Old Rifle - New Again

[PGosnell]

A little over a year ago I shared via the library, photos of a rifle that some have attributed to Peter Kunz.  Since that time, the rifle has been restored/repaired and I thought I would share with the forum a few photos and as well as a few thoughts on the topic of restoration.



Let me start by saying that I easily fall into the camp with those that believe that old rifles should whenever possible be left in the condition in which they are found, unless of course the condition is one where further damage is likely or to address a previous restoration that lessens the enjoyment of the piece.  The later situation was the case with this particular rifle.

At sometime in its life, the rifle had been converted to cap lock with a rather standard Glocher lock.  This conversion had used a lock that was too large for the narrow frame of the rifle resulting in a web that was weakened and subsequently failed. To address this problem the old lock had to be replaced, simply repairing the area would not provide a long term solution.


 
A previous repair of this area was also failing and the overall stability of the rifle had been compromised such that it could not be displayed without concern of future damage.  The area was secured by only the trigger guard and the tang but not to an extent that it could be supported in a typical two point frame.



So shortly after acquiring the rifle, I sent it home with Mark Wheland and asked him to perform some life restoring surgery.  To address the lock area issue, we acquired an original Philadelphia lock.  That was reshaped to give it a more English appearance.  The new lock was smaller than the one removed, so Mark refilled the inlet area with layers of maple strip and then re-inlet the new lock, removing the cap lock vent and preparing a touch hole.



Additionally, he repaired the patchbox release and the cover of the patchbox so that it operates as designed.



The final repair that was made was to the cheekside, replacing a section of ivory that had been lost, but leaving the original fragment intact.



The result of this effort is a very pleasing addition to my collect and something that can be shared with others without concern that it could break in half when being handled.



Many thanks to Mark.

[mr. no gold]

Great rifle, deserving of Mark's talented restoration efforts. I like it a lot and it doesn't show the abuse it has been through. Well done; Good call! Thank you for the step by step progress of the work and for showing it to all of us.
Dick

[Don Getz]

Good to see the finished product.   Demonstrates just one more of the many talents of Mark Wheland...........Don

[smylee grouch]

Great job by Mark, you must be very pleased. Congrats and best wishes.   Gary

[Fullstock longrifle]

A very good job on the restoration, nicely done and nothing that was done jumps out at you.  This is also a  great educational post, thank you for the follow up. 

[Ryan McNabb]

Really nice work.  I normally am in favor of leaving these rifles in percussion condition as it's a historically relevant stage in the gun's life, but I think this was entirely warranted.

[Dave K]

I love it, good looking gun and as the builder intended. I agree with you and that is what I would have done. The gun has been saved from being a tomato stake. Good job.

[A.Merrill]

    Mr. Mark Wheland is a master, fine work.

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

It is a much more appealing piece of history to my way of thinking. Good Job!

[Blacksmoke]

P Gosnell,  Thanks for posting the pics. of your "restored" longrifle.  It looks to me that Mark Wheland did a superb job of of restoration/repair on it.  I have to say that I subscribe to the philosophy of restoration!  However that statement needs some qualification - I mean that the realm of restration on old longrifles has it's place and it has to be done by a talented artisan who possesses the appropriate skills!! It should NOT be attempted by someone who is unskilled in making his gun parts with only the basic tools such as: a file and hacksaw.   Most builders today get there locks already assembled, their furniture already cast and barrels ready rifled and their stocks pre-carved.  If this the limit of their experience - restoration work should NOT be attempted.   I've been doing restoration work on longrifles for about 30 yr's now and have encountered no end of armature workmanship - most of which I have to remove before I can proceed with proper restoration!   For those of you who disbelieve in restoration on old guns - consider these two points of argument: First -  there is not a single stringed instrument that was made by the master "Stradivarius" that has not been restored at some time or other.  Were it not for skilled craftsmen who did these restorations we would not be able to enjoy the sound of one of the world's most famous instruments!   Secondly:  If the original maker of any abused old longrifle would be alive today he would gladly repair his own work because he did not intend for it to be abused in the first place!    Just some thoughts to consider,  HT

[PGosnell]

HT,

You make a good point.  If I owned this rifle in 1815 and something was broken I would take it the builder and have it repaired.  The builder would do what is possible to bring it back to its working condition and if that was not possible it would be restocked.

Paul

[PGosnell]

Going back through a few picture folders, I found a few shots that were taken during the restoration project.  These were of the new lock prior to modification placed in the oversized lock inlet.



The “new” was not all that new, it’s a T. Ketland, purported to be from Philadelphia ca 1813.  Which made it a nice period piece addition to the rifle’s restoration.  Mark reshaped the lock to make it look more like other locks found on Kunz rifles.



As you can see the new lock was undersized for the inlet and a significant amount of fill work had to be completed to provide a foundation in which the new lock could be set.  If you were examine the restored inlet you can hardly tell that it was manufactured.

Notice how the front of the trigger guard dropped, this was because the fracture in the wrist allowed the rifle to flex upward from the trigger forward.



In this next photo, washed out to show more detail, you can clearly see the extent of the facture in the wrist of the rifle.



And now the finished work.

[Jim Cook]

Thanks PGosnell
.
Very nice series of pictures.

[WElliott]

PGosnell,
Thank you for sharing the excellent work by Mark and explaining the thinking that went into making the restoration decisions. This is a well done and entirely appropriate restoration.  Your willingness to openly acknowledge and share the work done to this rifle is also instructive.  Few collectors would object to well-done restoration work which is fully disclosed.