New Flintlock

[forward observer]

It seems that I keep adding to my stable of single shot pistols almost by accident.

I found this a couple of weeks ago at a small local gun show. I don't usually see interesting black powder stuff at shows any more, and haven't seen one of these in person in years. They pop up on line every once in awhile. but the dealers always want more than I want to spend.

It's a reproduction smooth bore Charleville pistol of 1777 in .67 cal (approx). Navy Arms and others used to import them, but they seemed to have stopped back in the 1990's. There's no maker's or importer's stamp on this example--just Italian proof marks and a date code for 1976. (fitting since that was our Bicentennial year)

It was very dirty with dark brass and lightly rusted steel parts. However there appeared to be no pitting and the bore was surprisingly clean. The dealer was only asking $175, but I got him down to $130. The black powder Blue Book shows them worth about $270 in good condition. I took it apart and it cleaned up to looking almost new. There is a spring belt clip on the other side. It appears that it has never been shot, but it still gives a good shower of sparks. There is no lock plate as the pan is cast into the brass frame with the hammer and frizzen attached directly.

Along with the French Charleville musket, thousands were imported into the colonies for use by the rebels in our war for independence. Both the pistol and the musket were quite popular. Our first US martial pistol---The M 1799 Cheney & North was an almost exact copy of the Charleville--just a bit larger and without the belt clip.

Here it is with a few props. The glazed clay pipe bowl in the form of the head of a native American is a real period piece. It has been in my family since before they moved here from South Carolina in the 1830's.

 

[D. Buck Stopshere]

Nice pistol, and companion pieces, including the Tedd Cash Tobacco Box, and cannon. Horn looks like one made by the late Earl Cureton of Bulls Gap, TN.

Best to mike the bore with a dial caliper to be sure of bore size. Dixie Gun Works may have a Lyman mould for the pistol, closest will be a .662 RB, assuming a .67 caliber bore. Best to try a few precast round balls before investing about $100 for mould blocks, not including $50 for the handles. A .69 caliber bore can handle a .678 RB from a Lyman mould.

A rare find, indeed!

 

[4v50 Gary]

Good score at the show. I like the little howitzer too.

 

[HB]

Very cool, I'd have to try it with shot on squirrels.

What is that "D" shaped piece of metal in the top end of the photo? I often see these in museums but can never figure what they're used for. Some type of buckle?

Thanks

 

[forward observer]

Thanks for the comments all

The box is a Ted Cash, but this one is designed primarily as a tinder box. The horn is the priming horn of a matched two horn set that I got from Dixie Gunworks in Tennessee maybe 30 years ago. They were one of their higher quality antiqued sets, but I don't know if they were by any known maker.

The cannon is purely decorative and I found it on EBay. I have several that will shoot, but this one has a hollow cast barrel with rather thin walls. I have toyed with the idea of having a steel liner put in it, but it's not a high priority.

What is that "D" shaped piece of metal in the top end of the photo? I often see these in museums but can never figure what they're used for. Some type of buckle?

Thanks

It's a flint striker, which is a piece of steel that's been case hardened. As I mentioned the primary purpose of this box is as a tinder box

Along with the striker and flint, it would contain tinder, which is a flammable material such as charred linen or certain types of dried plant fiber. The box would keep it dry, so it was easier to light.

One would take out a small wad of tinder and hit the hardened edge of the striker with the flint. The idea was to throw sparks to get the tinder to light.
With a little fanning or blowing one could get it to flame up and then use to start your campfire. That's how they did it before there were matches.

There is another feature with this box. The little cap you see in the lid can be removed to reveal a magnifying lens. If it's day time and the sun is out you can instead start your fire much easier by magnifying the rays of the sun on just about any flammable material like a small pile of leaves or dried grass.

Cheers

P.S. @D. Buck, I did put my digital calipers in the barrel and came up with .69 caliber. I've got a well stocked black powder shop where I live, so I may go by there to find some pre-cast balls, just to shoot it a few times. I don't get out to shoot enough any more to bother with getting another set of molds. I hardly use the ones I have now.

 

[bannockburn]

forward observer

Nice find with the Charleville pistol! Looks great along with all of the other pieces in the photo.

 

[Patocazador]

A well-composed photo of days gone by.

Thanks.

 

[Texas Moon]

AHHHH!!!!! I've wanted one of those for years.
I never can find one.
Very very nice. Thanks for posting the picture.

 

[D. Buck Stopshere]

I figured it was a .69. You can shoot .69 RB without a patch but a wad on top, or .678 RB with a .015" thick patch, and probably no more than 40 grains of 2FG of black powder. It being a flintlock, BP substitutes will not ignite well from a flintlock flash.

The horn was made by the late Earl Cureton of Bulls Gap, TN. Dixie (& me) sold hundreds of Earl's horns over the decades. He used chromic acid to age the horns. Nice feller.

The box can be used as a tinder box, but Cash Mfg Co. website calls its a Tobacco Box. It was designed to carry tobacco, and the magnifying glass was, theoretically, designed to light the tobacco in one's pipe like the heirloom you have. About half of my customers have used it as a tinder box and the other half for storing tobacco. So, it works for both "camps". Cash Manufacturing does offer a Tinder Box design for keeping tinder, striker, & flint. Mine was made by Ted in a limited run of copper.

 

[forward observer]

I figured it was a .69. You can shoot .69 RB without a patch but a wad on top, or .678 RB with a .015" thick patch, and probably no more than 40 grains of 2FG of black powder. It being a flintlock, BP substitutes will not ignite well from a flintlock flash.

The horn was made by the late Earl Cureton of Bulls Gap, TN. Dixie (& me) sold hundreds of Earl's horns over the decades. He used chromic acid to age the horns. Nice feller.

The box can be used as a tinder box, but Cash Mfg Co. website calls its a Tobacco Box. It was designed to carry tobacco, and the magnifying glass was, theoretically, designed to light the tobacco in one's pipe like the heirloom you have. About half of my customers have used it as a tinder box and the other half for storing tobacco. So, it works for both "camps". Cash Manufacturing does offer a Tinder Box design for keeping tinder, striker, & flint. Mine was made by Ted in a limited run of copper.

Thanks for the info. If I had ever heard the name of the horn maker, it's long forgotten. I always wondered how they achieved that aged look. I had another horn that I picked up at Dixie that was on close out because it had been scuffed
I figured I could easily stain away the scuffs. I found out that no commercial stain I could find would penetrate the surface of that horn. I finally gave it away. If only I had known about the acid.

I sure you are right about the Ted Cash box. I also bought it from Dixie at least 30 year ago. All I ever used it for was to start fires, so I always thought of it as a tinder box and once again had long forgoten any description other than that it was a Ted Cash item. I kept my pipe tobacco in a leather pouch, which I would flavor with a bit of Brandy or Jack Daniels every so often.

I quit smoking (cigarettes and pipe) about 15 years ago, but every so often the thought of a pipe full almost tempts me.

Cheers