Fowler mystery

[eddillon]

I may have posted this a few years back.  In any case I have failed to identify the maker.  The barrel is Oct to Rnd w/  wedding band.  Damascus twist 10 bore and is 48.5 inches long.  Fowler is 65 inches overall.  Barrel is 1.685 inches across at the breech, 1.320 at the band, 1.262 infront of the band and 987 at the muzzle.  The massive lock has been converted to percussion.  Very clever brazed seams on the english style drum.  Stock is walnut.  Inlays look to be American  Intfesting flat bottom trigger guard.  Lock is marked Mc.......  No way to decipher the letters after the Mc.  Barrel is Birmingham proofed and marked "twisted" on the bottom flat.  Faint remains of engraved "LONDON on the top flat.  Any help would be appreciated.

 

 

 

[nord]

My opinion for what it's worth...

Given the patent breach and the lock configuration... Always percussion.

I'd lay odds on European walnut.

General style says British and I'd guess built for the trade.

Proofs hidden under the barrel will tell us more.

[eddillon]

Birmingham.  Lock is definitely a conversion.  Unable to get good photos of the brazed on drum.  But it appearsto be a well done add on.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

What makes you think it's a conversion?  From the photo, I'd agree with NORD...original percussion lock.

[JCKelly]

Maybe the cutout in the wood just behind breech, so a flint cock could rest on the plate?

[eddillon]

I'll post a photo of the back side of the lock plate.  It will become obvious.  The conversion is one of the finest I have encountered.

[eddillon]

Here are some photos to show the conversion of the breech plug, tang and lock.  I rest my case.  Very elaborate conversion.

Nipple drum brazed on-two pieces added
 

Bottom view-note brazing.


Hook breech tang face.  Piece added on.


Inside of lock-plugged frizzen hole.


Plugged frizzen spring screw hole left of mainspring pin hole.


Bottom flat markings and proofs

[rich pierce]

Some very fine work there.

[nord]

Once again an opinion...

A single screw lock would be somewhat unusual for a flint gun. The stock shows no evidence of a second cross screw.

I agree about the workmanship. Given what I see I'd at least consider that the gun was out-shopped as a percussion piece.

Proofs are as I suspected.

The gun hails from a time when flint was fading but not yet fully retired. Indications that the stock may have been made with provisions for flint ignition might suggest that the final product could have been either. In this case I suspect always percussion.

[Mike Brooks]

Nothing unusual about a late period single screw English flint lock.

[Don Stith]

Not unusual for an English conversion to replace the entire breech and tang. They were really good. This one might have had the tang section replaced.  Pretty piece

[eddillon]

Nothing unusual about a late period single screw English flint lock.

There is a hook at the front of the lock.

[eddillon]

Not unusual for an English conversion to replace the entire breech and tang. They were really good. This one might have had the tang section replaced.  Pretty piece

Don,
There is definitely a piece of metal brazed to the front of the tang.  The piece was cut/filed to conform to the octagonal shape of the tang.

[Feltwad]

What you have is a flintlock conversion  with a new breech plug and tang  fitted, this principle  followed the early drum and nipple Have several with this type of breech plug which was mostley used  on the large bores such has 10,8,6,.
Feltwad

6bore Fowler

Large bore Fowler


2nd and Third From the right with this type

[Mike Brooks]

Nothing unusual about a late period single screw English flint lock.

There is a hook at the front of the lock.

Also not unusual for a single bolt lock.

[Don Stith]

 Gardners "Small Arms Makers" lists 18  Non-USA makers that start with Mc. Only a handful are the right time period to have possibly made your fowler
McDermott   Dublin Ireland 1792-1820
 McKenzie  London, scotland
 McKnight Ireland
McNab  Scotland
 McWilliams  London
 Maybe having those names will help you make out more of the stamp.
 Fairly sure your breech and tang were replaced  during the conversion.  That was the technique used in Europe