Escopetas again

[Colonial Boy]

I agree, much of the Spanish arms are waaaaaay under represented! Recall there was a recent magazine (NRA?) article about Spanish cannons found out in the SW somewhere?

Could the lack of even basic info be due to those old various sayings, of:

• "The History of 'history' is written by the perspective of the winners!"
• "The victor will always be the judge, and the vanquished the accused.”

Or these famous ones found in adages from different countries, as translated:

• From France - “The history is right perhaps, but let us not forget, it was written by the victors.”
• From Italy - “The history of these events was written by the winners.”
• From England - “Vanquished – his history written by the victors – Robespierre has left a memory accursed.”

Even writers in ancient Rome need to be read with the views/alliances of their mentors in mind.
Things don’t change much

 

[XVIIc Wheelock]

¡Qué lindo! I can't help thinking Señor Neal would be most pleased.

Sí es muy agradable. Old Guard es uno de los pocos grandes fabricantes de cerraduras del mundo!

 

[TobJohn]

Old Guard Manufacturing posted some new pictures to their FB page today.

View attachment 278193

That’s very promising. I wonder if they have solved their barrel sourcing issues. A couple of months ago they stated the Ukraine war had caused steel for barrels to skyrocket in price and that it was much more cost effective for American customers to buy the gun without a barrel and then have one fitted in the US.

 

[XVIIc Wheelock]

That’s very promising. I wonder if they have solved their barrel sourcing issues. A couple of months ago they stated the Ukraine war had caused steel for barrels to skyrocket in price and that it was much more cost effective for American customers to buy the gun without a barrel and then have one fitted in the US.

TobJohn you must have uncanny insight! ....la paciencia es una virtud ! Paciencia mi amigo, paciencia.....Sólo 3 meses más.
Mis labios están sellados!

 

[TobJohn]

TobJohn you must have uncanny insight! ....la paciencia es una virtud ! Paciencia mi amigo, paciencia.....Sólo 3 meses más.
Mis labios están sellados!

If only I didn’t get a C in every one of my 5 years of Spanish classes…

 

[wulf1928]

Just did a search and read some old threads on this topic that seems to bob slowly to the surface here from time to time. Why these firearms -- which played such an important role in the Central and North American historical experience -- continue to be virtually ignored simply baffles me.
It appears TRS is still about the only source of lock castings -- and that no one offers any sort of affordable reproduction. Would love to help light a fire under one of the Indian manufacturers but there would need to be a demonstration of demand. I looked at a bunch of Ricky's original locks, drooled over Flint62Smoothie's elegant .56 and read with a tinge of sorrow posts by Wulf, Tinker2, Bioprof and others who have left us. Sam appears to have made a miquelet mainspring vise he was happy with.

Hi Bill. Remember me from a while back? Here is one I made. Not difficult as there is very little inleting to do....They are great sparkers.

 

[Rudyard]

¡Qué lindo! I can't help thinking Señor Neal would be most pleased.

I met him once at a Game Fair at Longleat Wilts ,c1963 I think . But did know Doug Mills of Castlemaine who had a lot of contact with Mr Neal & similarly had a fine collection , But he's gone now his address was ' Manton Manor' but it wasn't the Modest house it was his stone' gunroom . I used to sleep in it ." Nice ' Wall decore !'.All dispersed now. He once bought a small bore Manton it was a mint rifle from Kieth Neal it arrived in Melbourne the Customs said "Don't come that with me mate its it NOT an antigue" ," Theres No rust on it !." It had an oval tool box from memory that swiveled some how .All his guns where top makers & very well bred ,Not one of them Snored !.
Regards Rudyard from his Swaggies years .

 

[Rudyard]

If only I didn’t get a C in every one of my 5 years of Spanish classes…

So many ex students Ive met took French or Spanish at Colledge & Ide ask"Do you speak it ? Useually they would say "No "& Ide respond then what where you doing for the 5 years ?. I never saw a colledge but picked it up on the road hitching & working on Gibraltar came in handy.Now I just talk to the dog or cats who lap it up but if I didn't I would loose the bit I did learn. Was one time in Honduras working a passage to Kingston on a Cayman Island tramp Rust Bucket called the' Kirk B ' I went with the first officer in a truck he wanted to buy Barbed Wire but had no Spanish he asked me to ask the vendor some thing I replied'' I just did, He says ect ect " & it dawned on me I was' an interpreter ,' In the land of the blind the one eyed man is King! 'V's are B's And Ze' s are pronounce with a lisp in Castilinian Spanish since Rey Alphonso the King had a list impediment so polite people spoke the same way .Not it seems applicable to low class persons and colonists .I reckoned and the rasping stuff is pure Arab .base . Regardless I do like their guns .
Rudyard the half pie linguist

 

[TobJohn]

So many ex students Ive met took French or Spanish at Colledge & Ide ask"Do you speak it ? Useually they would say "No "& Ide respond then what where you doing for the 5 years ?. I never saw a colledge but picked it up on the road hitching & working on Gibraltar came in handy.Now I just talk to the dog or cats who lap it up but if I didn't I would loose the bit I did learn. Was one time in Honduras working a passage to Kingston on a Cayman Island tramp Rust Bucket called the' Kirk B ' I went with the first officer in a truck he wanted to buy Barbed Wire but had no Spanish he asked me to ask the vendor some thing I replied'' I just did, He says ect ect " & it dawned on me I was' an interpreter ,' In the land of the blind the one eyed man is King! 'V's are B's And Ze' s are pronounce with a lisp in Castilinian Spanish since Rey Alphonso the King had a list impediment so polite people spoke the same way .Not it seems applicable to low class persons and colonists .I reckoned and the rasping stuff is pure Arab .base . Regardless I do like their guns .
Rudyard the half pie linguist

It was required by my high school and college. I do wish I had better self discipline and took advantage of it though, looking back.

 

[kruzer1]

Old Guard Manufacturing posted some new pictures to their FB page today.

View attachment 278193

 

[kruzer1]

It was required by my high school and college. I do wish I had better self discipline and took advantage of it though, looking back.

They just posted this post this morning

 

[Sam squanch]

Old guard makes great things!! But some folks don’t do computers, PayPal,( they are not getting MY business) and Facebook ( total waste of time , the less people know about me the better), and don’t want to attempt to order anything from overseas. A domestic supplier would be awesome.

 

[Sam squanch]

Another advantage of the miquelet is….. some locks had a separate steel that was dovetailed into the frizzen. Easier to temper a small piece of high quality sparky steel for some people than a whole frizzen. And you can make an extra for the day when the original one quits sparking and replace it with the new one in a few minutes!

 

[rickystl]

Making a functional miquelet that’s styled right from scratch and looks correct is not child’s play. But with some pictures, I could make a reasonable copy of a triggerguard, buttplate, side plate, bands, and other stock furniture. There is obviously an interest in these locks. And I believe they have many benefits over the “ French” flintlock, mainly you don’t have to remove so much wood to inlet one, resulting in a much stronger stock in that area.

Hi Sam

Well, you are correct. Once you have the lock, all else is do-able. The barrel and wood can easily be obtained locally.

I believe Brian Anderson (now retired) might have some brass stock hardware he made himself that he could loan/sell for patterns. I believe he only used about half of the stock hardware from TRS to build my escopeta posted above.

Come to think of it, I have some brass stock hardware for an escopeta from TRS laying around somewhere. LOL

Rick

 

[rickystl]

Those locks from Old Guard look really cool. But they appear to be pistol size (?)

Rick

 

[TobJohn]

They just posted this post this morning

I bought a set of their matchlock plans months ago and was pleased with them. Haven’t been able to try them out, though.

 

[oldschoolhunter55]

How about this Miquelet lock?

https://www.invaluable.com/auction-...utm_campaign=keywordalerts&utm_content=260937

View attachment 278026

like that. it looks to complicated to me lol. think i will stick to caplocks. that there is simply amazing work of art

 

[oldschoolhunter55]

Hi Bill. Remember me from a while back? Here is one I made. Not difficult as there is very little inleting to do....They are great sparkers.

wow. that is nice. congrats to you.

 

[rickystl]

Here is a possibility for those wanting a really BIG lock. In fact, it's at least musket size, if not a tad larger. The lock is chiseled and engraved, In unfired condition. Very strong mainspring. There are two intentional holes drilled in the bottom of the pan. I believe the reason for the holes - and the large size of the lock - was that the maker made this lock as a styling exercise. Possibly for a lock making competition (?)
The lock is not dated, but I believe it's about late 18th Century. Nice early features.
One possible issue with using a lock decorated like this is that it makes one feel the rest of the gun needs the same decorative type treatment. Might look out of place for the profile of a more plain gun.

Rick

 

[rickystl]

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