Author Topic: two cheek pieces  (Read 5619 times)

der mike

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two cheek pieces
« on: April 13, 2013, 11:40:43 PM »
I just picked up an interesting rifle recently that has both left and right  cheek pieces. It is percussion with a henry barker warranted lock and 45 and 1/4 in barrel. Heavy stock with poured pewter nose cap / ram rod entry piece. Very heavy with germanic iron trigger guard. Will post pics soon. Any thoughts?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/94916685@N07/8645814453/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9491668http://www.flickr.com/photos/94916685
« Last Edit: April 14, 2013, 03:23:17 AM by der mike »


greybeard

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #2 on: April 14, 2013, 03:30:32 AM »
Some of the Canadian builders in the 1800s did some guns  with 2 cheek pieces.
Bob

JBW

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #3 on: April 14, 2013, 04:06:32 AM »
Wm Bodenheimer of OH and several other gunsmiths associated and/or nearby made rifles w/ 2 cheekpieces. The photos are of absolutely minimal use in ID. About every long rifle book I know illustrates its makers' work with rather standard photos [as in Kindig's book. The trigger guard is late commercial as is gunlock.

Offline T*O*F

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #4 on: April 14, 2013, 04:19:49 AM »
The double cheekpiece was a fairly common feature in New York, easterm Ohio and surrounding area halfstock percussion guns.  And most are unsigned.

Bottom gun is the original....top one a facsimile.



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Offline Gaeckle

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #5 on: April 14, 2013, 05:24:05 PM »
That is a common feature in many Ohio made rifles.

Offline Hungry Horse

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #6 on: April 14, 2013, 05:36:59 PM »
 I own a W.H. Brown longrifle with double cheek pieces. Brown worked in Pittsburg, Pa., and San Francisco Cal., along with a few other places. Where he began putting an extra cheek piece on his rifles I don't know. It does make the gun look more balanced when there is no capbox.
 The gun pictured looks as though it might have been built from parts from the scrap bin in the blacksmiths shop. The odd slant to the lock, and the crude nose cap, suggest this was not built by a gunsmith.

                   Hungry Horse

Offline Avlrc

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #7 on: April 14, 2013, 09:21:22 PM »
Maybe some gunsmiths thought they were following the scripture, "turn the other cheek".
« Last Edit: April 14, 2013, 09:48:44 PM by Avlrc »

Offline Majorjoel

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #8 on: April 15, 2013, 01:38:45 PM »
This one was made by William Gardner from Geneva NY. Not only two cheeks but a mule ear as well!   
Joel Hall

Offline Curt J

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #9 on: April 20, 2013, 08:50:51 PM »
I have a couple of Illinois-made rifles with a cheekpiece on both sides.  One is by Noel B. Devol, Marshall, Illinois (Wabash Valley). It's a long barreled halfstock, with a hand-forged barrel. The other one is also a halfstock, by Mills & Thompson, who worked at Plum River, Jo Daviess County, around 1850. It is stocked in ash, and has all hand-forged iron mountings.  I have also seen a fullstock by John Cradock, Springfield, Illinois, with a cheekpiece on both sides. It dates from the 1840's.

I don't think this feature is at all regional.  It went on everywhere.

doug

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #10 on: April 23, 2013, 06:50:56 PM »
   I used to own a percussion rifle by Philo Soper of Ontario, with two cheek pieces.  Still have the stock (which was badly broken) but the restocked gun was stolen some years ago

cheers Doug

Offline smokinbuck

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Re: two cheek pieces
« Reply #11 on: April 30, 2013, 11:54:02 PM »
William Bodenheimer of Fairfield County, Ohio was also known for putting double cheekpieces on his rifles. As luck would have it, my Bodenheimer doesn't have even one.
Mark
Mark