Turkish Blunderbuss/Translation Needed

rickystl · 10th September 2012, 03:22 PM

Hi Dom. I was thinking exactly that. I could purchase a new cast brass trigger guard and have it cut, engraved, and aged close to the original. And, I know just the gunsmith that can do this. I don't think it will really depreciate the value of the gun in this case, as long as the work is professionally done. Others may dis-agree? I will have to search my library and the Internet for the shape/size of the trigger guard. The photo you provided helps. Thanks again, Rick.

rickystl · 30th March 2013, 07:21 PM

BUMP!

I've heard it said that patience is its own reward. Trigger guard restoration now complete. And you guys won't believe my luck in finding this trigger guard. The new (old!) trigger guard is from an original Balkan/Turkish blunderbuss that had a worm-eaten and destroyed stock. The new (old) guard was fitted to the existing mortise. And since the new guard was from the same type of pistol, from the same time period, the patina of the brass is a perfect match. The nails were hand made. I did not try to have the guard engraved similar to the old one as I did not want to risk altering the original patina. Anyway, I thought this restoration turned out very well. You would never know the new guard did not originally come with the gun. Here are some photos with the new (old!) guard. Thanks for looking. Rick.

Robert · 30th March 2013, 09:02 PM

Rick, what great luck you have had in being able to find an original trigger guard for this. Personally seeing as you have the original pieces for a pattern I think that many would have opted to have the new one engraved to match the rest of the guns original decoration. I know that there are restorers out there that could match the patina up again after the engraving had been done. Leaving it as is though has its own merits too, the main one being saving money. If this was mine I do believe that I would have made the same decision that you have, but only for the reason to save funds for my next potential purchase.

Best,
Robert

Sajen · 30th March 2013, 10:13 PM

Hello Rick, great luck and very nice restauration and great looking blunderbuss.

Regards,

Detlef

rickystl · 31st March 2013, 05:03 PM

Hi Robert. Thanks for your reply. The Engraver that would do this has had over 20 years experience engraving firearms. Primarily muzzle loading firearms. He mentioned that it would not make any difference if the trigger guard was mounted on the gun, or not. So, that left me the option of having it engraved latter should I decide to. Of course having the original guard finials makes the engraving job much easier since he knows what it is supposed to look like. This way he does not have to surf through all kinds of reference books searching for the right look.
Here are pics of the original engraved guard finials. Note on one end of the rear finial is a piece of solder. Hmmmmm. This leads me to believe that at some point in the past someone tried to fix - the rest of the missing guard?? But the guy I bought the gun from said he has never seen the rest of the guard. Even as a young boy. By coincidence the guy I bought the gun from was in the process of moving. So I offered him a reward if he found the missing piece.
Well, that's the story.

Rick.

rickystl · 31st March 2013, 05:05 PM

Hi Sajen. Thanks for the kind comments. Yes, I'm real happy with the results. And what luck finding this trigger guard. Rick.

30th March 2013, 07:21 PM	#2
rickystl Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: St. Louis, MO area. Posts: 1,630	BUMP! I've heard it said that patience is its own reward. Trigger guard restoration now complete. And you guys won't believe my luck in finding this trigger guard. The new (old!) trigger guard is from an original Balkan/Turkish blunderbuss that had a worm-eaten and destroyed stock. The new (old) guard was fitted to the existing mortise. And since the new guard was from the same type of pistol, from the same time period, the patina of the brass is a perfect match. The nails were hand made. I did not try to have the guard engraved similar to the old one as I did not want to risk altering the original patina. Anyway, I thought this restoration turned out very well. You would never know the new guard did not originally come with the gun. Here are some photos with the new (old!) guard. Thanks for looking. Rick. Attached Images

31st March 2013, 05:03 PM	#5
rickystl Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: St. Louis, MO area. Posts: 1,630	Hi Robert. Thanks for your reply. The Engraver that would do this has had over 20 years experience engraving firearms. Primarily muzzle loading firearms. He mentioned that it would not make any difference if the trigger guard was mounted on the gun, or not. So, that left me the option of having it engraved latter should I decide to. Of course having the original guard finials makes the engraving job much easier since he knows what it is supposed to look like. This way he does not have to surf through all kinds of reference books searching for the right look. Here are pics of the original engraved guard finials. Note on one end of the rear finial is a piece of solder. Hmmmmm. This leads me to believe that at some point in the past someone tried to fix - the rest of the missing guard?? But the guy I bought the gun from said he has never seen the rest of the guard. Even as a young boy. By coincidence the guy I bought the gun from was in the process of moving. So I offered him a reward if he found the missing piece. Well, that's the story. Rick. Attached Images

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10th September 2012, 03:22 PM	#1
rickystl Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: St. Louis, MO area. Posts: 1,630	Hi Dom. I was thinking exactly that. I could purchase a new cast brass trigger guard and have it cut, engraved, and aged close to the original. And, I know just the gunsmith that can do this. I don't think it will really depreciate the value of the gun in this case, as long as the work is professionally done. Others may dis-agree? I will have to search my library and the Internet for the shape/size of the trigger guard. The photo you provided helps. Thanks again, Rick.

30th March 2013, 09:02 PM	#3
Robert EAAF Staff Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Centerville, Kansas Posts: 2,196	Rick, what great luck you have had in being able to find an original trigger guard for this. Personally seeing as you have the original pieces for a pattern I think that many would have opted to have the new one engraved to match the rest of the guns original decoration. I know that there are restorers out there that could match the patina up again after the engraving had been done. Leaving it as is though has its own merits too, the main one being saving money. If this was mine I do believe that I would have made the same decision that you have, but only for the reason to save funds for my next potential purchase. Best, Robert

30th March 2013, 10:13 PM	#4
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,165	Hello Rick, great luck and very nice restauration and great looking blunderbuss. Regards, Detlef

31st March 2013, 05:05 PM	#6
rickystl Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: St. Louis, MO area. Posts: 1,630	Hi Sajen. Thanks for the kind comments. Yes, I'm real happy with the results. And what luck finding this trigger guard. Rick.