book is a John Bull rifle mounted all in iron except for the ramrod thimbles which are brass. They are out there, just have to dig for them!
« Last Edit: April 17, 2019, 03:39:56 AM by galudwig »

Offline bowkill

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #2 on: April 17, 2019, 04:05:38 AM »
I was looking through Randals book a few minutes ago and missed the one on the cover..lol
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Offline Clark Badgett

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #3 on: April 17, 2019, 04:49:24 AM »
Off the top of my head, the NW trade guns and Leman rifles come to mind.
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Offline smylee grouch

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #4 on: April 17, 2019, 04:50:14 AM »
May be some Henry Leman trade guns.

Offline elkhorne

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #5 on: April 17, 2019, 05:43:33 PM »
Now another branch question for this thread! Has anyone seen any original "Southern" style later rifles with German silver furniture or a mix of German silver and brass? Got components for each but just wondering to see if there is any historical evidence of rifles with this mixture. Thanks.
elkhorne

Offline David Rase

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #6 on: April 17, 2019, 05:59:20 PM »
Phillip Gillespie made a rifle with mixed hardware.  The trigger bow was steel and the grip rail was brass.
David

Offline David Rase

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #7 on: April 17, 2019, 06:01:11 PM »
Now another branch question for this thread! Has anyone seen any original "Southern" style later rifles with German silver furniture or a mix of German silver and brass? Got components for each but just wondering to see if there is any historical evidence of rifles with this mixture. Thanks.
elkhorne
I would not use German silver on any rifle I was building.  Just me. 
David

Offline Daryl

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #8 on: April 17, 2019, 08:01:31 PM »
I would not use German silver on any rifle I was building.  Just me. 
David
I agree- if a rifle is to have silver, it should be silver, not nickle.
Daryl

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Offline B.Barker

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #9 on: April 18, 2019, 05:26:39 AM »
Here's a Bull style rifle I built.


Offline Marcruger

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #10 on: April 18, 2019, 02:03:56 PM »
In the Piedmont area of NC there are several examples of finely built rifles with brass mounts with fine silver worked in. There is even the John Vogler presentation rifle with all silver mounts. God bless, Marc

Offline David Rase

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #11 on: April 18, 2019, 03:47:46 PM »
Here is my version of the Phillip Gillespie bi-metallic guard.
David



Online Bob Roller

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #12 on: April 18, 2019, 04:26:22 PM »
That is a good looking trigger guard.I would think that gunmakers back in "The Day"
would use what was readily available.Necessity can be a cruel taskmaster if it took
a mixture of parts to do the job then brass and iron were the ideal materials.

Bob Roller

Offline Pete G.

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #13 on: April 18, 2019, 06:29:14 PM »
I have an old rifle that uses an iron butt plate, but brass for everything else.

Offline Marcruger

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #14 on: April 18, 2019, 08:07:25 PM »
Mr. Barker sir.  That Bull rifle is just a beauty in anyone's book.  I really appreciate the lines and the finishes.  God Bless,   Marc

Turtle

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #15 on: April 19, 2019, 03:41:37 PM »
 Gee thanks guys!  I built my squirrell rifle on the cheap out of leftover brass and steel parts. Maybe it's not so "incorrect" as I thought.

Lzymtlsmth

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Re: Steel and brass furniture mix
« Reply #16 on: April 19, 2019, 07:45:18 PM »
I would believe old time smiths didn't throw much away or know what was "correct" just kinda worked out that way according to how they were taught or observed.I would also guess a lot of these rifles were " used up" , parted out or stood up in a barn to watch the decades pass after their owner passed away.
I like the effect of mixed parts, I built a Leman like that. Lets see your squirrel rifle.