American? doglock pistol

[debnal]

Here is a doglock pistol that I got from an auction in Maine. The pistol was in several parts boxes in pieces. A friend bought one of the boxes and contacted the guy who bought the other and got all the pieces together. The pistol was missing the fore end and ramrod pipe and the triggerguard. Otherwise it was complete. I had the fore end restored and the triggerguard reconstructed. The original triggerguard left a good impression on the wood where it was applied so the replacement is a good recreation. The lock is complete and actually functions. Note the trigger pin at the top of the lock behind the dog catch. There is even a petrified piece of flint still in the jaw. The wood has been looked at by several people who are knowledgeble and they think it is poplar When the gun was disassembled the wood was extremely light, almost had the feel of balsa wood. I will have it tested by the Forest Products Laboratory. I thought the lock is so interesting so I have posted these pictures. Another interesting item is the screw that holds the pewter butt cap. It is almost two inches long and conical. Have never seen one like that. The lock is 5.25 inches long. The gun is 18.75 inches overall. The barrel is 12 inches and .60 caliber. Any thoughts as to date?
Thanks,
Al

[smart dog]

Hi Al,
Very nice pistol.  I think what you have is a very early form of what Brian Godwin calls a type 2 English lock.  All of the mechanism is inside the lock rather than having a sear bar protruding through the lockplate to hold the cock back.  Yours is interesting because it has characteristics of very early "English locks" such as the link between the frizzen screw and the feather spring screw.  It also looks like the hole in the plate in front of the cock may be for an external buffer that stops the travel of the cock.  That was a feature on snaphaunces and early English type locks. Does the cock have a shoulder that hits the lockplate when at rest?  If not, the hole is almost certainly for a buffer.  I would hazard a guess that your pistol was made between 1640-1660.  For more information go to http://briangodwin.co.uk/lock.html .

Thanks for sharing.

dave

[smart dog]

Hi Al,
One more thing.  The trigger pinned above the lockplate was a feature common to wheellocks, snaphaunces, and early English-type locks.  On some English pistols made in the 16th century, the pin had a large round head and was tapered.  The head stuck out above the wood and could be grabbed with the fingers and pulled out to disable the gun.

dave

[rich pierce]

Love the frizzen shape.  Great find.

[debnal]

Dave,
The cock does have a shoulder that allows it to rest on the plate at rest. Could the hole be for another screw as I have seen a lot of these locks that are three screw locks.
Regards,
Al

[smart dog]

Al,
Absolutely, and that is almost certainly what the hole is for since there is a shoulder on the cock.  That would imply the parts were restocked because there is no third hole in the stock.  Maybe an early New England gunsmith restocked the parts from an older gun made in England.

dave