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Lightweight .58 Big Game Gun.

elrod

New Member
I only got one flintlock rifle left (and one smoothbore) It's my "Lightweight .58". I built it several yrs. ago for deer, hogs and elk....if I ever go elk hunting again.

It's a Berk's Co. Henry Mauger 1790's, at least that's what it started off being. When I got down into shaping the wrist I came to a bad knot that was ingrown and was very fearful of wrist breaking when fired. So I decided to get my money's worth (in case the wrist broke when I shot it) I would kinda pratice on the the gun..especially my carving. So I added a lot of Hershel type carving that is more elaberate than would be found on a Mauger gun.

I used a 38" .58cal. swamped octagon to round Colerain barrel, Chamber's Round Faced English Flintlock, Hedgecock's Single Trigger and Sugar Maple blank.

I pinned the wrist real good and is not noticeable and it has held up to the stoutest loads I need for several yrs.now. Anyway here's a few pictures.

Knot
t.jpg

Knot
knotprogress.jpg


Lightweight58.jpg

P6230011.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v71/Iflytrout/Berks/P6170019.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v71/Iflytrout/Berks/Frontrightforearm.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v71/Iflytrout/Berks/Bottomforearm.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v71/Iflytrout/Berks/FrontRightButtwrist.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v71/Iflytrout/Berks/leftbutpp.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v71/Iflytrout/Berks/nos.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v71/Iflytrout/Berks/Bottomforearm.jpg

Southern Illinois Shawnee Buck
Shawneejpg1.jpg
 
Beautiful gun! That was a nasty knot to have to deal with.
I never have gotten brave enough to try any carving. Your's looks great! Thanks for posting.
 
Thanks for the compliments men. Shovelbuck, I'm sure you would do good at carving, if I can do it anybody can. I'm no flintlock builder, only built 4 and this one was my 3'rd. Only reason I built those was because when I decided I wanted to hunt spring gobblers with a flintlock I thought they would be fairly cheap. I didn't know a thing about flintlocks except I wanted one to hunt spring gobblers with. I started checking for prices and couldn't believe how much they were. So my choices came down to either getting a manufactured one for around $600..would have been a Pedersoli or a used one for around $1000 or getting one built for around $1300 and having to wait a yr or so.

So I decided I'd just make one from a Pecatonica kit with a precarved stock. Old Virginia .62cal. 20ga. When the parts came I didn't even know how to cock the flintlock...never had shot one.

Anyway I built it, then a .54cal Buck's Co., then the Henry Mauger Berk's Co. .58cal. and lastly my Gobbler Gun 20ga. and then traded all but the Mauger and Gobbler gun for a 4wheel drive pickup and now I'm through building flintlocks. Don't have the patience for it.

Try some carving you can always rasp and sand it out if you aren't pleased.
 
It was all I could do just to inlet the parts for my last pistol build without the use of my left thumb. I'm afraid carving isn't going to happen unless I grow a new one.
 
Mercy; that truly is a beautiful firearm.

How many hours do you have in that build?
<O:p</O:p
Thanks for sharing. :way:
 
Thanks Blake, I probably worked on it for about a month and a half, few hrs. a day. Even when I came to the knot I was liking the way the gun was looking and did try to take my time with it and do the best I could...fight my patience.

I enjoy working on them, but just want to get them done so I can see the finished product. It's hard for me to just relax, go slow and enjoy the moment while working on one. I don't have all the tools, etc, (built my first one in my lap..didn't even have a vice.) There's a lot of monotonous work, such as draw filing the barrel, sanding, rasping, sawing, (with hand saw..didn't have a band saw) scraping the stock, etc., not for everyone for sure. Tell you the truth one of my favorite parts is finding the components for one. Since I don't make my own, trigger guards, buttplates, etc. although I do make the side plate, but I enjoy shopping around the net and finding the barrel I want, trigger guard, trigger, flintlock, wood, etc.and they all have to be of the right school of gun (Bucks's, Lehigh, Berk's, etc. and if you are trying to emulate a certain gunsmith's work, parts that he would have used) and work together.
 
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