Stocked in maple, stained to an amber brown, this brass trimmed flint longrifle blends the English and Germanic features common to the Virginia school. The .54 caliber 42" swamped octagon barrel gives the rifle excellent balance without being overly muzzle heavy. Built by Minnesota gun maker Thom Frazier, this rifle is signed on the top flat of the barrel, and is a nice example of this popular gun maker's work. This rifle is as-new, in unfired condition. Trigger reach is 13-3/4" to fit today's average man size shooter, and the rifle's weight is 8.7 pounds.
This longrifle is fitted with a 42" Colerain swamped octagon barrel. The swamped octagon barrel is thickest at the breech, tapers to a narrow waist, and flares at the muzzle. The .54 caliber bore is cut rifled with six lands and radius grooves with a 1 in 56" twist for a tightly patched round ball. The bore is bright and clean, in new condition. The exterior of the barrel is finished to a smooth chocolate brown to match the lock. The top flat of the barrel is signed T. Frazier near the breech. A flat top rear sight is dovetailed 11" ahead of the breech. A nickel silver blade front sight with a brass base is dovetailed 1-3/4" behind the muzzle.
The curly maple stock is stained to a golden amber brown to best display the figure over the length of the stock. Earlier rifles are generally not as highly decorated as later "golden age" longrifles. The buttstock is fitted with a wide flat buttplate to spread the felt recoil from the .54 caliber bore over a large area. The buttplate comb is shaped with three octagon flats and a wedding band, and is lightly engraved on the top flat. The buttplate is not perfectly centered behind the tang. Rather, it is offset from the right hand shooter's cheek. This feature is called cast-off, and it places the right hand shooter's eye directly behind the line of sight, making this gun instinctive to point and shoot for a right hand shooter. The two piece patchbox is lightly engraved, and the door is secured with a spring latch at the base. Beneath the door is a deep cut cavity to store flints, jags, or other shooting accessories.
The flared tang of the barrel is retained by a single tang bolt, and is surrounded with raised carving that flows down and around the lock panels. A similar panel of raised carving decorates the stock around the ramrod entry pipe and flows up to create a molding that runs the length of the ramrod channel. The triggerguard has a wide open bow to accept the double lever double set triggers. The triggerguard is mounted in early fashion with a combination of pin and screw. The stock has a slender profile with the forearm and forend following the taper and flare of the swamped barrel. An entry pipe with long tapered skirt, and two forward pipes mount the 3/8" ramrod. The wooden ramrod is fitted with a brass tip with 8-32 threads to accept loading and shooting accessories. The square cheek is accented with an incised molding along the edge. Raised carving decorates the buttstock directly behind the cheek. A incised molding extends from the toe to the triggerguard, creating a slimming effect. The large brass sideplate has a Germanic influence with the sweeping curves and squared tail and is neatly engraved with the same pattern found on the patchbox and the comb of the buttplate.
This large round face lock by Jim Chambers is sometimes called a “Queen Anne" lock. Locks of this design date from the 1730 to 1770 era, well after Anne's reign ended. We recommend our 7/8" knapped English flints for best performance in this lock, our #FLINT-ENG-7. The lock has been browned to match the barrel. The rifle is fitted with double lever double set triggers. Properly tuned and adjusted the triggers can be set and fired in any sequence. Set the rear trigger to lighten the trigger pull when at the range or leave the triggers unset for use during hunting. Fast ignition is assured by the steel vent liner, positioned well above the bottom of the pan, centered on the heat of the flash. If your flint longrifle suffers from that infamous slow whoosh-bang ignition delay, study the work of today's best gun makers, and position your vent well centered on the pan, high above the bottom, to serve as a window on the center of the flash. We note the vent liner was mis-drilled during the build and was plugged. This plug can be faintly seen to the upper left of the vent liner.
We recommend this simple and attractive Virginia rifle for the French & Indian War era reenactor or the Revolutionary War volunteer, seeking a suitable gun for militia duty. This longrifle is new, unfired. 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.
