Manton-esque pistol engraving

[Scota4570]

I made a pistol.  It shoots well enough to justify finishing well.  I will do the checkering and blueing.  I am a novice engraver.  I'd like the tang, lock plate hammer, and trigger plate engraved in Manon plausible patterns.  The trigger pate is shaped for a pineapple and the tang is as Manton did them. 

I have the two volume Manton books by Neal and Beck but the documentation is focused on production history and has little engraving details. 

I'd need source patterns and some time to practice.  My result would be substandard.  My other thought is farm it out to someone who is good at it.  I have never hired engraving. 

Thoughts on both?

Thanks,
Scot

[Dave B]

The period english style is highly refined and if you are just starting out  it may be beyond you. Here are som examples of some of manton shop engraving.

[elk killer]

Mike Miller or Chuck Edwards, Chuck engraved a pistol for me a few years ago its outstanding engraving

[smart dog]

Hi Scot,
Go to:
www.flintlockcollection.com

Geoff Walker shows a number of Manton guns and you can see the engraving well in many of them.

dave

[Bob Roller]

Looks like more time was spent on decorating than the actual build took.The new pistol has a lock plate that looks similar to my Rigby pattern that came from Lynton McKenzie over 30 years ago.Nice workmanship and worth dressing up.I played around with simple tools
for engraving and it was not bad looking but certainly not in a class shown here.Enjoy the pistol.
Bob Roller

[Daryl]

Good shooting gun. There are many modern pistols that cannot do an inch at 25yds. according to the RANSOM REST gun writer's tests. GJ.

[Scota4570]

Yes, it shoots really well.  The groups were comparable to my match grade 1911 from a ransom rest.  It shot better than my under hammer dedicated target pistols.  I think If I had used a scope it would put them all in one hole.  It is at about the limit of my eyes and iron sights. 

I am going to try more loads to see what happens.   I made a spout to do 12.5 grains of powder.  The feel between 10 and 15 was significantly different.  I think part of the accuracy is the lack of recoil and drama.  That helps with follow through and not flinching. 

I will practice engraving until I get bored and possibly do a simplified treatment in the gun. There is no way I can learn English push engraving this life time.  I have a pneumatic engraving tool.  I need to experiment more with various cutter geometries and techniques.  I have not doen any engraving for several years.  Cutting smooth lines of various widths is no problem.  Making smooth lines of changing widths (Bolino?) and making the appropriate width for the situation is still challenging.   

[smart dog]

Hi Scot,
Don't be afraid to copy an original design closely.  It is a good way to learn and there is no sin in copying.  Also Scot, doing borders alone will make the pistol look like a million bucks. 

dave

[Scota4570]

Borders I got. I can do basic scrolls and shading.   I was just now experimenting with cutter configurations and the strokes frequency.  I will make examples and label them for reference. 

[Tim Crosby]

 Nice work, Good topic.

   Tim

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

Mike Miller or Chuck Edwards, Chuck engraved a pistol for me a few years ago its outstanding engraving

I second the recommendation for Chuck Edwards. He engraved a 1740 Griffin rifle that I built several years ago. Beautiful English style work.

[Scota4570]

Got contact on them?

Unless they work at the speed of light I'd expect to pay a large sum.  Ball park figures?  $500, $1000, More? 

[flatsguide]

Dave, thanks for posting those photos!. Scott, that’s a very accurate pistol and nice looking too. I’m sure if you engraved it it would look very nice. I know it was difficult for me to start engraving on my rifle for fear of screwing it up. Like Dave said, do the borders…and see how you feel about them.
Good luck
Richard

[Scota4570]

I've been practicing.  I figured out how to do a double nick border that looks nice.  The grind on the tools is making a huge difference as well as the frequency setting on my Lindsay pneumatic engraver.  I am not an enthusiastic engraver.  It just never called to me.  It is strange because I was into checkering and can still do good work.  I can carve reasonable well.  I need to spend practice time engraving and I will dive in when I am feeling good about it.  I suspect the result will be somewhere between the naive engraving done on original long rifles and the really nice work done by people here.  I will not attempt English push engraving. 

[flatsguide]

I use a Lindsey too, the “ trick” that helped me the most was to slow my cutting down.
Richard

[Scota4570]

Yeah, I am finding that with the right tool, pressure and cyclic rate I can just let it eat.  I do not need to push very much, just direct it with light pressure.  If it stop cutting then I have it diving to deep.