Persian percussion gun repair.

[Will M]

Great stock repair! The hammer is out of alignment from viewing the damage to it. It is not aligned or is wobbly. Hammers can be removed and bent slightly to align them with the nipple. This hammer could be welded to replace the loss and then the depression milled out. Probably seen too much dry firing by previous owners.
It's a good looking piece and worth the effort.
You can add a front bead then use a wire brush and bluing on it to help age it.

[rickystl]

Hi Estcrh.

I remember this gun. Philip did an outstanding job with the stock repair. Looks great !! Interestingly, I own a Caucasian rifle that needed the exact same repair. The mechanical work, lock repair/tuning, nipple replacement (tough job in this case), and front bead sight added could all be done. And I would tend to bend in that direction. But then, I tend to take restoration a bit further than many collectors would like. In this case, it's certainly not necessary to take the restoration any further. It's perfectly presentable as-is for an Ethno arms collection. And, as you mention, Persian made/assembled guns are usually considered quite rare in any condition, and seldom come up for sale.

Again, great job by Philip. A nice addition to your collection.

Rick

[estcrh]

Originally Posted by rickystl

Hi Estcrh.

I remember this gun. Philip did an outstanding job with the stock repair. Looks great !! Interestingly, I own a Caucasian rifle that needed the exact same repair. The mechanical work, lock repair/tuning, nipple replacement (tough job in this case), and front bead sight added could all be done. And I would tend to bend in that direction. But then, I tend to take restoration a bit further than many collectors would like. In this case, it's certainly not necessary to take the restoration any further. It's perfectly presentable as-is for an Ethno arms collection. And, as you mention, Persian made/assembled guns are usually considered quite rare in any condition, and seldom come up for sale.

Again, great job by Philip. A nice addition to your collection.

Rick

Rick, I admire the extra steps you take with your guns as far as restoring them, here is a better image of the split before repair.

[rickystl]

Hi Estcrh.

Yes, I see what you mean. That was a real break in the stock. Philip did a great job.

For comparison, here is a very similar stock break in my Caucasian rifle. I had hoped the repair would have turned out a bit better on mine. But that's just the way it had to be in this case.

Rick

[Richard G]

I'm not sure these are 'breaks' as such, but rather a form of scarf joint that has come apart.
Regards
Richard

[Philip]

I agree, Richard. The stocks were made in two pieces, the original glue joints just happened to separate at some time in the past. This sort of joint, somewhere along the forestock, is common on many types of Eastern guns. You see it on Indian toreadors on occasion. Persian and Caucasian gunmakers liked to use fiddleback-grain woods. and apparently had trouble finding single pieces long enough for a one-piece stock. I once had a very fine Caucasian smothbore gun, this was a class act with really good damascus barrel and a Persian-made miquelet rivalling European locks in fit and finish. But the maker had to make the stock out of 3 pieces, he was obviously cherry-picking to maximize the grain contrast from end to end. Unfortunately I sold the piece years ago and didn't save any images. What's nice is that Caucasian long guns tend to have wide silver sleeves as barrel-bands, and proper positioning of these can really give the impression that you're looking at a single piece of wood unless you examine closely and see a bit of the joint, or the unavoidable slight mismatch in grain.

[estcrh]

Originally Posted by rickystl

Hi Estcrh.

Yes, I see what you mean. That was a real break in the stock. Philip did a great job.

For comparison, here is a very similar stock break in my Caucasian rifle. I had hoped the repair would have turned out a bit better on mine. But that's just the way it had to be in this case.

Rick

Rick its not bad really, I have seen much worse, in my case there was an inlay that had to be worked around.

[rickystl]

Hi Estcrh

I'm sure Richard and Philip are correct. They do indeed look more like a splice that came unglued. Glue does age.
In my case, a novice had attempted to glue the two pieces back together (using white Elmers glue or some such). Not only did it look horrible, they glued it together WITH THE ORIGINAL WOOD RAMROD STILL IN PLACE !! Took the gunsmith a whole day to get it apart. @#$%^&*

In your case, it is rather curious that the original maker installed an inlay so close to the spliced area. Also, is that a barrel wedge in both those slots ? Usually these would be left open to tie a leather sling through. The barrel bands holding the barrel in place.

Rick

[Philip]

These are not barrel wedges, just pieces of brass stuck in there probably by the guy who first tried to reglue the stock. The barrel is not fitted with tenons that would retain any wedged. The only attachment are the tang screw and the bands.