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General discussion => Antique Gun Collecting => Topic started by: hawknknife on July 24, 2012, 09:40:41 PM

Title: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: hawknknife on July 24, 2012, 09:40:41 PM: Some of you may remember the posting I did on the Confederate Mississippi Rifle that was broken in half. I just received the rifle back from Mr. Parker and I wanted all to see the masterful restoration job he did on this rare Civil War musket.

I am including a few pics of before with the after pics so it can be seen the task that he undertook and completed. The wood is spliced and missing wood added so well that it cannot be determined as the color and grain is a 100% match.

Please feel free to show the pics of this rifle to anyone with knowledge of Confederate weapons as the maker remains unknown. The maker is probably known to the collecting fraternity but his output was so limited the finished rifles have yet to be identified.

This rifle is in 54 caliber with 7 lands and grooves. Being the patchbox mortice was cut and then a thin wooden door nailed onto it I thought maybe it could be a captured Harper's Ferry stock and utilized barrel.

All the brass fittings are crude Confederate manufacture.

Thanks
Carl
www.hawknknife.com (http://www.hawknknife.com)
hawknknife@hotmail.com

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Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: rich pierce on July 24, 2012, 10:28:44 PM: Can't ask or hope for better than that!
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: jdm on July 24, 2012, 10:42:40 PM: Louie is a true artist. I know he worries about every thing he does on a project because he wants it to come out perfect. Well guess what. Perfect! Another piece of history saved from the parts bin. JIM
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: Dr. Tim-Boone on July 24, 2012, 11:27:11 PM: I think i will just send my new guns to Louie and let him repair them!! Incredible work Louie!!
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: WElliott on July 25, 2012, 03:49:36 AM: It is always enjoyable to see Louie's masterful work. Congratulations on saving an interesting rifle.
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: mr. no gold on July 25, 2012, 04:26:32 AM: Darn it Louie!! Didn't I tell you once before to stop taking credit for those old guns saying that you restored them. Anyone can tell that this one is untouched and unmessed with.
Carl, you made the right call on this one by sending it to Louie. He is just the best! Louie, you never cease to amaze me.
Dick
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: debnal on July 25, 2012, 05:24:20 AM: Louie is simply one of the best! I have had several items that he has restored/saved and I have never been dissappointed. Most of the time I have been truley amazed.
Al
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: Fullstock longrifle on July 25, 2012, 04:13:35 PM: If the before pictures hadn't been posted you would never know that this gun had been worked on, that's the sign of a true master. Another home run Louie.

Frank
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: louieparker on July 25, 2012, 05:05:36 PM: I am glad you fellows like Carl's rifle . Its a very rare gun and was certainly worth the effort to bring it back.. Hopefully someone will tell us who the maker might be. I am certainly no authority on Confederate guns, but have worked on more than a few and don't recall seeing the Roman numerals on the stock. .Maybe its common ? ? If not it might be clue to help identify the maker ..Anyone know ??? Louie
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: mbriggs on July 25, 2012, 05:30:43 PM: I would suggest that someone email the photos of this rifle to John Sexton in Florida. He is the top authority on Confederate Rifles. You can google him to get his contact information.

Michael
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: JTR on July 25, 2012, 05:55:13 PM: I agree that's a fine job by Louie!
Plus he's a nice guy to boot!

John
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: louieparker on July 25, 2012, 08:10:36 PM: Quote from: mbriggs on July 25, 2012, 05:30:43 PM
I would suggest that someone email the photos of this rifle to John Sexton in Florida. He is the top authority on Confederate Rifles. You can google him to get his contact information.

Michael

Before this work was started, I sent the before photos to one of the bigger Civil War dealers..He sent them on to two other dealers , Sexton was one of those. No one recognised the gun .., Louie
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: jdm on July 25, 2012, 10:17:00 PM: What about Chuck Foster? I believe confederate guns are his thing. JIM
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: C. Cash on July 26, 2012, 06:28:57 AM: It's wonderful that it was saved. One of the prettiest rifles of the CW era and a Confederate version to boot.
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: Clowdis on July 26, 2012, 03:53:36 PM: A very well done restoration. You should be proud of that one!
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: crazy Bob on July 27, 2012, 04:35:32 PM: I'd have to say an armoury repair or an early mendenhall or very early fayetteville, it has been rebarreled, hard to say if it was done during the war or not. Many long arms were repaired at various armouries throughout the south and other than the repair being noted in production logs, no types of arms were noted.
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: longrifle on July 27, 2012, 06:41:53 PM: That is a fantastic restoration, I am glad to see that you were able to save this piece of history.
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: TMerkley on July 27, 2012, 06:47:55 PM: Where did that type of barrel come from with the nipple on the top? Was that common among confederate rifles?
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: hawknknife on July 27, 2012, 07:03:43 PM: Crazy Bob, Why do you feel it has been rebarreled? I had at first thought it was a flint converted barrel utilized as the one pictured in CONFEDERATE RIFLES AND MUSKET" built by Alabama gun works as it did appear to have a vent hole plugged on the side of the barrel. I had thought they may have used an 1817 common rifle barrel but the rifling is not even close to the 1817 as this barrel is in .54 rifled with seven lands and grooves and has a pretty nice bore.
Louie told me he couldn't see how they pulled that much metal up into the cone for the nipple as was done on the early U.S. flint conversions. Does anyone know how the bolster was made on the U.S. model 1841 Mississippi rifle? Was it milled on or what. I had thought this may be manufactured from captured Harper's Ferry stock and barrel. The patch box mortice is cut out and the thin layer of wood cover is as old as the stock matches in color. Maybe they simply ran out of patch box brass lids.. The brass butt plate, trigger guard, and bands are all confederate manufacture. These are not even close to the U.S. parts with lots of casting flaws and file marks. At anyhow, it is a very interesting musket.
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: TMerkley on July 27, 2012, 07:35:33 PM: Could the bands have been patterned off of the 1795 Charleville pattern?
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: hawknknife on July 27, 2012, 08:01:09 PM: Mr. Merkley, The bands are just crude copies of the U.S. Model 1841 bands...Carl
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: TMerkley on July 29, 2012, 12:29:54 AM: Ok, Thanks.

I am a beginner.
Title: Re: Confederate Rifle Restoration by Louie Parker
Post by: Topknot on July 29, 2012, 06:40:08 PM: LOUIE, fantastic restoration,if i hadnt seen the before pictures, i would never have known that it had been broken.

GREAT JOB,

topknot