LOL! Mark.....'beat to Hades'!!! Only a novelist could bring such a perfect phrase into a discussion like this!! perfect!!
That is EXACTLY what many of not most of these colonial pieces are like.
While field repairs made on campaign were in degree crude, they were made by armorers well trained and with many like weapons on hand with which to get parts.
In colonial settings, these were often village blacksmiths, who were far more familiar with tools and implements and without the kinds of components usually required for repair. They relied on innovation and fabrication of replacement components, and crudely tried to imitate the elements of arms originally made by skilled artisans in well tooled shops.
As for the 1728 'pattern appellation' …….as we WELL know from piratical canons (not cannons!!)…...it was not really a set pattern of that year, but a GUIDELINE setting a regulation for the period it was officially recognized in use.
