wear plates

[colt]

Would or could a gun from early to mid 18th century have a copper wear plate? Would they have used copper to do a repair?

[RobertS]

I don't know, brass would probably be more politically correct, but copper would probably look right at home on a primitive, southern or mountain rifle. 

[Ben I. Voss]

Scroll down to GHall's post: "southern rifle-just finished". It shows his southern styled rifle with a copper wear-plate- so there's at least one (modern) one made!

[Acer Saccharum]

It depends who did the repair, when it was done, and what materials were on hand. Don't put anything on there that wasn't commonly available.

A backwoods guy might wrap the forestock with rawhide, a city repair might be a nicely fitted brass plate, even engraved to match the rifle.

Today they use duct tape.

Tom

[JTR]

Today they use duct tape.

Tom

Today, on a high quality gun it would be carbon fiber!

On the original question, I've had, and have seen other guns with a copper cheek piece inlay, although never a wear plate.

John

[Acer Saccharum]

The Kuntz rifle at the Metropolitan Museum has a bone wear plate, framed in brass. Kinda cool.
photos courtesy of the Met.

[colt]

Thanks for all the Info. i am trying to stay "politically correct"for an early rifle, but may wind up doing what i like.

[eagle24]

Thanks for all the Info. i am trying to stay "politically correct"for an early rifle, but may wind up doing what i like.

That's exactly what I did with my southern rifle.  I tried to build it correct and took great pains in learning all I could, but I also had to build it within the limits of my ability.  The copper wear plate on mine was to hide a screw up with a failed entry thimble and a thin lower forestock.  Bottom line, I like it and I'm eager to take a whitetail with it soon.  I have no clue whether the copper is or would be correct.  Just because it hasn't been seen on an original doesn't mean it wasn't possible.  I agree with Tom.  They probably would have used whatever was available.  Rawhide?  That is interesting.  I hadn't thought about rawhide.  Just happen to have some, and I think it would look really cool laced on the wrist of a southern rifle.

[Acer Saccharum]

A while ago, I had posted about the availability of sheet iron. Early sheet was pounded from wrought iron. Iron rolling mills were not common in the country until the late 18th Cent. This tells me that sheet iron could be an appropriate repair from 1800 on, but even at that year, the material may have been scarce. Copper and copper alloys have been around since man learned how to make fire.

My interpretation of sheet metal availablity in mid 18th Cent America:
most common: brass
least common: iron

[Acer Saccharum]

Thread on sheet iron in the colonies: http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=6503.0

[smshea]

Like someone else said I thinks if its a repair it would all depend on who did it and where as to what they might use. Ive seen a few of these eastern Pa. guns with the full belly pan that go from the trigger guard to the entry pipe that are not repairs and are purely decorations. Maybe some sort of preventative measure? Most recently an unsigned Nick Hawk.

[Tom Currie]

I would wager that the the full belly wear plates mentioned above were probably by design and functional as well as being used decoratively. The rifles I have seen them on, a Kuntz I believe for example , has such a minimal step from lower forestock to the upper forestock that the minimal strip of wood covering the ramrod hole would probably never ever hold up. If that fully belly wear plate was planned, would they have still drilled that hole into the lower forestock or just gouged it out from the bottom and put the plate over it ? Would sure be a accurate way to place the RR groove on a very slim rifle. Sort of the opposite of gouging a groove out from the barrell channel.  Maybe that's sacriledge suggesting Kuntz or Hawk would be a " cheater " , hope I don't affend anyone with that thought  Just thinking out loud here.

[colt]

My impression was that it would be impossible to rule out copper as politically correct as it was evidently around then.But as Tom(acer) said ,would it have been readily available for a repair?. Depends on locale i think. I know, being from the coast, there was  copper around for the ships hulls. I think GHall is right. For tracking some northern white tails it will be fine and it looks cool as $#*! on his gun.

[eagle24]

I don't know if it would be wrong for an earlier rifle, or if it is correct for my rifle.  Nobody has stepped up to really say it is wrong.  One of the reasons I posted pics of my rifle was the hope that I would get some feedback on things I did wrong and folks didn't like, especially architecturally.  I didn't get too much of that other than Dennis pointing out the ramrod tip (which I appreciated and BTW agree with him that I should have done it the other way) and Tom pointing out a flat area that needed attention (appreciated that also).  I wish someone had told me to sand it 3 more times after I thought I was finished.

[Acer Saccharum]

I wish someone had told me to sand it 3 more times after I thought I was finished. Grin

Sand! Oh, my!

Scrape, scrape, scrape!

If you listen to what everyone tells you, you'll go bonkers.
Tom

[oakridge]

I would think the use of copper for early repairs very possible. A good source would have been copper pots, which were in use in this country in the mid-1700's. I know it was used by the mid-1800's, as I've had a half-stock with a period repair to the wrist by wrapping with copper. And, I've seen copper used for a wear plate on an 1830's half-stock that looked of the period.

[hyltoto]

seen several longrifles with copper wrist repairs, but how does one know when they were done?