Purdy Sporting Rifle

[mark brier]

Finishing this rifle up with a few others. .62 cal Oregon  tapered barrel blank hand rifled, lightly modified l&r lock, forged trigger guard, handmade thimbles, ramrod tip etc. nice English walnut blank and ebony forend. This one is a ball gun going to make a second that is a bullet gun.
Mark Brier
















photo upload on internet

[smart dog]

Hi Mark,
That is going to be a beauty.  I will be starting on a late flint version next year.  I have one suggestion, I think the flats around the lock are too wide, especially on top of the lock.  I'd reduce their thickness by half and on the lock bolt side, the top corner should be rounded down not come to a sharp corner.  The top edge of the flat should be just a little above the lock bolt head. Also, the lock and lock bolt panels do not have to be symmetrical.  If you angle the edge of the lock bolt flat down in a gentle arc from the top of the bolt to the nose of the panel making that nose a bit narrower, that side of the gun will look sleeker and be more correct, historically.  Are you going to engrave the lock and patch box?  It is going to be a great gun.

dave

[Bob Roller]

These rifles are more of a pain in the fanny to make than a Hawken.This looks good and I think
you grandfather would be proud of you and it.I started a long range type in 2001 and finally finished
it in 2003. It was a .451 bullet gun using a GM barrel,Don Brown breech and one of his semi finished stocks.
The front sight was a Lyman 17A with a special base that gave windage and a small level.Rear sight was
a folding long range type with .025 calibrations I made to fit the "ears" on the tang.
Keep up the good work.

Bob Roller

[bama]

That is going to be a very nice rifle when you are finished. Are you going to engrave this rifle? A rifle like this will not look correct without engraving.

[Bob Roller]

That is going to be a very nice rifle when you are finished. Are you going to engrave this rifle? A rifle like this will not look correct without engraving.

Bama.
I must respectfully disagree about the engraving.We had a Canadian friend,Ted Girodat that
owned an unfired George Gibbs,cased .461 long range muzzle loader that has a simply,single line
of engraving following the shape of the lock plate and that was IT. The caliber is NOT a typo,it
is a Four Sixty One. Ted is deceased now and his VERY extensive gun collection is now all over
Canada and maybe other places.His gun making was like another Canadian,D.Taylor Sapergia.
top of the line showing his disdain for junk.

Bob Roller

[sz]

Looking real good Mark
That should be an heirloom someday.

[jerrywh]

  A Purdy should at least have a little engraving on it as they are a top grade gun and that is a fine job.  A little English scroll would look real good.  Or maybe an earlier style.  There is a good book called English gun engraving that starts out in that period.  Check it out.

[bama]

Hi Bob and thanks, but I will have to respectfully disagree. I do not think I have ever seen a real Purdy without engraving. I could be wrong won't be the first time, but I would be willing to bet that there are more engraved than not. I will have to agree that the engraving does not make it shoot any better for that matter neither does a fancy piece of wood or a 461 caliber for what ever reason. This gentleman does not have to engrave the gun, I just asked if he was. In my mind why go to the expense of building a out of the ordinary gun with a nice piece of wood and not engrave the gun. But hey, engraving is not for everyone. Cheers

[mark brier]

Yes it will be engraved as well as 18 line checkering wrapped around the pistol grip and the forearm.
Mark Brier

[Bob Roller]

Bama,
These guns,at least according to Lynton McKenzie who knew more about them than anyone on this
forum as well as being an engraver of the first rank told me these guns were nearly all alike and
varied little in style and equipment as well as embellishment.ALL of them use a much higher quality lock than is seen on MOST
American guns as was illustrated by Taylor's superb Lang rifle.Line up a dozen of them on a rack and if it weren't for the name
on the lock plate and the barrel they would be hard to identify.Most were,according to Lynton were made by a gunmakers guild that
would make whatever was wanted for whoever needed it and had specialists in all phases of the construction,stock makers and finishers,
barrel makers,sights,butt plates,triggers and guards and lock filers capable of any level of quality wanted and put the name of the gun shops
that offered them for sale.Highly specialized masters of the trades was what we see in these magnificent relics today.
To take one of these on today is quite a job because of the special "bits and pieces"needed to make one.Mark Brier's grandfather was
T.K.(Tom)Dawson and I am sure he has inheirited his ability from him.Tom built and regulated several double barreled rifles and was an
authority on them.In the days of the English guns we so admire now,the name of the "maker" was frequently only the contractor/seller.
Whoever ordered that .461 Gibbs Ted Girodat owned had no interest in engraving which was obvious on this specimen but Ted also had
a Rigby of the same time period that was elegantly engraved with fine scroll work often seen on these superb relics.
  Turning for a moment to farce,there was a fine engraver here,Norris Sperry,now deceased that had an 1851 Colt Navy revolver in fair
condition but the cylinder was wrecked by nitro powder.He bought a new cylinder from Dixie Gun Works and engraved it superbly......
with an aircraft carrier and a fleet of helicopters.He also engraved several of my locks at customer request under a separate order.
His art work was as fine or finer that many on this forum were capable of and he left us too soon because of an undiagnosed heart condition.

Bob Roller

[bama]

Thanks Bob, so I guess you are saying these guns were engraved?

[jerrywh]

 Bob is correct in saying that nobody knew more about these than Lynton McKenzie.  I have personally never seen one that was not engraved. 

[Bob Roller]

Thanks Bob, so I guess you are saying these guns were engraved?

Bama, Not all of them.That Gibbs I saw was plain but was superbly crafted.
I got a Holland&Holland double .303 from Mark Brier's grandfather in the late
1960's. Traded an unfired Winchester HiWall Schuetzen in 40-70 Sharps Straight
and a couple of locks for it. The H&H was covered with superb engraving but
it would have been a superb piece without it.

Bob Roller

[bama]

Mark you do superb work and I hope that me playing with Bob a little has not offended you any. Bob is a great craftsman also and I enjoy his comments. I am sure when you finish your above average projects that they will not only look great but shoot as good as they look. Best of luck.

Jim

[Daryl]

Going to be a fun gun to shot, Mark.  English styled guns are nice shooting rifles as they seem to fit perfectly, no contortions, no hanging the stock out on your arm, but tucked into the shoulder's pocket, where the butt plate should be.

TKS Bob- notice the relationship between the size of the lock plate and the stock, the ratios & geometry of the gun at that location.

[Scota4570]

Very nice looking rifle.  I also like the handling characteristics of them.   One is on my "gotta build one" bucket list.  I did a simmiler rifle on a Trapdoor action, it needs a large bore ML partner.