Flintlock longarms

[Jenrick]

I'm currently looking for a flintlock longarms either a musket or rifle. I'm partial to military reproductions so I was initially looking for a Brown Bess or similar. In my searching I ran across: http://www.militaryheritage.com/muskets.htm

Does anyone have any experience with these folks? They are priced very well. Reading the descriptions they just need the vent hole drilled.

Thanks,

-Jenrick

 

[Cosmoline]

They look similar to Loyalist. No vent is drilled to simplify export, and I believe the parts come from India. That means small-scale production with wide variation in quality control. Some are fine, some are not. I've done a lot of research on these and the consensus seems to be they're just fine for reenactment if defarbified, but not the guns you want to be shooting a lot of heavy charges with.

OTOH if you're looking for a high end, very solid military flintlock reproduction from one of the kits or Italians, the price is going to go up. Way up. If you move to caplock repros from the Civil War era there are more makers and the price goes down.

I ended up getting a kit for a simple "poor boy" smooth rifle. It was a lot of fun to build and I'm putting together my next project this summer. By buying a parts kit you can get premium components while staying under $700 or so for the whole thing. Track is probably the easiest to pick and choose components from.

 

[Hawkeye748]

Be very careful about any non-vented reproductions. There are several instances of barrels failing even when used for re-enacting. Most likely due to poor maintenance but still a failure.

Be sure of one thing, if you alter a non-vented firearm, you will be responsible, no one else, for any injuries caused by the failure of the weapon's barrel. My view is stick with one of the reputable MFG's that have their barrels proofed before sale.

 

[arcticap]

Middlesex Village Trading Co. is probably the most reputable of all of the importers of Indian made guns.
Their wood stocks may be softer than the more expensive European brands but their steel is high quality and they have a reputation for making a mountain of sparks.
Check out all of their muskets and F.A.Q. page and the related threads listed below and you'll understand why.
In general they're quality has become even better over the years and not all of the Indian gun importers buy from the same manufacturer.
Many reinactors buy from them with confidence.

http://www.middlesexvillagetrading.com/

2 gun reviews:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=461734

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=460402

Related:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=330215&highlight=india

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=164652&highlight=india

 

[Jenrick]

Thanks for the links to Middlesex Village Trading Co. probably going to go through them.

-Jenrick