Blue ridge authenticity

[David Y. Snellen]

Gentlemen,
I am NOT buying one of the Blue Ridge rifles by Pedersoli, but I just watched a video by Dave Canterbury.
In the video, he said that it was typical of the 1760-70s rifles. It does not seem like that to me.
From what I can tell, the wrist and butt look later than 1770, the forestock looks too thick and the trigger guard does not look inletted.
Again, I am not getting one, I am just curious, but it seems more like 1820's to me. What are y'all's opinion?
David

 

[Tommy Bruce]

It’s a much later gun. I’d say you are spot on with the 1820 assessment.

 

[tenngun]

Yes combination early nineteenth, and middle twentieth century

 

[SirFrancis]

I mean “typical of” in the sense that yes, they did tend to use flintlocks in that era, and yes, they did tend to have barrels longer than 18-22”, with a butt that looks a bit different to our eyes. So by that measure I suppose the Pedersoli is pretty much a dead ringer for Daniel Boone’s gun or one of the rifles that made the Brits cry foul during the war. But in terms of actual details….. No.

 

[nchawkeye]

This would have been a typical 1770 rifle gun from the Salem area of North Carolina...

 

[Phil Coffins]

The blue ridge looks more like a southern mountain rifle to me, much later then 1760.

 

[David Y. Snellen]

Gentlemen,
I appreciate your posts. As I said, I am not getting one, but it is good to know my estimation was correct.
Thank you,
David

 

[Des52]

The blue ridge looks more like a southern mountain rifle to me, much later then 1760.

I have a .36 Blue Ridge and always thought if Pedersoli would use iron or steel instead of brass it would look a lot like a SMR.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

Gentlemen,
I am NOT buying one of the Blue Ridge rifles by Pedersoli, but I just watched a video by Dave Canterbury.
In the video, he said that it was typical of the 1760-70s rifles. It does not seem like that to me.
From what I can tell, the wrist and butt look later than 1770, the forestock looks too thick and the trigger guard does not look inletted.
Again, I am not getting one, I am just curious, but it seems more like 1820's to me. What are y'all's opinion?
David

The guns can be had in both Flintlock & Perscussion…I do not have any hard reference, just based on the last 38 years of reading & studying blackpowder firearms. That general style of stock, and lock looks to be mid to late flintlock period, early percussion. I’m thinking 1815 to 1820’s time period, all the way up into the 1840’s & 1850’s.

I have both a .32 & a .50 calibre percussion, and I’ve always found them to be pleasing to shoot, though a bit barrel heavy.

Definitely NOT Revolutionary War…

 

[Cattywompuss]

It's buttstock, comb, and wrist is like some of the extreme Lehigh Valley guns of the late Golden Age/Federal Era. It doesn't look Southern at all. It's not SMR shape at all. It's definitely also not like the frontier guns of Carolina.

Of course... today Blue Ridge refers to Western North Carolina... or a town very high up in the north of Georgia. But 250 years ago it referred to several other places too: the eastern range enclosing the Valley of Virginia and a range up in Pennsylvania. Just as "Smokey Mountains" is a modern phrase, and Alleghenies used to refer to the entire range running from New York to Georgia.

It is not a southern gun by many measures, that much is sure. It's a handsome if somewhat bloated shape, but not a historical gun by any measure.

 

[Compressorguy]

I too believe it appears as a much later rifle. I recently rebuilt my Pedersoli Frontier, not really to make it earlier appearing (not much you can do with the stock shape overall) but to make it more traditionally built appearing with a little personalization. Some of my mods addressed items mentioned here already. The most major of these was GREATLY slimming the forend, (she’s a very slim girl now!), installed barrel tenons, pinned the barrel, replaced the thimbles and pinned those, installed a muzzle cap and entry thimble, replaced, inletted and pinned the trigger guard, installed a custom toe plate, totally reshaped the check piece, installed/inletted a custom side plate, replaced the front sight and modified the rear sight, filed off all the lettering on the barrel and installed some custom personalized inlays. Finally a complete, sand, stain and tru-oil finish to get rid of the glossy fake looking finish. Not sure that even now it really resembles any particular school of rifle but I learned a lot of skills and in the end got me a custom rifle, lol.