Torador breeching.

[Pukka Bundook]

Rick,

I think the matchlock continued in use so long in India because it suited irregular troops well. Easy to find /make ammo for including clay balls at times. no flint to find for the lock, no brass cases needed, and as long as the use was limited to irregular skirmish and not pitched battle, it worked very well.
It seems a good few flintlocks were converted to matchlock for use by Arab mercenaries, as that bis what they were used to and preferred.

The picture you post I shard to figure out what it is of, apart from a matchlock, as it doesn't really look like anything I have seen before. :-)

I believe the chambered breech is a copy of the European idea, but with the difference that in most European chambered barrels, the chamber is smaller than the bore proper, and as we have seen, chambers on Indian arms can vary. The important part of the chamber merely being to prevent the ball or other projectiles from over -compressing the powder.
I have been fine-boring this barrel, and that isn't as easy without a removable breech plug!........the reason being that the bore is a bit rough & pitted, so just smoothing it up a bit to see if it could be once again brought into use.
These are the seller's pictures below;
My camera still hiding.
The stock is So slim that it's just about not there at all!!

Richard.