Neatly hand assembled, this lighter version of the Brown Bess Musket was much preferred during the French & Indian War of 1756 - 1763. Variously known as the Officer's fusil or Artillery Musket, it is a bit shorter, lighter, and smaller caliber than the full size Brown Bess infantry muskets of this era. This musket is stocked in figured Claro walnut and trimmed in brass furniture. The .62 caliber smoothbore is bright and has been well maintained. This musket weighs 9.0 pounds and has a trigger reach of 13-3/8" making it well suited for today's average size shooter.

The musket barrel is 37" long, smooth bored .620" and polished bright inside and outside, tapered round the full length. An unbreakable steel ramrod is fitted, which was a popular military improvement over the more common wooden ramrod used on First Model Brown Bess Muskets of this era. The barrel has no rear sight, so this big smoothbore musket also qualifies for use in the NMLRA's new N. W. Trade Gun match, where round balls are fired at paper targets, and shot is fired at clay birds thrown from a trap.

Stocked in figured Claro walnut, nicely finished, this musket is correctly trimmed in brass furniture. The buttplate is slightly convex brass, retained using two steel screws and a pin at the front of the comb, as on the original. Issued with an armory bright finish, this musket has a brightly polished steel barrel, lock, and brass furniture. The term Brown Bess came from a refrain in a British song of the period "I'm in the King's Army, married to Brown Bess", apparently referring to the constant attention the soldier must give the musket, cleaning and polishing the bright metal, to pass daily inspection.

The top view shows a brass thumb piece decorates the wrist. Original muskets often have unit names, and sequence numbers engraved on the thumb piece and buttplate comb. This musket is unmarked, except for the lock. The bottom view shows the wide butt with rounded toe, brass triggerguard with Brown Bess style military finials. The stock swells to a bulb shape at the rear ramrod pipe, for secure grip. Sling swivels are mounted to a boss on the triggerguard, and though a supporting lug in the forend. The forward swivel is correctly mounted so it rests on the ramrod pipe. No sling is included with this musket. This model uses a military style steel ramrod, an advanced feature that became popular during the 1750 - 1760 era. This early model musket uses the correct convex sideplate with two bolts that secure the lock on the opposite side.

The lock is polished bright to match the barrel. The tail of the lock is marked FARMER, a famous London maker who supplied Brown Bess muskets to the Crown. It is dated 1759, and bear's the King's crown mark, over a GR (Georgus Rex, i.e. George our King) indicating ownership by the King. The lock has a powerful mainspring, and it sparks well, for sure-fire ignition. The direct drilled tough hole is correctly centered well above the bottom of the pan to provide instant ignition. The single trigger provides a smooth release of the lock. A few re-enactment groups require the use of a flash guard, sold separately. Order #Flash-GD-GR-I iron flash guard with King's Crown over GR cartouche. This flash guard can be instantly installed under the frizzen pivot screw head, using only a screwdriver.

We recommend this attractive British Artillery Musket for the French and Indian War re-enactor, seeking a suitable gun for militia duty. This smoothbore is offered in excellent used condition with a bright well maintained bore. It will serve you well. Order it for a ten day visual inspection. You will be delighted. Else if it does not fit you, return it in unfired condition for same-day refund. Postage is your only risk, when you order any one-of-a-kind gun from Track, whether new, used, or antique.