Source for sterling silver BP & TG

[MKemper]

Who offers a buttplate and TG set in sterling or coin silver?

[Ian Pratt]

Not sure what you are looking for, but Ed Rayl had a set of silver hardware for sale recently, you might call him

[flintriflesmith]

Sterling is going for about $32 a Troy ounce and depending on the period and style of longrifle guard & butt piece you are probably looking at a cast weight of well over ten ounces.
The way silver changes in price I don't see it being offered/listed by any commercial parts suppliers. E.J. Blackley and Son has some lost wax pistol mounts that are offered in silver but it is "call for price."
Your best bet might be to file up brass castings as patterns and take them to a foundry that does work for custom silversmiths. Silver is available in "casting grains" or you could use scrap coin silver (more period correct).
Speaking of period correct---even at $32 a Troy ounce silver is a bargin today compared to the 18th century. The value on an ounce of sterling was set as the English standard at 5 shillings and 2 pence English money. After converting that to Virginia currency that was about three days wages for a laborer, cart driver, etc.

[Mark Elliott]

I had a discussion about this with Mark Thomas and , I believe, Alan Sandy some time ago.    I had an interest in making a silver mounted rifle, particularly, the John Vogler.    I thought, you made one of those for "Sam Everly.   Anyway,  I had wanted to cast my own, but I discovered that there are all sorts of problems in casting sterling, not to mention that you need at least two pounds of the stuff to cast a set of mounts when you figure in the sprue, risers and such.   The recommendation was to make the mounts using sterling silver sheet just like you(I) make iron mounts.    I buy silver sheet and wire from Hoover & Strong here in  Richmond,VA.  Most folks on the East Coast buy from them    They will sell you exactly what you need, size and thickness.   I would use 1/8" sheet for most of it.   You can solder that if you need to build up an area.    Using silver solder,  you could never tell it wasn't cast.   I don't know if you know, but you use different melting temp silver solders to put a piece of silver together starting with the highest temp solder.   Hoover & Strong sells all sorts of silver solders that they make.    You would catch your waste and filings to send back to Hoover & Strong for re-processing.    They will send you a check or send you back mill materials like sheet or wire.   I hope that helps.

Mark

[wet willy]

An alternative to sterling silver could be German Silver (copper, nickle, zinc alloy) which is not period correct, other than some post 1860's or so firearm, but is at a much lower cost. Several muzzle loading suppliers sell the BP and TG, among other items.

Another choice might be to silver plate brass components. There are numerous services that re-plate items, such as flatware, that could supply this service. 

[Acer Saccharum]

Chris Altland sells silver mounts for some pistols: http://www.firelockpistols.com/queenann.html

[mjm46@bellsouth.net]

  I buy silver sheet and wire from Hoover & Strong here in  Richmond,VA.  Most folks on the East Coast buy from them    They will sell you exactly what you need, size and thickness.   I would use 1/8" sheet for most of it.   You can solder that if you need to build up an area.    Using silver solder,  you could never tell it wasn't cast.   I don't know if you know, but you use different melting temp silver solders to put a piece of silver together starting with the highest temp solder.   Hoover & Strong sells all sorts of silver solders that they make.    You would catch your waste and filings to send back to Hoover & Strong for re-processing.    They will send you a check or send you back mill materials like sheet or wire.   I hope that helps.

Mark

I looked them up online, they only sell wholesale to businesses with a business license number. That puts a lot of us out of the loop.

[Jim Chambers]

We have a few sets of sterling silver hardware for our English Fowler kit and for our pistol kit.  Give me a call if interested in these.

[Mark Elliott]

It is not completely true that Hoover & Strong only sell to businesses with a business license number.    They have been selling to me for years even though you are supposed to be a licensed jeweler.   However, in my county,  there are no business licenses required except for a very few type of businesses.    I know a couple other gun makers who buy from Hoover & Strong, and I doubt that they have business license numbers.    They just don't want to sell to the general public.    If you are a registered business and only buying mill goods to go into another finished product, I really doubt that they are going to turn down your business.  They just want to protect their primary customers who are jewelers.    We are not competing in any way with the jewelers.   Just call them up and explain the situation to them.   I bet you they will set you up an account.

[Mark Elliott]

I just thought of another potential way to make a one off silver mount.  You can buy metal clay which has silver in the clay that will fuse when it is fired in a kiln or similar device.    It is intended for jewelry use and I don't know how it would hold up for something as large as a BP or TG.    The material does have a known shrinkage factor so you could adjust for that.   I have bought some for my niece but have never tried it myself.   You can get it from the jeweler supply houses such as Contenti.

[Blackpowder Barbie]

We sell a set of Sterling parts designed for our English Gentleman's Sporting rifle.  They aren't cheap but they are nice. 
Barbie

[Bob Roller]

Barbie,
"Cheep" is what is heard from a carton of baby chickens. It has no application to high quality
muzzle loader (or breech loader) parts.

Bob Roller

[Bob Roller]

Barbie,
Can you post a picture of the English Gentleman's Sporting Rifle"or the silver parts?

Bob Roller

[Blackpowder Barbie]

These photos are poor quality so email me if you want to see some better.  Also the parts for sale have no engraving or metal work done to them, some of these photos are of finished pieces that have used the parts in the past.  I have a very limited (I mean one or two) supply of each part.

Buttplates:

PA Fowler

Eng. Sporter

Trigger Guard



Pipe



Sideplate and Thumb Piece



Pistol Parts









Send me a note for prices (I'll have to do some calculating!  )

[eddillon]

Spoke with Barbie today.  Love that silver furniture!.  Think I will hold off using silver on my next English Gentlemen's rifle.  Maybe the one after that (#3).  Saving my nickels and hoping.  That silver is awfully tempting.

[Bob Roller]

Is there any source of "silver" butt plates and trigger guards for fine percusssion target rifles
like the Whitmore's and others from New York and the rest of the Northeast???

Bob Roller

[Blackpowder Barbie]

We found a jeweler who will cast silver pieces for us if we provide him with a wax master.   You might check with a local jeweler and see if they could do some individual pieces for you.

[Acer Saccharum]

Few jewelers have casting flasks big enough for a rifle trigger guard or buttplate. Some of the bigger firms may be able to handle your request.

[Jim Kibler]

There's Cranston Castings from Rhode Island.  They will do investment casting for you.  Not cheap, but they do good work.  They cast the silver mounts for the fowler I made.  I provided the waxes.  Worked well.  For big parts such as a fowler guard, bend the wax in a loop so it will fit in the flask.  Straighten after casting.

[davec2]

I have had to make silver and gold castings that were too big for my centrifugal casting flasks, so I cut the waxes in varoius locations and cast the part in pieces. The parts are then rejoined by gold or silver soldering and, if done properly, the joints are undetectable.  This is the same process used for assembling large silver pieces like tea pots and candle sticks.  It makes mold making easier as well, if the original pattern is made in pieces and molds are made for each element rather than the whole.