Coolest airgun: side-hammer percussion pistol converted!

[MatthewVanitas]

Got a scan of this pic from a buddy on another forum.

I'd seen a few pics of air-pistols inspired by, or converted from, replica muzzleloaders. I found the idea pretty intriguing, so went to track down info as to whether such items were available on the market, or just labor-of-love hobbyist pieces.

This particular pistol, by Mike Reames (featured in Airgun Hobby) features a re-used sidehammer percussion lock, a replica muzzleloader barrel with a .22 sleeve, and a CO2-charged air resevoir. It's breechloader rather than muzzle, which is good since muzzle-loading a gun with 39 shots left in the reservoir would be a bit of a safety concern. Yep, does 40 shots on one fill.

What I'm idly daydreaming up is something akin to this, but using HPA (high pressure air, like from a scuba tank), larger bore (ideally .75) single-shot per reservoir for max push on that big ball (and to simplify lock/valve mechanism over a repeater), and so far as lines I really dig the kind of look on the old Japanese matchlock pistols:

Anyone have any input or advice on the issue? I can update this thread if I make any progress on discerning the feasibility of such a project.

 

[hso]

Interesting idea.

If you don't mind running the hose from the tank to the "pistol", like the pro paintballers do, you can probably fit it all together relatively easily.

 

[Otony]

This fellow: http://www.glbarnes.com/ has had plenty of experience in this sort of thing, as has this fellow here: http://www.quackenbushairguns.com/

I know that Barnes makes both muzleloaders and breechloaders, as has Quackenbush. You are far more likely to work with Quackenbush, as Barnes has stopped taking orders at this time.

I hav always thought a big bore single shot (or even multi-shot)muzzle loader would be very cool. These are typically charged one of two ways, with either a special pump (think of a bicycle tire pump style which is low volume/highpressure, rather than low volume/low pressure) or a scuba tank.

Good luck!

 

[MatthewVanitas]

I know that Barnes makes both muzleloaders and breechloaders, as has Quackenbush. You are far more likely to work with Quackenbush, as Barnes has stopped taking orders at this time.

Though they're frequently mentioned in the same sentence, Barnes and Quackenbush are like dogs and cats. There's actually some rather interesting reading on their websites where they take various jabs at each other.

Very different styles: Barnes builds extremely ornate and unusual PCP airguns, QB builds basic utilitarian gear focused on performance. I've heard allegations that Barnes' performance is spotty for the price, and that a lot of the purchase price is for the amazing artwork. So they're on pretty different pages.


I posted on an airguns board asking for more info, and Mike Reames himself responsed, and posted more pics of other muzzleloader-style airguns. I'll cross-post those in a bit, really awesome stuff.

EDIT:

 

[CWL]

I've seen something like that from the 1700s I think, it was an Austrian air rifle made to look like a 16th Cent. arquebus. Coolest thing, too bad it no longer worked or I would'a contemplated taking a 2nd mortgage to buy it.

Since you are in Afghanistan right now, any chance of finding a local gunsmith to make the base gun that you can add the HPA tank to when you are back in the US?