That does make a lot of sense. Prohibitive cost kept it from being an option. Still you'd think we'd see a few every now and then. We see apparent contemporary european examples of the half-stock on the forum. (e.g. the "very cool Scottish fowler on TOTW") Though the Colonial gunsmiths of the time may not have been aware of them.
I have to claim a great deal of ignorance here. There may well be examples galore of early Colonial half-stocks out there and I just don't know about them. I very quickly fell in love with the full-stock when i first started into BP and have spent all my time admiring them. Some transcend the label of gun and are true works of art.
Because of my newfound fascination with the longrifle, i've developed an urge to learn much more of it's time and place in history, but am just starting. Maybe a more in depth survey of the history of the rifle itself is a good place to go next.
Cooner54, I see your point on the stock not adding a lot of appreciable weight and I agree. And on the NDNZ, i was making the point that on the frontier the colonists didn't have time or inclination to fuss with things that didn't serve a purpose and weren't shy about discarding them for more useful items or practices. So if they kept their full stocks, they probably served a useful function. Now, i'm making an assumption here, and you know what happens when you assume! :shocked2: