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"Hawken" style parts sources???

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bptactical

Not a Pilgrim
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Howdy all,
Staring to get the parts together for another build, going for a percussion early style J&S halfstock. Barrel will be a Rice .54 34" 1 1/8 to 1" taper with hooked breech.
Planning on the L&R lock and either L&R or Davis triggers.
Talking to Pecatoncia regarding whittling up a walnut stock for me.
I know Don Stith is the resource recommended by many here but I also understand he is facing some health issues and don't want to bug him.
My question to the learned here is this-
What are my best resources for earlier style iron furniture that are reasonably accurate? I know that nothing is perfect and they will require some tweaking here and there but I also don't want to have to re invent the wheel to get something to look & work correctly.
If you have part numbers that would be great.
Thank you in advance.
 
Earlier style. Elaborate. When and half or full stock? Percussion? Modeled after a specific gun?


As stated, half stock percussion. I like the styling of an earlier rifle-I dont have a specific rifle in mind though. I am temped to do the "Paneled" style cheek piece, I think it would be different than everybody and their mothers beavertails. I know it will not be absolutely perfect and "Historically Correct", I just want to be in the right ballpark.
 
The two most distinctive characteristics of the J&S Hawken rifle are the rear scroll of the trigger guard and the breech bolster/snail.

John Baird drew this sketch for his May 1967 Muzzle Blast article to illustrate the difference between the J&S scroll and the S Hawken scroll. The J&S scroll is more round while the S Hawken scroll is oval shaped.
Baird-May-67-Muzzle-Blasts-scrolls.jpg


J&S Hawken rifle.
98_08 MB Stith Hawken wrist & lock_1.jpg



J&S Hawken rifle.
IMG-2145-low-res.jpg


The only source for this style of J&S Hawken trigger guard is Don Stith. Last time I asked him about them, he said he only sold them with his parts set or kit. He did not offer them individually.
JS-Hawken-replica-guard.jpg


You could forge one from the typical commercial S Hawken guard. Just heat the scroll red hot and form it around a round bar of appropriate size.
Sam-Hawken-replica-guard.jpg


You might be wondering if the "flat-to-wrist" trigger guard is appropriate. The answer is yes, it is seen on both J&S and S Hawken rifles. It was the favorite of the gun makers in the 1970s to suggest a J&S Hawken rifle.

The second distinctive characteristic is the breech bolster/snail. They used two styles--what I call the "comma" snail and the brazed on bolster. The "comma" snail is what you see on the two J&S Hawken rifles pictured above. There is a flat face (highlighted in pink below) that looks like a comma. These are usually a patent breech and can be hooked breech as below or a fixed breech as on the two rifles above.

Sublette-Beale-Hawken-comma-snail.jpg


The second style is usually brazed or forge welded onto the barrel and nearly always part of a hooked breech. Rich Pierce likes to call them "conquistador helmet" breech, which is a more graphic term.
Leonard-Hawken-Breech-Bolste.jpg


You won't find either of these styles for a 1-1/8" breech. The Hawken Shop has something close to the "comma" breech for a 1" barrel. It is their "Griffith" breech.
Griffith Tool Co Hawken Breech and Tang.jpg



No body makes the "conquistador helmet" breech in any size.

For an 1-1/8" breech, a S Hawken style breech is about your only choice like TOTW's Jim Bridger breech, #PLUG-JB-18-3. Most people won't know the difference.

A paneled cheekpiece is HC for a J&S Hawken. The Atchison J&S Hawken has one and the J&S Hawken in the Montana Historical Society has one.
Cheek-Rest-adj.jpg


For a butt plate, you could go with Track's BP-HAWK-SE-I or BP-HAWK-L-I . They both are replicas of the two-piece brazed butt plates used in the J&S period and early Sam period.

For a nose cap, something like in the link below would be more typical for the J&S period than the late S Hawken cast nose cap.

http://www.thehawkenshop.com/Products/1-inch-Nosecap__FNC1.aspx
 
Just the type of info I am looking for Phil and thank you. Definitely going to use a "flat to wrist" style TG and yes, I know it will take some heat and beat to get the look right. If I am not mistaken an early TG also has a more rounded bow to it as well.
I will look into the buttplate, thank you again.
 
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