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HEAVY BARREL PLAINS RIFLE – .54 CALIBER – VERY
ATTRACTIVE BRASS MOUNTED CURLY MAPLE STOCK - MAKER
MARKED:
A classic example of the
mid-19th Century heavy barreled guns that
were carried on the Western Frontier, this Plains Rifle
at once presents both a beautiful appearance with the
brightly tiger-striped maple stock, and a strong sense
of power from the heavy barrel and large caliber.
The overall style –
highlighted by the graceful shape of the butt stock, the
stepped forward end of the stock and the ramrod thimble
mounted in a dovetail mortise rather than on a rib under
the barrel - suggests this rifle may have originally
been a full stock long rifle from an earlier period. As
the years passed and styles changed, or perhaps as the
rifle was carried onto to the plains and into the
mountains, the barrel shortened and stock was altered by
a frontier gunsmith to reduce the weight and fashion a
rifle that was more manageable on horse back, creating a
piece that has all the unique features and flavor of a
gun right out of the old west.
Weighing over 10 pounds, the rifle is mounted with a 26
½” octagon barrel that measures a full 1 1/8” from flat
to flat. The barrel features an early 54 caliber hand
rifled bore and muzzle is crowned as if at one time it
had a false muzzle. The exterior flats of the barrel
have a smooth, rich brown patina with no pitting,
lightened in areas due to handling through the years,
and the top flat is stamped just behind the rear sight
“P. HATCHE”. The bore was apparently well maintained by
the original owner, with strong, definitive rifling, and
though somewhat dark, appears to have only minor, light
pitting.
Both the front and rear sights are present, the front
sight featuring a heavy post, and the rear sight is an
unusual short heavy brass ramp with a fine notch mounted
in a hand cut dove tail mortise. While the sights are a
bit unusual, they provide a surprisingly quick sight
alignment and are plainly visible for fine sighting.
There is a second filled dove tailed mortise 2 ½” behind
the present rear sight, where that sight was originally
positioned when this rifle was first manufactured,
another interesting feature and further evidence that
the barrel was professionally shortened and the work
finished by a competent frontier gunsmith. Behind the
barrel tang on the wrist is a brass oval escutcheon
attached with two screws, with two threaded holes for a
tang sight.
The lock is nicely inlet with no damage around the edge
of the mortise, and the lock and single stage, double
set trigger assemblies function as crisp as a clock. It
is worth noting that this lock is not equipped with a
“half cock” notch. From what I have been able to learn
from collectors who have studied these rifles this was a
common feature on these early plains rifles. The
absence of the half cock feature served two purposes,
and although such an omission would raise a concern with
the modern shooter, the men carrying these rifles during
the 19th Century regarded a single notch
tumbler as a beneficial feature. First, it was not
unheard of that when a gun fitted with both a half cock
notch in the tumbler and a set trigger was fired, it was
possible that the sear would catch the half cock notch,
interrupting the intended discharge. In a life and
death situation, this failure could be fatal. And
secondly, when the rifle was loaded and primed with a
percussion cap on the cone, it was a common practice to
lower the hammer fully so that the face of the hammer
rested against the cap, thereby keeping the cap securely
in place and prevent its accidental loss. This practice
rendered the half cock notch superfluous. While modern
shooters would regard this practice to be unsafe and
rightfully so, for the men who regularly carried these
firearms on a daily basis, and were used to this
practice in the environment in which they lived, it
insured the cap would be in place when they needed it.
The furniture - butt plate, toe plate, side plate, ram
rod thimbles and trigger guard – is all brass and
retains a very pleasant soft patina. The maple stock,
as mentioned above, has an above average, very
attractive tiger stripe grain which has colored through
the years to a rich distinct pattern. The wood surface,
worn smooth and with an excellent patina, is not marred
beyond what one would expect to see in a frontier used
rifle. The toe of the stock is intact – often found
chipped away.
The ramrod appears to be a
old replacement, and is capped with a brass tip that has
the initials “LC” engraved in script on the end flat.
The barrel channel edges
have several period repairs – one on the right side of
the barrel just under the rear sight, and several on the
right side of the barrel as can be seen in the
photographs below. These repairs appear to be old and
executed during the life of the rifle, perhaps when the
barrel was shortened. There is an old repaired check in
front of the brass side plate and two age cracks
immediately behind the lock plate – none of which have
weakened the stock and all appear to be stable –
evidence of use commensurate with the age of this rifle.
Handling this Plains Rifle recalls all of the legends
and the mystique of the early American West when
mounting a defense against hostile men and grizzlies, or
anchoring a buffalo or elk against the prospect of
starvation, required a bore of this size. If you are
drawn to tales of the likes of Bridger, Johnson, Smith,
Carson or the legions of unknown explorers and trappers,
as well as the Native Americans who valued these guns
above all other possessions, hefting this rifle will
transport you back to those long ago shining times in
the mountains. $1950
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