AmericanLongRifles Forums
General discussion => Antique Gun Collecting => Topic started by: edwardc on April 10, 2016, 05:10:20 AM
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i am looking for opinions about an 1844 Harpers ferry musket
since this gun is over 170 years old would any of you fire this gun ??
its in good cond and has a thick breech area with only a tiny amount of pitting at the nipple area
the gun has recently been gone over and a large chunk of Old powder and wad ? patch was removed
But no ball or slug( minnie ball ?) was found
even if its just a light black powder load with cardboard wad?
i was thinking of firing a couple of shots on the 4th of july
but the last thing i want is too blow the darn thing up
any and all opinions wanted
thanks
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It's your gun, but treat it with the respect that it deserves. IF it is in good, solid condition, proof test it (with a string to pull the trigger) before shooting from your shoulder . Over the past years I have shot MANY vintage black powder guns, from hunting with 1808 muskets up through Model 1816's and 1842's along with French & Belgian flint muskets. It's fun and nostalgic. Shooting light shot charges is "rather safe", but again please err on the side of caution! I am more careful with the civilian muzzleloading rifles as I worry about the variability of their barrels and "hidden flaws", but I do regularly shoot some of my "good condition" 1840-1870 vintage percussion gun collection with no concerns about their safety. I'm sure that others will caution you to NEVER shoot an old gun and I respect their opinion, so act according to your own wisdom and enjoy.
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Would all depend on what the INSIDE of the barrel looked like. The oldest gun I fired regularly was a SXS flint gun built about 1815ish. Shot tons of skeet with that gun.
I probably wouldn't bother to mess with it just on the 4th. If you do make sure there is no alcohol around and you clean the poor thing well after you shoot it. There are other things that you can make go boom just for fun with out messing up that old gun.
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I agree with Mike. Why risk ruining an old rifle for gratification when you could hold an M-80 in you fingers and get the same bang. ::) ::) ::)
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thanks for the opinions
and NO i will not be shooting it this 4th of july
the barrel is clean but about 3/4 th of the way down i see a dark spot that looks like it goes all the way around
so on the wall it goes.
again thanks
ed
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Assuming that your musket has a lockplate dated 1844, it could either be a converted 1816 or a model 1842. The lockplate date is the year of manufacture. Production of the flint 1816 at Harpers Ferry ended in 1844 and production of the percussion 1842 began the same year. 1816s can be identified by the stock which has a very low comb. Most converted to percussion have a nipple screwed directly into the upper right side of the breech area. That type of conversion is weaker than the drum and nipple or bolster type conversions also used. If you musket has a more typical high comb and has a bolster type breech, then it's a model 1842. If so, it has better than average collector value because of the early date which indicates possible use in the Mexican War. Bob Hoyt or Dan Whitacre could reline it for you if you want to shoot it but that would hurt the collector value. If it's an 1816, Bob can reline it and rework the breech, all assuming that it's not to far gone. Dan can also pro vide a drop in replacement barrel for an 1842.
Bob has relined a flint 1816, a rifled 1842 and an 1842 Mississippi for me, all with excellent results.
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it is a true 1842 percussion
and not a Belgian ? method conversion
the lock plate is dated 1844 harpers ferry and the eagle stamp
i had Mr Zimmerman in harpers ferry W va do a complete overhaul too it
he found two broken screws and removed the breech plug and took out what was blocking it and put it all back together
other then that its un touched
i thought about a reline barrel but just don't like the idea
i have an earlier Springfield dated 1832 and that was done by the Belgian method
and too tell the truth i don't like the looks of it but it is what it is
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Varsity
by any chance do you have contact info for Bob Hoyt ? or Dan Whitacre
would like to contact them about a different gun
thanks ed
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Bob Hoyt
2379 Mt. Hope Rd
Fairfield, PA 17320
717-642-6696
www.whitacresmachineshop.com
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I'd say never shoot the Belgian conversion. The nipples tend to break off. More interesting to me is that the old touch-hole was stopped up by simply driving an iron rod into the hole. Why it wouldn't blow out I do not know. I have an un-issued one that shows this clearly.
Harpers Ferry did not always have access to the best grade of wrought iron. I personally would feel more or less OK with a good Springfield. More or less
When Young & Immortal I did shoot Civil War surplus stuff. A childhood friend recalls that the sparrows would fly away at the flash from my Paget carbine.
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that's why i am not going to fire it
given that the harpers ferry is NOT a belgian method it was a factory build with proper bolster for the nipple and is in orig cond
but i just don't need a chunk of barrel flying past me
but i got a hold of Mr whitacre and he is going to re barrel my Springfield with a new proofed barrel and make it match
will take him a couple of months to get the barrel proofed but i feel it will be worth it in the long run
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In 1979, I bought a Harpers Ferry 1842 percussion musket from a pawn shop on Oahu. It had been "sporterized" so we were not too concerned with hurting it's value. (If I bought it, you can bet it was cheap.) Being the drunken sailor that I was, Jim Kroschell and I ordered some cast round balls from Dixie, drove up into the mountains above Makaha and shot it numerous times. Later, it fell off my makeshift gun rack and hit the floor. The barrel was bent noticeably. After I finished cussing myself for allowing this to happen, I stuck the barrel into my VW's bumper, and it straightened easily. As someone said, the barrels on many of them are very soft. Today, I would not shoot it as there are too many contemporary muzzle loaders within reach.
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Kilt one poor turtle with large round ball from a sporterized Potsdam musket. Sold musket to friend, he loaded it too heavy & it kicked the s--- out of him. Guess he's still my friend.
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My hesitation in shooting it would center more around the risk of damaging the wood finish on the stock. A lot of original guns appear to be finished with shellac or something water soluable and warm water running down the stock while cleaning them will strip the finish off. In terms of shooting old barrels, the oldest that I have shot is a 6 guage english fowler which appears to have been made around 1800 and converted to percussion at a later date. I think relative to safety, is to check the bore for deep pitting and also to use moderate charges. In reply to an earlier caution about nipples, I replace all nipples with stainless ones and if the threads of the barrel are pitted or damaged, I chase the threads out with home made taps until I have clean threads and then make a nipple to match
cheers Doug