Getting Things Started....Again

[Hanshi]

This isn't about any favorite gun or rifle vs smoothbore, etc.  I just wanted to start another thread - reference "Open Topics" section.  The idea is to pick out a gun you own and talk about it, even at length is okay; in fact it's requested.  I'll start off talking about Ol' Loudmouf", my smoothbore and the only gun I have named.

I've had Ol' Loudmouf for at least 8 years.  He is a TVM early American smoothbore with a .62 X 38" non tapered barrel.  The stock is made from a nice piece of figured maple; but I chose a dark stain that makes it difficult to see the stripes & flames.  The heart is a huge Chambers Colonial Va. flint lock - the stock is always the "soul" of a gun, by the way.  Iron mounted with a light, crisp trigger, it is a joy to shoot.  I ordered it with a rear sight and I'm glad I did.  I can shoot it just like a rifle and that works for both shot and ball.  I shoot more ball than shot, anyway.  A .600" lead ball with a .015" (+ or -) patch lubed with TOW mink oil has given me 50 yard 3-shot groups of under three inches.  Not just one group, but group after group.  5-shot groups go a bit larger but still stay well inside a regular saucer size circle.

Now the lock.  That thing will singe your hair!  I've hunted with it in pouring rain and it still fired instantly when the trigger was goosed.  It shoots bare ball loads well enough to keep 5 shots on a paper plate at 50 yards.  It does wear a high quality sling which gives it a sort of "panache". 

A friend has this same gun but with a lighter stained stock.  His also has a 42" barrel, IIRC.  His trigger isn't as nice as mine but his accuracy is.  Ol' Loudmouf is a bit more "robust" than his but is still not "heavy" at all.  I like to call mine a "musket" as it would look cool fitted with a bayonet as many were during AWI.  I like this gun a lot and it has killed deer; I hunt with it more and more; it just feels right.

[graybear]

Actually, I've only ever named one of my guns. My wife who is very understanding about my BP addiction, bought me a Pedersoli dbl bbl 12 ga. caplock. I came in from small game hunting one day & told her I knew why some of the oldtimers named their guns. I said "Meet meat-maker." and pulled 2 Ringneck And 6 squirrel out of my game bag.

[Hanshi]

I remember a guy who finally named his gun, &%@*)^*$.....   

[Tim Ault]

Well I'll add mine to the list my one and only I have now is one of my favorites it's a early Dixie Tenn. mtn rifle in 50 cal  its my type of gun just sorta plain no frills.  7/8" barrel so not too heavy . It's a flinter and also have the matching cap lock for it if I'd ever wanna try out those modern caps I keep hearing about , it's not a chambers lock but it is fairly quick and sparky long as I put the flint in bevel down . Been shooting it in trail walks all this past summer and fall and have warmed up to it pretty well . About the only thing I may change on it is cut the barrel back to 36-38" just a personal balance thing for me shooting offhand . Shoots decent  and not real picky on load combos .

[Dogshirt]

I remember a guy who finally named his gun, &%@*)^*$.....   

But I sold that one a few years back. And I've never owned one since.   Life is good!

[Red Badger]

Four of my long guns have names... either through Bulldog Lady or situations which have made them keeper's for this lodge...
The Stories of "Poacher" and "Patience" have been told around this fire before, all you have to do is search for them... the other two are Lady Bulldogs "Baby" and "Sparrow" and you'll have to ask her to stop cookin' yer suppers and set a spell to find out those stories....   

[Hanshi]

I remember a guy who finally named his gun, &%@*)^*$.....   

But I sold that one a few years back. And I've never owned one since.   Life is good!

I think I owned it for a while some time back. 

[flintboomer]

The only one I ever named was called arm breaker, but the pain from a ruptured disc probably had a lot to do with my difficulty holding it up. I made the rifle but the barrel was too long for me at the time so I shortened it and after some therapy on my arm it became a nice shooter.
Unfortunately the spring on the lock broke and I haven't been able to repair it so I shoot other guns like my Mike Lange built .40 caliber.

[old salt]

I have a 54 cal with 44 in barrel I call lonesome. A very good friend gave me. Rick was showing me some of the guns he had made and I saw the rifle in with all the smooth bores, and made a comment that is looked lonesome in that gun rack. He chuckled and said take in home it is yours. it still stand a lone as it is to blame tall to fit in my gun rack.

[hotfxr]

The Name Game huh? I can play along. In our house, many things are named, from pets (duh) to cars & motorcycles. Without pictures (sorry RB) I will list my named rifles.

Itildo (It will do)  My first rifle project, paid way too much for a Traditions Frontier caplock that was in bad shape and spent a lot of time making it purdy and reliable. So named because it was used a lot while I was learning about and acquiring more rifles. Wound up giving it to MountainMike (who through unfortunate events was rifle-less come hunting season) a few months before he passed so it did some hunting on the other side of the country. Don't know what happened to it, hopefully it is in the hands of someone who is enjoying it.

Redhawk  My second restoration project, a CVA Hawken capper that I got the stock finished in a great red stain, hence Redhawk.

Patches  My first scratch build long rifle with a Mongrel supplied back action lock. I made the stock out of a chunk of walnut I had that I had to laminate it to get it big enough to make the stock. I also made several mistakes while putting it together and left all the fixes showing.

Thumper  Scratch built half stock capper with a heavy .45 barrel that loves to be loaded with powder and sends those balls a long long way. With the Brazilian cherry stock, it is the heaviest muzzleloader I own, which of course helps reduce the "kick" when it is doing it's thing.

SWMBO 2.2 is calling me back to slavery, I mean work, more later

[Papa]

Hanshi,
I've had, and still have, several Dixie Mtn Rifles. I cut the barrel back to 36", poured a nose cap and removed some wood. It's a whole different animal. Balance is perfect, accuracy is great and it's easy to handle, not muzzle heavy any more.
Mark

[William]

Most folks here know of Big Red but I think she deserves some more exposure.

She started out as a plain old Lyman Trade Rifle in .54 but was right handed as the all are. What made me want to change things but keep the essentials was the accuracy I got. So after about 3 years of shooting it in factory form I had been talking to Mike Lange, aka Mongrel and we agreed on a deal to transform her into a thing of beauty. Mike used the Lyman barrel and almost all the furniture but removed the breech, replacing it with a left hand type. A left hand L&R lock and the rest of the original hardware went onto a cherry stock that he carved specifically to fit me with an extended length of pull, proper drop and cast off so that I can close my eyes and shoulder the rifle with the sights lined up before I open them.
Since then I've won a few local shooting matches and consistently the cold barrel match that leads off the shoot.

[William]

Big Red