Southern Rifle in White

[t.caster]

It's kind of a Tennessee rifle but not a copy of any original. I liked the look of the Tennessee kit Pecatonica sells with the mnt. ridge wrist treatment, but I don't want it to copy a kit gun of course. I saw one Soddy Daisy rifle done this way but it was a lot skinnier.
The fellow I am building it for doesn't care a hoot about historic correctness, but just wants a plain Southern rifle to shoot and hunt with. He gave me artistic license, but I am not sure this is the way to go or not. I can still shape the wrist in the normal round style. But then it would look like a million other Tenn. rifles out there. I would like your input on this one.

It has a Rice .40 cal x 42" B wt. barrel and Chambers Classic Ketland flintlock and Tracks dbl. set triggers, cast steel buttplate (reshaped to his desire) and trigger guard.

[hanshi]

Pretty cool, IMHO.

[Clear Spring Armory]

I like the diamond/ridge wrist, personally. Put one in a little .30 cal I made myself a few years ago. I like artistic licence too...😁.

[Don Steele]

I like that wrist real well. The fore end... not so much.

[t.caster]

Thanks for the kudos on the wrist. I know I have more work to do shaping the nose. The guy who machine inletted the barrel (part way) and r.r. groove & hole in my blank left me with the thickest web btw. the brrl. & r.r. I've ever worked with. It is a nice 3/16" at the breech but 5/16" at the muzzle!

[Mick C]

I might be the outlier, and it may not be strictly correct for a lot of southern rifles, but I really like the way you have shaped the for-end/muzzle area.

[t.caster]

The initial shaping at the muzzle was an option shown on a blueprint by Gene Weringa, 1982, when not using a nose cap. It is just rough shaped at this this point, and I will be spending more time on it.
Jim saw the gun yesterday and loved the feel of the diamond shaped wrist and wants to keep it. He said the gun fit him perfectly when he through it up to his shoulder! I get that a lot 

[J. Talbert]

Well the fact that you've already installed the thimbles makes this suggestion more difficult. But otherwise  it would not be that hard to remove wood and reduce the thickness of the webbing.   Gradually tapering it  from the entry thimble to the muzzle. 
 Doing it now however would require you to redo the thimbles, which would entail plugging the existing pinholes and re-drilling.
 Tom Snyder sells a ramrod channel plane that would make short work of the webbing problem.

Jeff

[hanshi]

I like the shaped wrist as well.  My .32 SMR has a similarly shaped fore-end at the muzzle.