Primitive Archer

Main Discussion Area => Muzzleloaders => Topic started by: Mesophilic on April 15, 2020, 04:34:58 pm

Title: Cap lock double barrel
Post by: Mesophilic on April 15, 2020, 04:34:58 pm

I was gifted a double barrel cap lock muzzle loading shotgun.  No idea who made it.  The action works.

Is there a way to tell if it's safe to fire?  Or should I just consider it a wall hanger?

(https://66.media.tumblr.com/ab4773464abce03f1c03465da8385bde/510f2eeb0ccce9e9-5c/s2048x3072/a8401a40daa50e24e87bf8e0f2b19097a6ffb1ad.jpg)

(https://66.media.tumblr.com/23d38910609b53e8c2f60f40fcf32e01/761e992d1f7a8cda-a5/s2048x3072/f44ae7f76bca42190feec224fa59d805d6f8ac02.jpg)

(https://66.media.tumblr.com/36d275db738abaab25a065b753f440be/68429e88dc64e8e7-9f/s2048x3072/788c6e4967854613768bebcb56fc1c79dd021a25.jpg)

Title: Re: Cap lock double barrel
Post by: Eric Krewson on April 16, 2020, 07:48:38 am

That was once a fine gun, if you pull the barrels there will be proof marks on the underside that should indicate where it started its life at. There are many proofmark charts on the internet to refer to, these will give the origin, approximate age and possibly who built it.

If the inside of the barrel is as rough and pitted as the outside I would classify it as a wall hanger. The niples are new which may indicate someone shot it in the recent past.

The barrel doesn't look to be damascus but it is hard to tell with all the corrosion, if it is, it is a wall hanger with all that pitting. With badly corroded damascus barrels the corrosion my have worked its way into the straps the barrel was formed from.

In that condition the gun isn't worth much, $200 perhaps. It may be a candidate for restoration but that would be a long shot considering the condition and quite expensive unless you have the gunsmithing skills to do it yourself.

Title: Re: Cap lock double barrel
Post by: Hawkdancer on April 16, 2020, 12:43:32 pm

Take it to a good gunsmith who is familiar with black powder guns!  But as Eric said, it is likely a wall hanger.  However, it is in better shape than the Wembly double that my son "rescued"!
Hawkdancer

Title: Re: Cap lock double barrel
Post by: Mesophilic on April 16, 2020, 01:42:46 pm

Thanks guys.

I can make out a samp on one of the side plates that says London.  There's a stamp on the other side but I can't make it out.

Still, it makes for a neat wall hanger piece.