flintlock fowler rifle

anyone know of the history of the flintlock fower style rifle i been searching for some history or info on them
I just bought a 54 cal flint fowler and i was told it was biult by a well-known builder Greg Christensen anyone know anything about this fellow

A fowler is a SMOOTHBORE, Buzz, Not a rifle. Fowlers often come with Rear sights, so they can be used LIKE A RIFLE to shoot PRBs, but they remain a SMOOTHBORE. Tom Grinslade's Book, " Flintlock Fowlers: The First Guns Made in America from 1700-1820 was published in 2005By Scurlock Publishing co. Its the best reference book in print today on ORIGINAL Fowlers.

As to a modern builder, I hope someone else can help you. I do not recognize the name. Track of the Wolf sells a lot of guns on consignment for builders, and they would be one source I would call to see if they recognize the name. The other would be Dick Greensides, at Pecatonica, because he sells pre-carved stocks, and stock blanks to builders all over the country. Dick might just know the man you speak about, and can give you information about how to contact him.

I hope this helps.

There was a fowler just offered on this site and gunbroker for sale made by a G. Christensen. That's the only Greg Christensen gun I've ever seen or heard of. Of course, I've made over 40 guns and nobody has ever heard of me either.

is barrel rifled?

he sells his stuff on other forums .

I have often heard of a rifle styled smoothbore or what we call a smoothbore but have not heard of a fowler styled rifle,is it a fowler that has had rilfeing cut into the barel? I can see the advantage of having a grip rail,rear sights and cheek piece on a rifle stock and a smoothbore for better aiming and dual purpose but I do not see the advantage of rifleing a fowler which usually has no grip rail, chek piece or rear sight to aid in aiming maybe someone else will have some info and exampoles of such a gun in an original.Some builders offer a rifle barrel in their various smoothbores but I have seen nothing to suggest that the were originaly done this way.

Buzz,
I can't help you with your builder but re the "smoothbore rifle"; There are fowlers and there are rifles, each a breed unto themselves. There are smoothbores that are made on the lines of a rifle, both with and without sights. This is what we refer to as a smooth rifle. A fowler is a gun designed to shoot primarily shot but will handle PRB with some degree of accuracy. They could better be described as the fore runners of todays shotgun. To put one next to the other you could clearly see the difference in style and architecture.
Mark

sorry gents it is a fowler not a rilfe my mistake
barrel is smooth bore only has front site
yes this is the gun that was offered here a week or so i saw it on gunbroker
I was going to do a TVM fowler kit but costs would been about the same

Sounds like you have found a pretty nice gun, I have heard a lot of good things about the TVM guns, I suspect you will find yourself enjoying the time you spend with your new addition to the family.

buzz said:

sorry gents it is a fowler not a rilfe my mistake
barrel is smooth bore only has front site
yes this is the gun that was offered here a week or so i saw it on gunbroker
I was going to do a TVM fowler kit but costs would been about the same

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I remember that gun. It was a 28 ga. fowler with a wormy stock. In fact, I had it bought on this site, had an agreed upon price & everything but I didn't know it was offered for auction on gunbroker. Apparently you made a better deal on the gun than I did. It would have been nice to know it was up for auction. You would not own it now if I would have known it was offered in more than 1 place. Needless to say, I was a little peeved about that deal. I guess I will ask the seller if he/she has something listed in more than one place from now on.

osayo,
My primary gun is a "fowler" smoothbore.
It had a rear sight on it. I couldent hit the side of a tent from inside. Once I removed the rear sight, it now is pretty relaible shooter.

Keb said:

buzz said:

sorry gents it is a fowler not a rilfe my mistake
barrel is smooth bore only has front site
yes this is the gun that was offered here a week or so i saw it on gunbroker
I was going to do a TVM fowler kit but costs would been about the same

Click to expand...

I remember that gun. It was a 28 ga. fowler with a wormy stock. In fact, I had it bought on this site, had an agreed upon price & everything but I didn't know it was offered for auction on gunbroker. Apparently you made a better deal on the gun than I did. It would have been nice to know it was up for auction. You would not own it now if I would have known it was offered in more than 1 place. Needless to say, I was a little peeved about that deal. I guess I will ask the seller if he/she has something listed in more than one place from now on.

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Are you saying you contacted the seller here offering to buy it at it's asking price and got no response from him?

Swampy said:

Are you saying you contacted the seller here offering to buy it at it's asking price and got no response from him?

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No. I am saying I made an offer. He countered. I agreed to his counter offer & asked where to send the funds. Later in the day he told me he had bids on it on gunbroker and couldn't end the auction now that he was getting bids. It sold for his Buy It Now price. I'm saying I didn't know he was also dealing the gun on another site and didn't tell me until after it was sold.

Keb said:

Swampy said:

Are you saying you contacted the seller here offering to buy it at it's asking price and got no response from him?

Click to expand...

No. I am saying I made an offer. He countered. I agreed to his counter offer & asked where to send the funds. Later in the day he told me he had bids on it on gunbroker and couldn't end the auction now that he was getting bids. It sold for his Buy It Now price. I'm saying I didn't know he was also dealing the gun on another site and didn't tell me until after it was sold.

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Ok, understood.

Somehow that seems like a raw deal to me..I`d be peeved also

I was peeved when it happened but I'm over it. :v There are a lot of guns out there. I hope buzz enjoys it and I also hope to shoot against him some day. :thumbsup:

Yeah just so all knows I and Keb chatted a lot today and i even offered the gun to him at the price i paid just to be fair I to not realy happy as to how this all went down
I to contacted the seller on muzzleloader and never got a word back but did not put two and two together until i spoken tothe seller on gun broker
I was unaware of any offer besides mine on his buy it now price
Im a little peeved now as well as a seller if i have an offer i see it though befor i move to the next offer or listing else were i to have a gun for sale here now and was thinking of relisting it at gun broker as i have had no offers onit here but will cancel my ad here befor doing so
I have to say selling via the itnernet is far faster then any other type of selling but if a deals onthe talbe 24 hours to wait on an offer is fair enouf
To all i hope this wont sour anyone from buying or selling via the internet

Folks cant believe this one i located the biulder of the gun i just bought hes either in it for the money only or i cought him on a bad day but after asking him if he biult this gun here is his email back to me
Hi
I don't care to talk with you about the fowler. What do you want to know.
Greg
makes one feel good about ones interest in his work
biulders name is greg chistian
after all this i probly sell this one and never fire it
I restored old cars and other antique machinery'
usualy get an email from a new owner im proud to discuss my work so they feel betterthink i go back to buy kits from vendors rather then deal with this anymore

folks got a second email
he did answer some of my questions on it
barrel was made by jackie brown
and treh lock and other furnature came fro jack gardner
anyone who of these gents and the quality of there work or products
I did thank greg for his time and info
and will no longer bother him
I will do my own inspection once its here
thanks all for listening to my tales of my fowler

Unless he's changed, I'm betting Greg was having a bad day. I've bought 3 guns from him although it's 4 or 5 years ago. Very reasonably priced, and he was a real gentleman to due business with. The guns were plain with no carving, and he usually put's a cheek peice on his fowlers so they look more like a smooth rifle. Wood to metal fit and finish was good too. It will be a servicable shooter for you. Aside from all that, still no excuse for the rude e-mail. Chalk it to a bad experience and enjoy the gun anyways.

It sounds to me like Greg was making a joke. Of course he'd talk about it...