This short New England halfstock rifle signed by contemporary maker T. Gray. The rifle is patterned from a antique gun he encountered and after studying, desired to replicate. The style of the rifle would seem to indicate a early 19th century Massachusetts influence with a classic patchbox design used by J. Mason or T. Holbrook of Worcester, Massachusetts. The rifle is stocked in cherry, and trimmed in brass furniture with a poured pewter forend cap. The original rifle was fitted with a flintlock stamped A.W. Spies and would have likely been made in the early 1820's. A Jim Chambers classic Ketland flintlock is fitted to this rifle and captures the early 19th century style used on late period flintlocks. Trigger reach is 13-5/8" and this handy flintlock rifle weighs 7.5 pounds.
The .50 caliber 1" octagon by 24" barrel is a Green Mountain Barrel Company barrel. The .50 caliber bore is rifled with eight equal lands and grooves with a 1 in 72" twist for a tightly patched round ball. The bores is bright in new condition. We recommend our .490" pure lead round ball, patched with .015" Ox-Yoke patching, lubricated with our Mink Oil tallow patch grease, if you require best accuracy. The barrel is finished to a dark blue gray finish. The front sight is a brass blade with a steel base. Mr. Gray choose to change the rear sight design from the original. He wanted the balance point of the rifle to be free from having any sight in the area when carried. The rear sight fitted is a flat top sight with a folding leaf. The leaf has both an aperture to create a "ghost ring" sight as well as a "V" notch in a higher position for longer range shooting.
This New England Sporting Rifle is stocked in cherry that has a deep red undertone that nicely contrast the brass furniture, and lock and barrel finish. Mr. Gray has done an excellent job on shaping this stock with trim lock panels and a slender forearm. The buttstock has been angled away from the center line of the barrel 1/4", known as cast-off, which provides room for the shooter's face and helps to quickly align the sights. The shorter length forearm is patterned from the antique and we have encountered other New England halfstock rifles with similar proportions. The buttplate has a modest curve to engage the shooter's shoulder and is a typical early 19th century style. The patchbox design with the wide door and and oval with point on the head is a design encountered on Massachusetts and New York militia rifles from the early 19th century. The hand cut patchbox has been neatly hand engraved with borders and a small amount of traditional folk art foliage designs. The door has a spring catch at the base and opens to reveal a cut cavity for storing flints, jags, and other shooting accessories. The toe has a hand cut brass toeplate to protect it from damage when in contact with the ground. The brass triggerguard is neatly hand filed with crisp flats. The forearm has nickel silver escutcheon plates around the single wedge key. A pewter forend cap protects the end grain of the wood. The rifle has a 3/8" diameter hickory ramrod with a tapered steel tip threaded 8-32 and a brass band on the opposite end to protect the end grain. The brass ramrod pipes were hand made for the rifle and shaped with raised rings on the ends. The ramrod entry pipe has a raised thumbnail skirt. The side panel is fitted with a lozenge style sideplate that has been neatly shaped to match the antique example. The cheek piece is inlaid with a nickel silver moon inlay that matches the inlay found on the antique rifle.
Ignition for the rifle is provided by a circa 1810 to 1820 classic Ketland flintlock. Produced by Jim Chambers, this nice later period flint lock is nicely made with strong internals and a beefy mainspring. The result is a very good sparking lock that will surely ignite your priming charge. Mr. Gray has reshaped the plate and hand engraved it in a folk art style that matches the antique lock. We recommend our 3/4" knapped English flints for use with this lock. Helping the ignition process further is a carbon steel touch hole liner that blends into the barrel finish. Internally coned the liner brings the main charge as close as possible to the priming charge, speeding ignition and increasing reliability. The single trigger is pinned high to provide good leverage against the sear.
A handy earl;y 19th century styled flintlock New England style sporting rifle with Jim Chambers classic Ketland flintlock and .50 caliber Green Mountain barrel. This rifle is very neatly fitted and finished. Order it for a ten day visual inspection. You will be delighted. Else if it does not fit you, return it in unfired condition for same-day refund. Postage is your only risk, when you order any one-of-a-kind gun from Track, whether new, used, or antique.
