Show me your unusual gun

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1kperday, nice jailers keygun!!! Below is a pic of one i own that's a mockup. I have no knowledge about worth, but if you're lookin to sell it I want 1st dibs!!
 
Hartcreek...it wasn't built as a stock-able gun. It will be soon though. I'm trying to decide between going sbr or adding 1.2 inches to the barrel. With that said, if like to see pics of your stock as I plan to make my own.
 
4V50 Gary

I built the action from a bar of 8620 , I cut the internal thread in the action, I made the breech screw from a bar of 8620 and cut the external thread on it, I fit the barrel to the action, made the breech plug, trigger guard and trigger plate. I also cut and shaped the stock from a blank.

The breech threads are straight with 10 starts.


Keep them coming!

SC45-70
 
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Howdy

I am so impressed with the Ferguson rifle! Fine craftemanship and such an unusual gun to build!

These Merwin Hulberts are probably my most unusual guns. I'm posting them here in the Black Powder section because I only shoot them with Black Powder cartridges, 44 Russian. No, they are not pristine, they have been pretty heavily reworked by their former owner, but they are fun shooters.

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I like the Fergusson rifle. I remember reading the Article in "The American Rifleman", maybe in the 70s. Someone built one and told the history of them. In a sidebar, they mentioned going to Dearborn Michigan and shooting in a re-enactment or skirmish. The first day the shooter had some problems with the action gumming up but the second day, no problems. It rained on the second day and the high humidity helped keep the black powder residue soft. This was before SPG and other BP specific lubes. I believe he did machine hollows in the breechscrew and filled them with tallow.
 
SC 45-70...that is an awesome rifle displaying outstanding workmanship congratulations.
You called for unusual firearms so here is a home-made Flint Target Pistol that came up for sale. It is very well made and has a very good trigger, will test fire it this weekend:

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Thanks SC45-70. I read somewhere that one of Ferguson's innovation was to taper the plug slightly and to have cleaning cuts made into the plug. I'm going to ask a classmate who is a machinist of seventeen years how he would do it.
 
4V50Gary
You will need a taper attachment on your lathe to cut a tapered thread. I don't have a taper attachment that's why I cut mine straight.

Thank you to everyone who posted so far.

Let's see some more!:D

SC45-70
 
Here's another I built.
J.P. Gemmer trapdoor Springfield 45-70 fancy maple stock.

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Anybody else have any to show?

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Okay, I'm in. :) Here's a .22 caliber single shot muzzleloading pistol I built myself. I used 1/2" mild steel for the frame, 1/4" for the hammer and trigger. I used an Iver Johnson revolver barrel I bought for $18 from Numrich gun parts, and a Pietta 1863 pocket nipple. The excusions for the grips are from some old revolver grips I had kicking around and the wood I used for the grips is from an old oak wine barrel stave.

It took me a while to build it, but I feel it was worth it. When my grandfather died of prostate cancer in 08' I inherited his toolbox and used his tools to build this pistol as a tribute to that ol' Marine that I love and miss so much.

I can tell that if he were alive today, he'd certainly be proud his grandson built this. And he would be proud his grandson is joining the service as well, I'm going into the Navy and not the Marines, but I know he'd be proud of me. :)

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By the way, this gun shoots 30 grain bullets over a .22LR case of powder. I found that I can shoot 1.0 grains of Promo over the same bullet for a nice mild pinking load. Something along the lines of a .22 short! I've bumped my charge up to 5 grains of Pyrodex and this gun will shoot that pill to around 1000 FPS. ;)

Levi
 
I've used this one so long, I no longer think of it as unusual but your photo of the Gemmer reminded me.

My 1841 Mississippi Trapdoor.

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SC45-70

Those to rifles you built are fantastic. The Gemmer Trapdoor is awesome.
I'm familiar with the Gemmer Sharps conversions but that mountain trapdoor is outstanding.
That has the old juices flowing.

Closest I can come to that is a poor man's version of a Officer's Model Trapdoor.

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Strawhat,
Durn I missed that 1841 Trapdoor. That's cool as can be too.
Is it an original Allin conversion or something later?
 
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The serial "number" on mine is EA2 so I am assuming the builders initials are EA and this was his/hers second build.
Or the EA could stand for Extra Awesome 'cause this thing shoots great.:D
 
A custom "Vincent" Ohio style percussion rifle in 45 cal.
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Ron
 
Strawhat,
Durn I missed that 1841 Trapdoor. That's cool as can be too.
Is it an original Allin conversion or something later?
Iggy, good eye! Yes, the barrelled action was from an 1866 and is so stamped on the breech block.
 
Speaking of the Ferguson again...
The Ferguson is referenced and plays several parts throughout Dewey Lambdin’s Alan Lewrie novels (of which there are 20) Lambdin tries and does pretty good about keeping the historical references accurate. There is also a lot of references to the size of powder loads in various cannon, shot load, types of shot, canister, ball, double loads etc. In one novel they even go about inventing "Indirect Fire".

Some good reading for a Black Powder fan.
 
How about a Podewils Lindner from around 1865? It was the arm of the Bavarian military during the Franco-Prussian War and used the paper cartridges shown in the lozenge tins. It was still a percussion cap ignition but the cartidges were loaded through the breech by opening the bolt which was an interrupted thread design bearing slight resemblence to the Remington 788 bolt. It is fun to shoot and can be fired much more rapidly than a muzzle loader. Unfortunately, brass cartrdges soon won the contest for durable and rapid loading cartridges and the Podewils had a very short lifespan.
 

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I've posted this one before, Pierce slug gun, 1860's
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Can be dated by the bank token peep sight
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A shooter, owned and shot by Lester in 1947

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Still a shooter,It took second , maybe first? at camp perry, 600 yrd, 1955

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Again a shooter in, 1969, previous owner to me
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Those targets are very interesting. The first one was shot 25 days before I was born and the second was shot while I was a Forward Observer for A company 1/46 Infantry in Vietnam.
 
cool!

for me...not born yet, t minus 26 years
then
not born yet, t minus 18 years
then
not born yet, t minus 4 years
then
born and added close to 40 years and bought it

sometimes the history of a gun is more fascinating than the gun itself
 
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