Author Topic: New England Connecticut River Valley Fowler FINISHED (scroll to bottom)  (Read 12242 times)

Offline Dr. Tim-Boone

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Posts: 6538
  • I Like this hat!!
Re: New England Connecticut River Valley Fowler
« Reply #50 on: July 09, 2019, 11:43:53 PM »
OK, Holding my breath!!   Beautiful!!
De Oppresso Liber
Marietta, GA

Liberty is the only thing you cannot have unless you are willing to give it to others. – William Allen White

Learning is not compulsory...........neither is survival! - W. Edwards Deming

Offline smart dog

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Posts: 7009
Re: New England Connecticut River Valley Fowler
« Reply #51 on: July 10, 2019, 03:04:35 AM »
Hi Tim,
Another teaser.


dave
"The main accomplishment of modern economics is to make astrology look good."

Offline Curtis

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2338
  • Missouri
Re: New England Connecticut River Valley Fowler
« Reply #52 on: July 11, 2019, 07:52:11 AM »
I like it!

Curtis
Curtis Allinson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sometimes, late at night when I am alone in the inner sanctum of my workshop and no one else can see, I sand things using only my fingers for backing

Offline BOB HILL

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2281
Re: New England Connecticut River Valley Fowler
« Reply #53 on: July 12, 2019, 02:11:53 PM »
Beautiful work. Love that beading tool design. Thanks again for sharing your work. So much to learn.
Bob
South Carolina Lowcountry

Offline smart dog

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Posts: 7009
Hi,
Finally done and it gets delivered tomorrow at Fort Ticonderoga.  It was a huge challenge and one of the hardest guns I've ever built because of all the special parts and the unforgiving stock architecture.  There is so many historical nuances to this gun.  It is greatly inspired by the Hawk fowler in the Memorial Hall museum in historic Deerfield, MA. I copied a lot and actually traced the stock.  I believe the original barrel and hardware came from a fine French buccaneer musket perhaps captured when New Englanders took Fortress Louisburg in 1745.  Some highly skilled Connecticut River Valley gunsmith salvaged the parts and made one of the finest pre-Rev War fowlers in New England. I used a Rayl 20 gauge 48" smoth barrel sold by Davis for their French trade gun kit.  It is 1.25" at the breech, tapers rapidly, and has nice thin walls. The lock was a TOW Tulle lock which I modified into a fine buccaneer lock with some judicious welding and filing. The trigger guard was made from a wax cast French trade gun guard that I cut the front finial off and attached a new one I cast and chiseled.  The butt plate is an old sand cast early Bucks county plate that I beat the snot out of and reshaped, then added a finial I cast and chiseled.  The stock is American black cherry logged in Vermont and stained first with black dye, then a nice reddish brown dye. The finish is Sutherland-Welles polymerized tung oil.  Most of the engraving was copied from the Hawk fowler where I could.  It weighs 7.5 lb and shoulders very, very well.  This is a real shooter.  Enjoy.

dave
 
 













"The main accomplishment of modern economics is to make astrology look good."

Offline helwood

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 149
Very nice.  I have a future project of a brace of pistols that I thought your barrel technique might be a good way to do, Thanks.   Hank

Offline James Rogers

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3163
  • James Rogers
    • Fowling Piece
Stunning work Dave!

Offline TommyG

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 601
  • "Double Trouble"
Dave, once again a truly incredible fowler.  Thankfully for the rest of us you are always raising the bar and conquering new challenges.  That is a beautiful gun.

Offline J. Talbert

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2306
Neat, neat gun.

Great work Dave.

Jeff
There are no solutions.  There are only trade-offs.”
Thomas Sowell

Offline Tim Crosby

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Posts: 18385
  • AKA TimBuckII
 Masterfully done Dave, I like everything about it, love the lines. Seven and a Half pounds, it looks it,  Elegant comes to mind. 

  Tim

Offline WKevinD

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1428
Beautiful! One of those guns that you want to hold, role over again and again taking in details.
I was hoping it was going to be at Dixons.

Kevin
PEACE is that glorious moment in history when everyone stands around reloading.  Thomas Jefferson

Offline Bob McBride

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2840
  • TENNESSEE
    • Black Powder TV
Wow.

Offline P.W.Berkuta

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2213
Very nicely done - great workmanship and resourceful craftsmanship - what's not to like about it ;) :) 8)!
"The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person who is doing it." - Chinese proverb

Offline Pukka Bundook

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3463
Very nice work, Dave.

I would have been very hesitant to start on that one!  Such extreme architecture would have scared me!

Mind, I Would love to do an English fowling piece from the late 1600's and that stock shape is very different from most that followed.

Fantastic job!  First class. 

R.

Offline oldtravler61

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4413
  • We all make mistakes.
   Dave always impressed with your style of workmanship. Thanks for sharing the results of your outstanding skills !!  Oldtravler

Offline Curtis

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2338
  • Missouri
Another fine example of your craftsmanship, Dave!  I really like how the sculpted barrel turned out.  Nice carving and engraving too!

Curtis
Curtis Allinson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sometimes, late at night when I am alone in the inner sanctum of my workshop and no one else can see, I sand things using only my fingers for backing

Offline Daryl

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 15822
Extremely nice Dave. I did expect the same bordering on the butt plate's tang as on the T-guard, though. I REALLY liked the trigger guard bordering. Not usual.

The boys have not been frivolous in their admiration of this piece, Dave.  It is super splendid! Well done.

The 'boys' have not been frivolous in their admiration of this "piece" of art. Well done man.  WOW!
« Last Edit: July 20, 2019, 08:47:14 AM by Daryl »
Daryl

"a gun without hammers is like a spaniel without ears" King George V

Offline hawkeye

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 763
that craftmanship is really superb, love it all the way

hawkeye

Offline smart dog

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Posts: 7009
Hi Folks,
Thanks for looking and your kind comments.  I passed the gun off to the owner yesterday at Fort Ticonderoga.  He is a member of a unit re-enacting the British 40th regiment of foot.  They are recreating Abercrombe's 1758 failed British attack on Fort Ti this weekend.  However, Daniel will be a French officer rather than British and will carry the fowler.  Daniel will drop off the gun at my brothers place in SE PA so I can bring the fowler to Dixon's.  I'll also have Tony's late flint English rifle, my English fowler from last year and 3 original English fowlers to display.  I wanted to mention that I was amazed at how well the fowler fits.  Despite its appearance it is not in any way a cheek slapper because the wrist angles down and thins right from the breech and the comb is high.  I superimposed the fowler on the plans for Tony's late flint English rifle and all the key points that touch the body were the same except it has greater pitch to the butt plate. As long as the key architectural points are achieved, how you fill up the space between them does not matter.  Again, thanks for looking and commenting. I hope to see some of you at the fair.

dave     
"The main accomplishment of modern economics is to make astrology look good."

Offline D. Taylor Sapergia

  • Member 3
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Posts: 12671
A classy classic Dave!  Love your stuff!!
D. Taylor Sapergia
www.sapergia.blogspot.com

Art is not an object.  It is the excitement inspired by the object.