G. Grandpa's Rifle

[pinemarten]

Growing up I always remembered the ol' gun on the oak beam in my grandmother's home in southern Michigan. She had inherited it from her father who raised her and her siblings in the mountains of N. Central Pennsylvania. She is in her 90's now. I know that they lived off the land other than my great grandfather did do some preaching at the church, deliver mail occasionally, and played fiddle for the dance parties. His passion was hunting and fishing. They lived on deer, trout, etc. I know he used the old half stock percussion to feed the family . I remember her talking about how they would dodge the warden. She would wake up in the morning and there would be a whole batch of freshly canned venison...she loved that stuff!

Anyway, she is in her 90's now. I might possibly be passed the gun. I know nothing of its origin. I recall that the wood always looked almost black. I think there was a patch box , perhaps a little star or something on other side. Pretty plain looking otherwise. Do these originals ever become shooters again? Rebuildable? I suppose it would have to do with many factors and the quality of its care and life....

Just sharing this excitement with you all! Hope it works out because it has a lot of meaning to me.

Merry Christmas!!

Dan

 

[cromag]

I would do whatever it takes to shoot and hunt with it.

 

[Rick Son]

Make sure it is not loaded first Good Luck

 

[mooman76]

If well cared for they can last a very long time and still shoot well. I bought an old one from a pawn shop. A 32 squirrel rifle from mid 1800 era and when I shot it at 25y the holes were almost touching so it still is a shooter.

 

[Don Steele]

Dan,
That possibility is definitely something to be excited about. If the old gun comes to you...my recommendation is that you post up some good quality pictures here, and wherever else you think might help...in order to try to determine WHAT you have. That is: who might have built it, and when.
I strongly suggest you get as much information about the piece itself, including checking for a long forgotten load, caliber, measurements, etc..BEFORE even beginning to look at refinishing, rebuilding..or doing ANYTHING to the gun itself.

 

[wattlebuster]

Even if you cant shoot it you will have a genuine treasure. Its something your kin held near an dear :thumbsup:

 

[fleener]

each family is a little different, but if you want that rifle, I would make your intentions well known.

Things have a way of disappearing.

My wife heads up a trust department at a local bank and it is unreal how people act after someone has passed. She even has had to go sit in a house so that the kids did not steal everything, and have the locks changed.

Best of luck and if possible I would be shooting it and using it as well.


Fleener

 

[BrownBear]

each family is a little different, but if you want that rifle, I would make your intentions well known.

Things have a way of disappearing.

My wife heads up a trust department at a local bank and it is unreal how people act after someone has passed. She even has had to go sit in a house so that the kids did not steal everything, and have the locks changed.

Best of luck and if possible I would be shooting it and using it as well.


Fleener

Profoundly good advice. Seems as though each limb of each family tree has different "traditions" about such things, track records and hurt feeling from the past in some cases, which can come to the fore today.

My wife's family has had to sort through it a couple of time, and all was sunshine and light. Then my wife ended up being trust manager for an estate involving folks married into her family. Buncha lying, cheating cobras from all I could see on the sidelines. My wife followed the letter of the law and distributed it according to the will, but it was a fight every step of the way. Her part is over and done thankfully, because those folks are still fighting among themselves and lining up to sue each other. All that in spite of the fact that the deceased had made their intentions perfectly and legally clear. I want nothing to do with any of them! :barf:

My mom has the right idea, saying "Tie their tails together and throw them over the clothesline." op:

 

[Eric Krewson]

Hopefully your family rifle fared better than this one in my late wife's family. It was pitched around and played with by a bunch of young boys now dead and gone, shot and not cleaned and had fixes done by the same boys that are awful.



The barrel is bent, the barrel pin holes were chipped out, someone filled the dime sized chipped out places with two part epoxy on both sides. The drum was lost at some time and was replaced with a dowel painted black.

I thought about restoring the worst parts of the rifle but decided it wasn't mine, there would be some family squabbling over it and decided to butt out.