Nose caps on fowlers when is it acceptable ?

[Goo]

I am building an English style New England fowler, meaning the stock profile is straighter and not curved like the fusils round 54" barrel wedding band at the breech.    My best reference material is Grinslades book on American fowlers.   Some New England fowlers have nose caps and some don't, the Kentucky fowlers all seem to have nose caps and rear sights.     What is the spectrum of opinion here on nose caps for fowlers?

[rich pierce]

I don’t think there’s a consensus on American fullstock fowlers.  Just study particular originals or do one’s own thing.  It seems that makers of fowling pieces who were also rifle builders generally used nosecaps on both types of guns.

[hanshi]

A friend and I both have similar smoothbores and both have rear sights.  His has a nose cap but mine does not.  So I second the advice from Rich to please yourself; that's what I did. 

[Mike Brooks]

I am building an English style New England fowler, meaning the stock profile is straighter and not curved like the fusils round 54" barrel wedding band at the breech.    My best reference material is Grinslades book on American fowlers.   Some New England fowlers have nose caps and some don't, the Kentucky fowlers all seem to have nose caps and rear sights.     What is the spectrum of opinion here on nose caps for fowlers?

Go with what the book says. Also be careful that the forestock is original. In times past when some of these were restored the person doing the restoring didn't know what they were doing and put a nose cap on a gun that never had one.