New England rifle

[westbj2]

This rifle is in the shop now.  Nice quality, stocked in walnut, GS mounts.  Unsigned.
Any details of the gun suggest an attribution to those of you who study these rifles?
Jim Westberg

[Photog]

Wow, what a neat gun. The 2 rear sights, and I would guess 2 front sights, are interesting. Shouldn't have been too hard to regulate with basically 2 guns welded side by side.

[Curt J]

A high-style double rifle for certain. It always amazes me that a gunsmith would build a gun of that quality, but not bother to sign it.  I guess they didn't realize we would be collecting them 150 years later.

[T*O*F]

I became enamored with these doubles many years ago and acquired most of the parts over time to build a Bedford Co. double in the style of Peter White.  Ed Rayl made me a matched pair of .40 cal. barrels, 38" long.  One is smooth and one is rifled.  I also have a piece of highly figured cherry that Wayne Dunlap had at Friendship one year.  The locks are Mantons of old manufacture.  I really only need to make the hooked breechplugs and tang to get going on it, but never seem to find the time.  I've agonized over several features:

I've observed a number of barrel treatments:
a.  barrels joined with a single sight on the rib, double hooks and single tang.
b.  barrels joined with sights on each barrel, double hooks and single tang.
c.  unjoined barrels with sights on each, double hooks and single tang.
d.  unjoined barrels with sights on each, double hooks and double tangs.
I haven't decided which route to take yet.  Dual sights preclude the need for any regulation, but interfere with the smooth barrel when used with shot.

Next, I notice yours has a single set trigger rather than a pair of triggers.  In this case the single trigger would fire whichever lock is cocked, or both if cocked.  Are the sear bars long and overlapped to allow this, or are they mechanically linked by  some arrangement?  My thoughts were that I would have to make new sear bars because mine aren't long enough to overlap.  Alternatively, they could be joined in the center with a short piece of tubing which fit over the ends and joined them.

[westbj2]

I don't have the locks here now, they were sent off with a new RH hammer to be engraved.  I don't recall the sears being different from each other.
The triggers are double phase.  Looks to me like the right barrel is designed to be fired with the set trigger and the left barrel fired from the front trigger without the set engaged.   Kind of odd but quite practical.
Jim

[Levy]

I bought the buttstock, locks and triggers from an over and under that had the same trigger set-up.  Set, they fired one barrel and unset, they fired the other.  Unfortunately, the dealer never had the barrels.

James Levy