My RCA 19, about finished

[rich pierce]

A rifle that I started 3 or more years ago, is finally pretty near finished.  Flintmaking has taken most of my "free" time.  Don't think I spent hundreds of hours on it.  Not the case.  Just went long periods not working on it.  This is based on #19 in Shumway's Rifles of Colonial America.  Ron Luckenbill did a wonderful job of re-creating this one several years back.

Mine has a custom Getz .54 octagon to round barrel profiled from dimensions of the original.  The lock is a slightly reshaped Chambers Germanic.  I took a little of the banana out of it and added a little file work at the tail.  The buttplate was stretched by peening and is a heavily reshaped commercial casting.  The guard started as a Marshall rifle guard and I added some sheet brass to recreate the spur.  The blank was from John Getz and he got the barrel inletted for me and the ramrod groove and hole done.  The rest of the work involved only hand tools.  I made the simple trigger, stud for the sling swivel, sideplate and nosecap and modified commercial thimbles.  I did the engraving, and you can tell.  Keep in mind the engraving on the original was hastily done. I'll get better full-length photos.

[greybeard]

Cool . It must point really good with  a tapered barrel.   Bob

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

What an elegant rifle Rich!  I love the slender forend, and the well executed volute carving.  Your finish has done great justice to that board - lovely colour and figure.  The rifle's architecture will make it a great rifle to shoot.  I'll bet it's very light at the muzzle...super hunting rifle.

[rich pierce]

Thanks, I tried to get warm tones into the wood.  When building up the finish I polished the coats with hard leather, mineral oil and pumice on early coats, rottenstone later.  Lost all evidence that the wood was finished by scraping, no sandpaper.

[draken]

Great job Rich!    I really like that gun!

[alyce-james]

Rich; Very nice job, wood color looks good and I like the engraving, overall great job. Thanks for sharing, Jim

[t.caster]

Pretty darn nice Rich! I'm workin on the same RCA-19 now too, but more transitional/earlier. Using a Hoyt .62 cal x 33" long swamped w/gain twist.
I remember when you first started it years ago....glad to see you finally gotterdone!
Check out Brooks's similar, but aged version in the for sale section! Awsome!
I'm inspired!

[Big One]

Very nice Rich !

[alex e.]

Nicely  done!!

[Stophel]

Ausgezeichnet!   

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

Ya Das Auch!!

A classic Rich!!   Rust blued barrel??

[rich pierce]

I used Mike Lee's Express Blue from Brownells.  I was hoping to charcoal blue it but have the forward lungs soldered onto the barrel.  The Express blue was the easiest blueing/blackening I have ever done.

[Meteorman]

   

[Curtis]

Rich, now that is elegant simplicity.  I like it.  You should be proud.

Curtis

[Lucky R A]

   Rich you have done yourself proud-----That gun looks deceptively easy, but you got it right, and that isn't easy.  I was wondering how you managed to get the butt plate long enough.  You must had done a lot of pounding.  As you remember I dovetailed a piece of iron into the toe of the brass butt plate to make it long enough.  It kind of looked like a field repair.  There is no forgiveness in that butt plate when you inlet it, you have to get it right the first time.   It is a nice early style rifle that should give you years of enjoyment---now go out and get some age one that pretty thing....Good Job.... Ron

[Mike Brooks]

Impressive! I like every thing about it.

[bob in the woods]

I really like your rifle , Rich.  #19 is one of my favorites. I actually tried to work some of #19 into my Edward Marshall Chambers kit , and used that carving behind the cheek.  You have managed a better job than I did. Great rifle, and I hope it serves you well .

[rich pierce]

 I was wondering how you managed to get the butt plate long enough.  You must had done a lot of pounding.

Here's where I pound those babies out, Ron. This is one of my sheet brass buttplates in progress, and final product. 




OK guys, now that the euphoria of hearing nice words has my head all chubby-feeling, let's open it up for real critique!  Goof-ups I know about:  I had to splice in little pieces of wood where I mis-drilled for pins, and I had to do the same just south of the nosecap area when I got over-zealous with a rasp.  Also I am not sure I captured the mass of the original particularly in the wrist, but the measurements are close to Shumways.  Those "light painting technique" photos can be hard to mine for shape. And I still haven't finished engraving the panther on the guard bow.  Something about engraving rounded brass....

[ironwolf]

  Great job, Rich.  I remember when you started the build and were weighing out whether to do the sling swivel or not.  Great finish all around.  The bluing looks fantastic, almost a nitre blue appearance.

   Kevin

[Gene Carrell]

Looks great, especially the finish of the wood. I love the colour.

[Ed Wenger]

Nicely executed, fine example of an early rifle.  My hats off to ya, Rich, if I have something on the bench longer than three weeks, I start to get antsy...  I've said it before, to me, there's just something about a walnut stocked longrifle that really appeals to me.  You've done this one justice my friend.


              Ed

[wattlebuster]

Very Very Nice!!!!!  I like it

[Daryl]

I like it - I could shoot that rifle - well.

[Long John]

Rich,

I love it!  You might know where the mistakes are but I didn't see them.

Real fine.  Really fine.

JMC

[rich pierce]

Rich,  your RCA 19, is fantastic.   Too bad we are not old enough to have conversed with the originals maker for him to point out his little patch job.   Question, were you at Dixons on Saturday of the show
working on a pistol at Tom Currans tent ?   If so is your inletting lamp now wind proof ?

Thanks, that was Long John Cholin at the tent with his little lamp.  I've got to get one of those.  Go through too many candles!