Circa: 1780 "Haga" rifle

[Blacksmoke]

Here are some more photos of the "Haga" rifle and several of the hand crafted flintlock made from solid stock and some heavily modified Siler parts using some "micro welding" to alter things to fit the profile of a 1700's Germanic lock. 








That's all for now,         Hugh Toenjes

[Blacksmoke]

Thanks Tim for the comment.   Hugh Toenjes

[Mike New]

Mr Toenjes, Are the lock parts with the "nicks" the replacements?  If so is this common practice to identify restoration work? I was curious to know in case I get the chance to examine a original some day. Very, very nice work, Mike New

[Dphariss]

Very nice save Hugh.
 
Dan

[Blacksmoke]

Mike :  The "nicks" which you refer to are "assembler's" marks - historically  these were used to distinguish which lock the separate parts belonged to whilst being assembled in a shop with with multiple makers.  I copied this tradition for the entire replacement lock to give it an "original look". The same idea is applied to contemporary but historic military arms by stamping them with fake "proof marks".    All of my restoration work has been documented and will accompany the rifle and it's owner.  Thanks for the positive comment,
Hugh Toenjes

[JDK]

Mr. Toenjes,  Nice resoration.  Like Mitch and others here, I am detail oriented and I am curious about the trigger plate.

It appears that the tail is bent into the stock rather than having a sharp tail simply driven into  a mortise.  What does the tail of guns plate look like out of it's mortise?  Is there a double bend?

Thanks for sharing.  Enjoy, J.D.

[Blacksmoke]

J.D. : Thanks for the enquiry regarding the trigger plate.  I was quite surprised when I did initial examination of the entire gun how long the sharp tail of the trigger plate is.  Yes it has quite an abrupt  reverse bend about 1/2" long which is received into a recess that was stabbed into the stock with a sharp chisel and mallet.
The front of the plate has a bolster about 1/4" thick into which the tang screw is threaded.  Hope that answeres your question and thanks for your positive comment,   Hugh Toenjes

[JDK]

Thanks, butI'm not clear about this reverse bend.  A little confused is all.

Is it a double bend in the shape of a "U" or an "S" or is it just bent at a right angle and driven up into the wrist?

Thanks again, J.D.

[Blacksmoke]

JDK:  First the trigger plate is bent slightly to conform to the crescent shape of the wrist.  Then when it comes to a sharp tail at the rear it is bent in the other direction rather abruptly for about 1/4" of an inch and embedded up into a stabbed in recess. It is that configuration that holds the tail of the trigger plate in place.  Hope that makes sense.  Please keep asking if it doesn't - perhaps I can draw a sketch.      Hugh Toenjes

[JDK]

Think I got it.  Thanks again, J.D.

[KLMoors]

Great save. Thanks for taking the time to post all those pics!

[Blacksmoke]

Ken:   Thanks for looking and the kind comment!    Hugh Toenjes

[DaveM]

Hugh, that is a really cool rifle and must have been a fun project. 

I was curious if it has any markings on the barrel, such as barrel maker marks or stamps of any kind underneath?  Thanks for posting your photos!

[Blacksmoke]

Dave:  Thanks for the question and the kind comment.   In the first post I mentioned that this rifle is " attributed to Wolfgang Haga" this means that the gun is unsigned and there no other revealing marks or stamps.  All we have to go on is the style of the rifle, decoration and the workmanship.  All of these are then compared to other surviving specimens which match the rifle inquestion and we can "attribute it" to a maker.
Hugh Toenjes

[Joe S]

Hugh

The top lock bolt seems rather lower than usual.  Is that just my imagination or does the bolt go through at an angle?

[Joe S]

Another question – The original inletting for the lock (if that’s what it is) suggests that the original lock had a tail on it similar to the Durs Egg lock, yet you replaced it with a lock with a symmetrically tapered tail.  Could you comment on that? 

It would also be interesting if you would comment a little on what you did and how you did it.  As always, your craftsmanship is outstanding.

[Blacksmoke]

Joe: Thanks for the comments and questions.   I will try to answerer them as best I can.  The top lock bolt goes through the same hole as the original so it is in the original position.  As far as the replacement lock is concerned I fashioned the lock plate from an original Germanic lock that dates to the same period as the age of the rifle.  The percussion lock plate was quite a bit oversize ( measured well over 5" long) and it had a tail on it as shown in the 'before" photos.  This was not consistent with the Germanic locks that Haga used for his guns of the Rev. War period.  Steve Hench of Lancaster PA, who is considered to be one of America's leading authorities  on "early" long rifles sent me an exact tracing of an old Germanic lock from the period.  I used his lock profile  to design and fashion the lock which you see in the "after" photos. Also I had to add some wood to the rear of the old lock mortise - however you cannot see the joints as they are hidden by blending them in with the existing wood using careful sanding and heavy staining - then applying a hand rubbed   finish.             Hope that helps in answering your questions,      Hugh Toenjes