Can this rifle be helped?

[Byrd]

I picked up this rifle at a local shop for $30! It had been sanded and varnished to look pretty, probably as a wall hanger. Upon disassemble I discovered it had serious issues. The lock is marked Ashmore and was rusted solid, so I scrubbed as much off as I could and boiled it in distilled water to stop the rust .I'm concerned about it's integrity and function.

Moving on the the barrel and breechplug. The barrel shows NO rifleling. I soaked it in Evaporust overnight and scrubbed, to no avail. The breechplug unscrewed with finger pressure and you can see in the pictures there is a crack by the drum and the plug itself is eroded whrer it mated up with the crack. A .375 round ball sits in the muzzle so I have no idea what caliber it was originally.

The stock is in decent condition and my plan is to strip off the varnish and co a correct finish on it.

So, any ideas on the age/make of the rifle? What would your suggestions be to do with it?

 

[martin9]

I believe I'd just put it back on the wall or sell it as a wall hanger. The barrels needs cutting back and rebreaching and new rifling cut which Bobby Hoyt can do. BUT....since the barrel will have to be cut back the dovetails will have to be redone and the stock shortened if a fullstock or the rib removed and resoldered if a half stock. In other words a lot of work and or expense.

no idea on age. So many repro locks are stamped Ashmore I'm scared to guess one way or the other.

 

[Pete G]

You paid what it was worth.

 

[plmeek]

Can't comment on the stock and mounts since you haven't shown any pictures of them, but the barrel and lock are clearly antiques and obviously worn out.

The tail of the lock plate shows signs of modification where the double engraved lines are partially missing. Probably not the original lock or the gun may have been restocked.

Difficult to date the gun with the few pictures you've shown. Ashmore was a lock maker in England and is listed in business directories from 1827 to 1855. I'm guessing that you gun would date to the second half of the 19th century, but with the lock modifications, it's hard to be more specific.

As suggested, it is not safe to shoot and is best relegated to a wall hanger.

 

[Byrd]

Appreciate the input. I knew it was old but appreciate the history on it. I think I'll JB Weld the breechplug back in and finish the stock. It'll look nice hanging in my living room!
It's a full stock so any modifications to the barrel length would mean stock work as well.
I'd love to hear stories it could tell!

 

[mooman76]

I seen where a machinist cut and installed a new breech plug that basically brought it back to the original length. That of course with all the other things needed done would cost a small fortune. The machinist though could do it for next to nothing except his time and he had the skills to do it.

 

[Scota@4570]

We'd need to see the rest of it to give an opinion. Yes, a chambered breech plug could be fabricated. That would take me a day to do well, others will vary. Bobby Hoyt could re rifle it. At that point you are about $500 into it.

I would not JB the plug in place. There is no point. I might fill the nipple and drum with JB though. It is unsafe to fire as is.

 

[Byrd]

I don't want to have that much in it. I do agree that once it's back together I need to do something to make it unable to fire. It's unsafe! I'd hate to have it come into someone's posession after I'm gone and they try to fire it.

 

[bang]

First pic says it all. Hang it on the wall.

 

[Col. Batguano]

You'll have 150 hours and $500 to bring it to the point it's a $300-$400 gun.

Do the same thing with new components (a little bit more cash investment) and you'll have a $1500-$2000 gun

 

[Eric Bye]

As a wall hanger or decorator, this old gun is still worth more than you paid for it; no need to feel that you got stung! If there were some compelling reason to return the rifle to shooting condition, the quickest and easiest fix would be to have a brand-new barrel and breech plug installed. (But keep the original barrel as well.) This presumes a functioning lock, and without photos of the stock and hardware it's impossible to judge the feasibility of such a major repair.

 

[Byrd]

I don't think I'll go down the repair it rabbit hole! I do think it's worth more than I paid for it just for the fun of the hunt and for a project to work on. My plan is to strip the varnish off the stock and refinish in an appropriate stain/finish and enjoy it for what it is. A chunk of history that I'm the custodian of.

 

[Capnball]

Clean it up, stabilize it and hang it in the wall.

 

[mushka]

Let us see it when you get it all together.

 

[muzzlecap]

Any antique black powder wall hanger will bring $100.00 where I am so I don't think you overpaid at $30.00. As you mentioned, you'll get $30.00 worth of entertainment just from playing around with it.

 

[Byrd]

I've already gotten my $30 out of it with the tinkering I've done and learning a bit of it's history. I will post pictures when i"m done with it.

 

[zimmerstutzen]

I used to buy odd junker guns, just to see how they were put together and how they worked. Especially some of the early transition to breech loading guns. That lock shows evidence of an odd repair. a bushing was installed in the bridle. I ran into that on one other gun years ago. Also as is typical for old worn locks, the lower part of the main spring and stirrup extend below the lock plate. Such a thing would sometimes knock/splinter a piece of wood out the bottom of the lock mortise.

 

[Musketeer]

Another vote for wall hanger. Great price you got on it. Ya done good. You can't get a totally fake cast zinc and soft wood prop muzzleloader for that price these days. With a little elbow grease to preserve it, you'll have a nice piece of history to admire and a nice conversation piece.

 

[Gordoncourtney]

It definitely looks a flintlock originally , definitely a conversion Flint to percussion so could be 1775 to 1840 who knows !!!! I see flint to percussion conversion at auctions, quite common, see Holts auction London .....ill give you $30 just for the lock anyday , even that's probably 1840 It will be lovely on the wall, lucky you. The London connection an added bonus

 

[Byrd]

Wow! I had no clue it might have been a conversion. I guess this rifle has been around the block & back to me. I'm gonna take my time and fix it up properly.