j-bird
Well-Known Member
I was gifted an "old" muzzleloader rifle over the holiday. I am being told that it was built by my grandfather's grandfather. I am not sure what "built" means either. I am not sure if it was built as a kit....if they did that back then or if it was actually "built" meaning they had the lock, stock and barrel all assembled and made some of it themselves. My grandfather is passed and those I am getting the info from are not 100% sure of it's history, other than where it came from. Where would be a good source for me to try to track down maybe some info on this gun? I have no numbers or identification marks on the gun that I can see...and taking the gun apart I fear will only further damage it as the stock is already broken in several places. The metal surfaces are highly corroded and any reasonable detail is lost.
The gun is in VERY poor shape and has zero value I am sure....but it's a piece of the family history and as such being able to put even a rough age to it would be helpful.
It has an octagonal barrel - even the muzzle end of the bore is octagonal. I am told it has "square" rifling.... It is a percussion style lock with a hair trigger (actual 2 triggers with curved trigger and straight trigger). The stock seems very "crude" to me in that it is very square in style and doesn't seem to have "pretty" lines. It's also a smaller caliber....I'm guessing 38, 36 or 32. I am told it is more of an "ohio" style rifle as well.....but I am not sure even what that means.
I'm just looking for a resource to tap in to ti try to help me figure out exactly what it is and roughly how old it is..
The gun is in VERY poor shape and has zero value I am sure....but it's a piece of the family history and as such being able to put even a rough age to it would be helpful.
It has an octagonal barrel - even the muzzle end of the bore is octagonal. I am told it has "square" rifling.... It is a percussion style lock with a hair trigger (actual 2 triggers with curved trigger and straight trigger). The stock seems very "crude" to me in that it is very square in style and doesn't seem to have "pretty" lines. It's also a smaller caliber....I'm guessing 38, 36 or 32. I am told it is more of an "ohio" style rifle as well.....but I am not sure even what that means.
I'm just looking for a resource to tap in to ti try to help me figure out exactly what it is and roughly how old it is..