Any ideas as to the maker of this rifle?

[gibster]

I don't own this rifle so at the time, can't get any more pictures.  I could only snap a few with my phone so the quality isn't the greatest.  Anyway, the barrel has what looks like L S engraved on it.  It is missing the trigger guard and a couple of inlays have been replaced.  It is a full stock rifle and the wood is in pretty good shape, but has been heavily cleaned at some point. The owners Father traded for it a number of years ago, and the story that came with it was that it came from Fort Vincennes in Indiana.  The barrel tang looks like a typical Jamestown NC 3-screw tang, but nothing else on the rifle looks to me to be NC.  The side plate is a little unusual and looks to be original to the rifle.  Would like to figure out where and by whom this may have been made.

[Bart]

I love it, sock feet, rubber boots, gloves and lookin at old guns!!!

[Loudy]

Gibster,

Looks to be a Samuel Laudenslager rifle... parts anyway.  I suspect it might be a restock.  Sam Laudenslager worked in Union/Snyder and Juniata County, PA.  The buttstock does not have the "roman nose" profile typically seen on Laudenslager-made guns.  The patchbox details and engraving is very much like what's seen on other Sam Laudenslager guns.  Thanks for posting photos of this gun.  To see photos of other Laudenslager guns check out these links...  

http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=17750.0
http://hurricanenordgallery.com/index.php?topic=19.0

Loudy

[gibster]

Thanks for the info Loudy.  I think that you are on the money.  I looked at the links you gave and the hardware sure looks like his work.  I'm with you, probably a restock during its working life.  Whoever restocked it used the inlays along the barrel channel, the wear plate and the cheek rest from the original stock as they are basically the same as what is shown in the links.  The stock architecture and the tang are the main differences that I can see.  I will pass the info on to the owner.

[Loudy]

Gibster,

I have seen Sam Laudenslager guns with a "tongue depressor" type of tang like the one on the gun here (most had the willow-leaf type tang).  However, I've never seen an S.L. rifle equipped with a patent breech.  Perhaps the gunsmith that restocked the rifle also re-breeched the barrel.  Do you recall if the barrel signature was centered on the top barrel flat between the rear sight and the breech?  I can't really tell from the photo.  I suspect the signature was closer to the breech than the rear sight indicating that the gun had been rebreeched.  FYI... David Keck's (Knob Mountain) John Dreisbach triggerguard casting is a pretty darn close match to the triggerguard typically used by Sam Laudenslager.   Thanks again for posting the photos.

http://knobmountainmuzzleloading.com/castings.html

Loudy