Blunderbuss kits and Rayl blunderbuss barrels located

[James Rogers]

I was talking with Troy Roope of Stonewall Creek Outfitters this morning and was surprised to find out he had two blunderbuss kits available in walnut. These kits use Rayl 4 bore barrels, either of the Chambers round face English locks and high quality, correct brass castings and hardware. He also said he had a couple of Rayl blunderbuss barrels available as well. I think he may have a couple of buss stocks also.
Thought I would pass this along as these are likely the last of these kits and I also knew quite a few fellows have been looking for Rayl blunderbuss barrels.

[Daryl]

TKs James - it would be a "BLAST" to call a big bull in and shoot it with one of those - at about 10 to 20 yards.

[Joe S.]

TKs James - it would be a "BLAST" to call a big bull in and shoot it with one of those - at about 10 to 20 yards.

After reading the rabbit thread in the BP shooting section I think I might build me one for a back up piece

[Hungry Horse]

I built a blunderbuss for a friend about thirty-five years ago, because he just had to have one. It was without a doubt the most worthless, dangerous, muzzleloader I ever built. It wasn't any good to hunt with, and was better at that than it was on the range. IMO, it was dangerous when being loaded because it was so short, and had such a massive bore. Even loading blanks for reenactments scared the devil out everyone around him because of the massive amount of powder it too to make it bang, instead of whoosh. JMO. I sure wouldn't build another one.

  Hungry Horse

[bob in the woods]

I've built a couple of them, and they are awesome, but you have to ask yourself "what am I going to use this for ? "
They folks that I sold them to handle them, show them off, but shoot them infrequently, or not at all.

[Daryl]

Still think it would be fun to shoot a moose with one - call him in and SMASH him.  275gr. would be a decent charge with patched round ball - roughly 10 drams.  A 1" ball would be good enough.

[davec2]

Having built six of these things now from scratch, I thought I would leave a comment referring to Hungry Horse and Bob in the Woods' posts.  Back in 2009, I wrote a post about the first blunderbuss I had built in 2002.  Here is a link to the original discussion, for anyone interested     

http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=8036.msg76093#msg76093

I will repeat a part of that post here that refers to the usefulness or "need" for such a firearm......

"Just after I built this blunderbuss in 2002, I discovered, by accident, that John Ennis lived literally around the corner from me. (He has since moved to Utah).  Now John had built some of the most beautiful guns I had ever seen and I was very excited to talk to him and ask for honest critique on this gun and a couple of others I was working on at the time.  I went to see him and he was extremely helpful.  His first comment about the blunderbuss was, “well…there is enough wood left on the stock to build a second one of these !”  He then showed me several original guns he had to point out how little wood a good maker left to hold all the parts together and how graceful that made the finished arm.  We talked about architecture, engraving, finishing, inletting, all the details I could think to ask him about.  I learned more in an hour talking to John than I had been able to learn on my own in years.

To answer Don’s questions:  I wrote an article about this gun for Muzzle Blasts magazine several years ago explaining how and why I built it.  For space reasons, the article got hacked way down and the thread of the story line was lost.  (I can post my original unedited text, if anyone is that interested).  The bottom line was that I had always wanted a blunderbuss, couldn’t afford one, so I built one.  I built it just for me and, as a contemporary builder, was not particularly concerned with making it look like any particular original in all details.  On top of that, I was not knowledgeable enough at the time to know what I should or should not do.  The worst part was trying to decide what to try to engrave on it.  I didn’t want to go too far afield and make it look way out of place, but I really had no idea where I was going with the engraving design.  Since I had been a naval officer for more than a quarter century (and blunderbusses were often sea going weapons) I settled on using design elements from my 1976 USNA class crest and the Naval Academy crest.  “Tridens” is part of the Naval Academy motto, “Ex Scientia, Tridens”  - “From Knowledge, Sea Power”.  “Tridens” can be loosely translated as “power” but has a nautical connotation as in the “trident” emblem of the Roman god of the sea, Neptune.

As for the word “Liberty” engraved on the side plate, I will answer with the last paragraphs of my original MB article (which, I believe, were deleted for political correctness reasons):

“We had great fun that day and shot away a considerable amount of powder and lead with the blunderbuss and a half a dozen other guns.  As I watched the others shoot, I had to reassess my earlier thoughts about building something I really didn't need.  The blunderbuss itself was just so much brass and wood, flint and steel, but what it represented to me now was something I do need, something I cherish.  On the side plate I had been inspired to engrave the word "LIBERTY".  It was not very original and my engraving of the letters was more than a little shaky.  But as I watched the gun roar out again and again, I reflected that we all still enjoy the liberty to build or own or do something we don't need.  Like our forefathers, we still don't have to seek permission from some higher authority to do many of the things we want to do whether we have a reason or not.  We can follow our hearts and our abilities and our opportunities wherever they may lead us.  In the most recent film version of Last of the Mohicans, Hawkeye is explaining to Cora why a slain frontier family would have chosen to live so far from civilization.  He tells her that to be free and "not livin' by another's leave" was worth everything to them.

But with each exuberant thundering of the blunderbuss, there echoed a distant warning.  Much of the freedom our predecessors held dear has already slipped away.  Throughout human history, liberty, like glory, has been fleeting.  We, as Americans, have enjoyed more of it for a longer period of time than any nation on earth.  But, as the saying goes, eternal vigilance is the price of freedom.

For those who enjoy muzzleloading arms, we re-create, we re-enact, we re-live a time long since past, and, in so doing, we remember and honor the lives and courage of those who preceded us.  Each time I do something I enjoy - shouldering one of my guns, teaching a young person how to shoot - I give thanks to Providence for being born in this land.  And every time I hear a politician, or another of my countrymen, tell me I don't "need" one thing or another and, therefore, have no right to it, I bristle.  Thanks for your input, but I can decide for myself if I need an SUV, a semiautomatic .22 rifle, a cigarette, or a greasy fried hamburger….or perhaps, even a blunderbuss.  So, I hope that the answer to my friend's rhetorical question, "What are you going to do with that?" always remains, "Whatever I please."

Eternal vigilance, my friends.  Eternal vigilance.”

[conquerordie]

I used a 14.5 inch 1inch bore bluderbuss for wargaming  when I reenacted. I never felt unsafe in the woods or the range. Just had to be aware of others. Rayl made the barrel for me. One of my most favorite guns I ever made.
Greg

[bob in the woods]

in response to Davec2...I own a blunderbuss myself and have a lot of fun with it. I did say they were awesome     but think it a fair question to ask one's self re what use they'll be put to. My 12 bore is actually more practical..used for partridge, and rabbits. The muzzle is less flared than the 4 bore and is easier to aim when using a round ball as well. . The larger 4 bore isn't allowed for hunting using shot, but I suppose a round ball would certainly drop anything short of a tank. Just wanting one is reason enough , however sometimes lack of discretionary  funds demands some measure of practicality.  One nice thing is that a 4 bore here actually qualifies for an artillery stipend at some of our reenactments 

[Joe S.]

I always found the blunderbuss a very interesting weapon.Always liked them for as long as I can remember,why? I'm not sure.Not very practical but there's lots of things in life that are just not practical,to me they just kinda have an it factor same as an old tool ect.

[SingleMalt]

Whether a matchlock musket or a piece of the newest firearm technology, we own it and shoot it because it appeals to us. Frankly, I wouldn't mind building one.