Rupp Wire Inlay Question

[QuanLoi]

Regarding the Northampton school of longrifles...  All of my photo references are in black and white.  Was the wire inlay used on Rupp and similar rifles made of brass or silver?  Also, what type of metal was used for the cheekpiece star?

If this subject was already covered in the past, my apologies.

[Shreckmeister]

Mine is silver

[JTR]

You're safe with silver.
Coin silver gives the 'right' look, but pure silver won't tarnish as much.

Not a Northhampton, but at least one Christian Oerter rifle has both silver and brass wire inlay.

John

[AMartin]

The original Rupp that we all like so much has Silver Inlays and I almost certain the wire is Brass .. but either will work super ..

Allen

[Acer Saccharum]

Brass and sterling workharden very quickly, fine silver is more forgiving. I look forward to your results.

[Jim Kibler]

I like to use sterling for wire inlay.  I like that it's more durable and resistant to deformation as compared to fine silver.  If I remember correctly, modern sterling is nearly the same composition as period coin silver.  Seems there was a discussion about this a while back.

[Rolf]

According the book"Silver-smithing" by Finegold and Seitz" Sterling comes from the old english word Steorling- coin with a star - which refers to the small stars that appear on some Norman pennies.

Sterling silver is minimum 9.25% silver. Most of the sheet sterling I buy is 9.35% silver.
Scandinavian tableware silver is mostly 83%silver.
Fine(pure) silver is 99.9% silver.

The higher the copper content, the harder the alloy is and the more it tarnishes.

Coin silver is not a legally defined alloy. Silver content varies with the coins. Most contain between 83 to 90%.

Here's a list of American coins. Most US coins are 90%.

Kennedy Half Dollar 1965-1970 (40%)
Kennedy Half Dollar 1964 (90%)
Ben Franklin Half Dollar 1948-1963 (90%)
Walking Liberty Half Dollar 1916-1947 (90%)
Barber Half Dollar 1892 to 1915 (90%)
Mercury Dime 1916-1945 (90%)
Roosevelt Dime 1946-1964 (90%)
Barber Dime 1892-1916 (90%)
Washington Quarter 1962-1964 (90%)
War Nickel 1942-1945 (35%)
Morgan Dollar 1878-1921 (90%)
Peace Dollar 1921-1935 (90%)
Ike Dollar 1971-1976 (40%)

Best regards
Rolf

[bama]

Jim, when I checked the composition for coin silver that was used in the day it was .92 silver and the sterling that is available today is also .92 silver.  I think if I remember correctly the sterling of today has just a very small amount more silver than the coin but it was a very small amount. You can buy the sterling sheet from Rio Grande. I prefer working with the sterling over the old coins because I collect the coins and it is hard for me to cut one up. I have used both and can tell little if any difference in hardness or color.