Firearms from the past - Why the appeal?

[Jim Kibler]

What draws you to longrifles, flintlocks or more generally guns from the past?  What is their alure?  For the builders, why do you spend huge amounts of time an effort for a financially marginal endeavor?  What's the payoff?

[Tom Currie]

Building Longrifles for me ties together many of my main interests, Early American History, creative woodworking, love of the outdoors.

The payoff for me is personal satisfaction in the building and enjoying the end result. 

Explaing to others what a fine firearm it is after a successful hunt is pretty satisfying also. Other than myself, my hunting group uses modern arms. 

[sz]

speaking only for myself, I have not dismissed the possibility of simple insanity or stupidity.
 
But it's fun.......................

[Pete G.]

I have always liked guns, history, art and working with my hands. They all converge in the building of a rifle. As far as the financial aspect; I can build what I cannot buy, and if I choose to sell a rifle, which is seldom, I can easily sell it for a little more than what the parts cost, therfore I have a self sustaining hobby. Even with little payback for time invested, sure beats golf.

Also there is the aspect in using these things that harken back to the time where every problem could be solved, and the good guys always win, all within the confines of a thirty minute TV program.

[Dave B]

I have always been drawn to mechanical things from my earliest memories. I was forever taking things apart and building things. The first time I saw Davy Crocket I fell in love with the Idea of the long rifle. I have seen my fascination with the mechanical and my love of early American history come together with this hobby/obsession. It is a plus that I have been able to sell those rifles that I have built to buy more parts and books to further my addiction.

[Cory Joe Stewart]

Even when I was a kid I appreciated hand made things.  I also saw Treasure Island at a young age and my dad carved me a pirate pistol from a bent tree limb and my first cusom flintlock I had made was pistol styled as an early georgian.  So that has a lot to do with it.  Modern things in general have no personality whether it be guns or kitchen appliances.  What draws me to flintlocks and powderhorns is the same thing that drives me to organic gardening.  Its simpler, its healthier, and better.

Coryjoe

[Kermit]

I think Twain gets blamed for this:

"Every man should have one vice--and take damed good care of it."

He had several. I have five vises in my shop. All in good working order.

Slightly more seriously, I just like devices that are reduced to elegant simplicity. I like shooting. Can't think of a shooting device that more openly simple and elegant than a flint long gun.

[Acer Saccharum]

If I were to say that it is a way to use my talents in a creative manner, that would be too shallow.

I could do that with modern guns, with engraving, with oil painting.

So why the appeal to the vintage guns? It certainly has a romantic appeal for me, it has a lot of the formation of our Untied States mixed in, with all the lore that goes with that struggle. There is also the families pulling up roots, leaving the Motherland, risking life and limb to start afresh in a wild untamed land. There is the cultural aspect; the mixing of the cultures, the blending of German, French, English and Dutch cultures. There is so much history and bravery mixed up with the lore of the longrifle that it is hard for me to separate out exactly why I am intrigued with this medium more than any other.

There is the advancement of technology that we can observe very well in our rear view mirror. The develoment of machinery from the 17th century up through the 19th Century, what effect this had on the styling and function of the gun. The progression or sophistication of the flint lock itself is a fascinating study. From the technology standpoint alone, there are several lifetimes of study one could delve into.

From the artistic point of view, there is the form of the gun, the underlying shape of the gun that is so appealing. With all the decoration aside, this longrifle is as sophisticated in form as a trout or a bird, a beautiful shape that evolved with a single purpose in mind.
Then there is the decorative aspect of the rifle. This is another area where the cultural blending really shows itself. Besides being fun to do, the carving and engraving really reflect the man that made the gun, his time in history, his cultural background, his adeptness(or lack) of using hand tools, the sharpness of his eye.

For me, the study and building of the longrifle are inseparable. The two pursuits go hand in hand, complementing each other along the path. This is a deep and satisfying calling. Rather than a way to make money, for me, it is a way to enrich the soul.

Tom

ps. it is also an art form that you can shoot with.

[Jerry V Lape]

Pulls together several passions:  The allure of Early American History; The artistic appeal of the Longrifle; The challenge to hunt with a more intimate involvement than modern firearms provide; Enjoyment of figuring out how to do several crafts in producing longrifles and accoutrements; the challenge of producing a better rifle each time.   

 

[wattlebuster]

Cant explain what it is about a longrifle  that does it for me. wish i could lord knows there are less expensive hobbies out there. I love taking deer with a simple roundball when all of my other hunting friends shoot centerfires or if they do bp hunt they always shoot in lines. to me you just as well shoot centerfire if you are gonna hunt in line. but i guess to each there own

[b bogart]

Because when I first decided to shoot black powder ( blame my late father in law) I could not fathom that I could build one. I am determined to build several well built guns tho. Not works of art like I see here, just fun functional guns that I figured out how to build. And I like to shoot them!

[David Rase]

What drew me to muzzleloading was that I was a machinist by trade, I worked wood as a hobby and always liked to hunt and shoot.  Throw in the fact that I could not afford to buy a custom muzzleloader and it all just came together.  Now I can't stop.  I am a longrifle addict.  In 1975, my 'M' division chief in the Navy got me started.  We went to the Patch and Ball gunshop on El Cajon Blvd. in San Diego and bought my first kit. 
DMR

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

Senility................   Well my name is Boone afterall......... I love the architecture and the romance on the flintlock and its place in American History........ LEarning to scupt the stocks, manage the mechanicas and leraning to carve  and engrave.......Being able to interact with and learn from other builders and artists like here on ALR...........being in the woods stalking deer and turkey with a flintlock like my ancestors did.

[caliber45]

Same as all the other folks: I love woodworking, shooting, history, simple machinery. And I can make what I can't afford to buy. Then there's aesthetics: Compare the beauty of early flinters/cappers with the ugliness of today's "in-line" b-p rifles, or the grace and flow and mix of metals of old Colt revolvers with today's horrid "Tupperware" guns. Sure, they work, but who cares? Also, an aside: Has anyone noticed that the Three Musketeers of candy bar fame never seem to be armed with anything other than rapiers? Odd, that . . . -- paulallen tucson az

[KLMoors]

For me its the history. The fruther we've drifted from our center, the more I strain to look back.

[Jim Kibler]

For me the biggest appeal is probably the flintlock as a decorative art and the possibilities it allows.  What can be created really is endless.  The biggest thrill for me is the quest to create something asthetically appealing and beautiful.  It seems the post industrial revolution world we live in places such little regard on these things.  Guess thats how it works, seems if you gain something you always end up losing something as well.

[roundball]

As a dedicated Flintlock hunter / shooter I had to use what I could afford for a number of years, the whole time knowing the end game was the more traditional longrifles, but I'm not a builder and knew better than to try.
Then when I was finally able to take the last step into longrifles, I felt I had arrived...there is certainly the aesthetics of a beautiful fullstock longrifle, and the romance of those times past, the sense of history with them that's attractive for sure.

In addition there's been the learning curve associated with taking a few different types of game with Flintlock rifles and smoothbores...and not only is that satisfying but it gives me a strong attachment to hunters of the past...really getting the feeling of "this is how they did it" when I send a load of #6s down a bare bore Flintlock and take a longbeard like they did...or take a good buck with a patched ball like they did, in the rain...I get a real strong sense of accomplishment in those achievements of doing some things the way the settlers did.

All of that is the allure that Flintlock longrifles have for me...

[Bill of the 45th]

let's see!  Davy Crockett, King of the wild frontier.  Daniel Day Lewis, in "Last of the Mohicans", Spenser Tracy in "Rogers Rangers", the Bi-Centennial.  Senior Citizen Gun porn.

Bill

[Simon]

For me its the shooting. I started ,as did most my age, with a sling shot, then a B B gun, then .22 rim fire.  Into the Army and shot a lot of different types of weapons.  After the Army I shot bows for a while,then got an old half stock  percussion gun in about 1967.  That got me started in black  powder.  I still shot some center fire, then got into revolvers for about 10 years.  I went back to black powder for the challenge, but it seemed like percussion was too much like center fire.  In 1980 I got my first flintlock and  then built my first rifle, the ugliest gun on gods green earth, but it would shoot so good I could not believe it.  All my shooting is off hand and the difficulty with the flint lock is what keeps me with long rifles. I am trying to build again, just finished a 1840s  style half stock but with a Chamber late Ketland lock and it is starting to shoot pretty good.  I am now working on a long rifle on a Peter  Berry  style stock, but it will be a very plain gun.  I still shoot off hand but not like I used to.  (The older I get, the better I was.)  As long as I can hold it up I will still shoot the flint lock.

Mel

[rich pierce]

Certainly the pre-Industrial Revolution era has great appeal.  Many guns were made one at a time by independent gunsmiths, perhaps for individual customers, and the gunsmiths developed their own recognizable styles.  We can see the same thing today.  It wouldn't be hard for me to recognize a Shipman rifle, or a Kettenburg, or an Allen Martin, a Steve Zihn, a Keith Casteel, a Kibler, a Pratt,  a House, a Lisle, etc.  Even when they build to different schools, there are signatures that are not easy to describe, but the eyes and mind see them.   It's possible the same is true of makers of modern sporters, but those guns do not evoke history dear to us.  I think this is why we don't see many many building late percussion rifles.  There were some incredibly fine rifles made in the 1840's-1870's, but they had nothing to do with making our history.  So for me it is linking our work to the individual gunsmith who was building guns one at a time, in his own style; guns that had an important role in the lives and times of our pioneering ancestors.

[J. Talbert]

The flintlock is the lynchpin that ties together many aspects of my life. (Wow! That sounds like a load of $#@* )

Its connection to the past brings back my childhood fascination and fantasies of Daniel Boone and Davey Crockett, and American history in general... not at all unique to those of my generation (mid to late babyboomers). In other words, I guess I'm still playing Cowboys and Indians

Its elegantly simple, and at the same time ingenious, mechanics appeals to my lifelong fascination with most anything mechanical.

Its functional beauty is a bit of an outlet for my creative side, apparently a recessive gene in my case.

Building a well designed flintlock longrifle is great fun in itself, planning the next one all the while... then to be able to take it out and win a match, or kill a deer with it, is the icing on the cake.

What could be more fun?

Jeff

[davec2]

Most of what I have read in these posts also applies to me.  However, I believe my spiral into flintlock / muzzleloader mania began even earlier than I thought.  The following photos are of toy cap guns (that I still have) and that I acquired in the late 1950's as a 6 or 7 year old boy.  I attribute my love of flintlocks to having been trained early.  The toys were produced by the Marx company...perhaps some of you had the same ones.











The following gun was given to me by my father when I was 6.  Cheap import, but, as a boy, I loved to take it out and shoot it.  The toys may have started the process but "snuffing a little powder" smoke with this gun put me over the edge for life.  (I still shoot it, from time to time, but it has a 20 pound trigger pull !)

[volatpluvia]

Back in the nineties I was sitting watching a video of the mighty Saturn V lighting on the launch pad.  I wandered out loud to my wife: What is the connection between my love for flintlocks and my love for gigantic twentieth century rockets?  Then it hit me: IT'S THE FIRE!  That huge orange fireball under the Saturn just about made me giggle.  That yellow flame from the lock and the muzzle at dusk does the same for me.  That first doe I shot with the flinter, the shot lit up the whole hillside.
So there you have it.  You may label me any nutty thing you want, but for me it is the FIRE!
volatpluvia

[westerner]

Style,

People used to have style. It showed in their work. It lasts.







                   Joe. 

[Clark Badgett]

Sure, they work, but who cares?

I do, but then again my life depends on them working.

I think this is why we don't see many many building late percussion rifles.  There were some incredibly fine rifles made in the 1840's-1870's, but they had nothing to do with making our history.

Excuse me? Half the this country was settled during this era. In fact it is some of our most interesting history.