Originally made in France, at the Tulle arsenal, or at Saint Etienne, the French trade gun known as the fusil-de-chasse was a light weight gun-for-the-hunt. The stock architecture and iron trim resemble those of the heavier French military muskets, but lighter and more slender. Stocked in cherry, correctly oil finished, this fullstock has the classic coloration, with an intentional patina finish on the iron furniture. The barrel and lock have an aged gray brown appearance, as if they were once polished bright, but then allowed to darken naturally. The cherry stock is decorated with a red painted design along the edge of the triggerguard and ramrod channel. Weighing in at 8.1 pounds, this rifled fusil has a trigger reach of 14" making it well suited for today's larger size shooter.

Traditionally smoothbores, this French fusil has a Colerain .58 caliber rifled 44" octagon-to-round barrel. The octagon section is 15" in length transitioning to round with a wedding band. The bore is cut rifled with six lands and grooves with a 1 in 66" twist for a tightly patched round ball. Colerain rifle barrels are a favorite choice of today's best muzzle loading gun makers, because knowledgeable shooters demand Colerain's accuracy, inside and outside. Founded by two entrepreneurs, Scott Keller and Scott Kelly were tutored by Bob Paris, the famous rifle barrel maker who was first to perfect the technique for production of correct swamped barrels. Colerain rifle barrels are drilled from solid steel, cut rifled .012" to .016" deep depending on caliber, with six “round bottom" grooves. Called “radius groove rifling", Colerain eliminates the sharp inside corner that accumulates fouling. Radius groove rifling cutters are a bit more expensive to make, but Colerain's customers agree that the accuracy, easy loading, and easy cleaning are worth the cost. The flat top rear sight is dovetailed 9" ahead of the breech. A tall silver blade front sight is soldered 4" behind the muzzle. The bore is bright, clean, and has been well maintained. The barrel is stamped with a YVY touch mark at the breech, possibly the touch mark of Yancy Von Yeast. No signature or other marks can be found on the barrel or anywhere else on the gun. The soft gray brown finish has the appearance of age, and is just dark enough to eliminate glare in bright light.

The sweeping architecture of the French fusil buttstock is quite comfortable to shoot. The wide flat buttplate is an advantage, since it reduces the recoil you will feel when firing full loads. Stocked in cherry the wood is in very good condition with a few visible handling marks. Lock panels correctly taper widest at the rear. The short flared tang is finished flush with the stock and surrounded with a raised beaver tail carving. The bottom view shows the width of the early buttplate, revealing how the baluster wrist tapers from the lock panels, widest at the buttplate. The tip of triggerguard grip rail has a red painted scalloped edge creating a framed border. The iron triggerguard is mounted with three screws along the grip rail and one through the front final. Historically, screws were much more expensive and labor intensive to manufacture. The triggerguard does have a few small inletting gaps at the tip of the grip rail.

Three iron ramrod pipes retain the wooden ramrod. The wooden ramrod is fitted with an iron ramrod tip that is threaded 10-32 for your loading and cleaning attachments. The ramrod channel edge is decorated in a similar fashion to the triggerguard with a red painted scalloped edge. The patina finished iron sideplate is inlet flush into the stock. This simple military sideplate is the classic French design, used on their fusil-de-chasse, and French Marine fusils, made at Tulle, St. Etienne, Charleville, and Mauberg.

The Tulle fusil flint lock was made by R. E. Davis Company, best quality, with an antique finish to match the barrel. The lock plate is engraved A. TVLLE in antique fashion where V was substituted for U commonly. The frizzen face has been marked from firing, and the breech has a light speckled patina. We recommend that you order a dozen of our best 7/8" English gun flints, #FLINT-ENG-7, to fit this medium size flint lock. Cocking the lock requires real effort, since the strong mainspring is tensioned to produce best sparks, and fast lock time. Trigger release is smooth, probably 4 pounds, due to the high leverage, and excellent trigger geometry. Fast ignition is assured by the stainless 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.

This lovely fusil would make a fine addition to anyone's collection or 18th century impression. The bore is bright and this fusil will be a joy to shoot at the range. 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.