V short musket, any ideas what it is?

[Kmaddock]

Hi
I recently purchased the attached
Overall 71 cm or 28 inches in total
Barrel 12 inch or 30 cm
Bore of 16 MM or 5 eighths of an inch
Very compact weapon which feels very correct in the hand as a close quarters weapon
The sight is silver and it looks as if the barrel is the original length without been cut down also has silver escutcheon on stock
It was flintlock and was converted to percussion a long time ago, some braise on the lock where holes were filled in during the conversion process.
The hammer is gone and the square where the hammer was attached to the tumbler has shorn off.
I will re build this and thankfully the rest of the mechanism is sound bar the trigger being bent
It has Irish registration number and letters on the barrel KE2546 for Kerry and also same mark on the but stock
I am unable to make out the makers name in the lock.
My question is what would you call this weapon. It is size of blunderbuss but gague is v small for this descriptor. Attached images can be re taken or more taken if needed
Happily has original ram rodand timber solid with just some worm
V heavy chequering on the pistol grip.
My guess is a home defence/ carriage weapon any ideas but I have never seen such an animal before
Kind regards
Ken
Purchased in Ireland with no related story

[fernando]

You could then call it a carbine ... or a 'clavina', if it were in my local early period terms. Still considering that the barrel has its original length, the stock is a bit out of proportion, as too large ... don't you think ?
If you can't discern the maker's mark inside tle plate and you are a collector maniac, you must burn your eyelashes spending some time figuring out what it says .

[Kmaddock]

?
If you can't discern the maker's mark inside tle plate and you are a collector maniac, you must burn your eyelashes spending some time figuring out what it says .[/QUOTE]

I want it to say something and I think I have a name but I don't want to contaminate someone else with what it is in my mind, Have you any name you could make a guess at??

My wife agrees with the name I have come up with but iI think that was more for me to go away and stop annoying her rather than exact agreement!! you know what I mean.

As for size I agree it seems out of proportion but it is a very comfortable size. Maybe a cut down from a long time ago but it was a very long time going by the platina. Also the front of the stock profile matches that this was the original length.

Thanks for your comments
Ken

[fernando]

I know precisely what you mean, ken .
But if you are guessing a lock makers name, just spit it out !
Concerning the length, remember that radical (like military) conversions to percussion were done by cutting the breech and not the barrel end. Stock forends can easily be adjusted without leaving traces.

[Kmaddock]

Hi Fernando
Ok here goes
Mc Dermot
Dublin gun maker 1800's
what do you think thumbs up or down ?
Regards
ken

[fernando]

Your'e the Irish ... not me but, isn't Mc Dermott of Dublin spelt with a duble t, while Mc Dermot from London only has a single t, like in the attached example, in comparison with yours ?

http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/collec...-object-775573

But i am far from knowing a single bit about this subject; this is just to tease you ... and entice you to ask your wife's opinion .


.

[corrado26]

In "Der Neue Stöckel" you find two McDermotts with double T: Henry in Dublin ca. 1800 and Farrell in Dublin too, 1796-1827. He has one or two Ts in his Name.
corrado26

[Kmaddock]

Hi
Hi Frenando, in the link you posted (thank you) Mc Dermot is spelled with one and two t's in the article itself, ??
The one or two T's seems to be flexible
They seem to be sold (or marketed) now as an Irish maker with either one or two T but this is probably just because the Irish guns sell for more.
Do you agree though on it being Mc Dermot? ie the expert opinion of my wife!
With the Irish registration on the barrel I am happy to add to my collection anyway and when i purchased it there was nothing at all to be seen on the lockplate so any maker is good for me.
I well hopefully doing the brazing job tonight to start the job on the replacing the hammer.
I will take some photos to show how the work progresses and how i approach the missing hammer problem that i so often encounter.
Regards
Ken

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Kmaddock

... Hi Frenando, in the link you posted (thank you) Mc Dermot is spelled with one and two t's in the article itself, ??...

If you click on the link i posted, you will see they spell it with a single t.

[Philip]

This probably started life as a single-barreled sporting gun, the style is in keeping with the late 18th / turn of the 19th cent. which matches up with the dates of the McDermot(t)s one of whom was its likely maker.

Originally a flintlock, converted to percussion. The extra holes at the forward end of the lockplate were for the mounting of the frizzen pivot screw and spring. The bottom contour of the bolster into which the percussion nipple was screwed was made to fit the void on the top forward edge of the lockplate which has the shape of the former priming-pan from its days as a flintlock. Behind where the hammer used to me is a brazed outline of a sliding safety that was removed for some reason. These safety catches were an extra feature usually reserved for the higher-priced guns and rifles made for the sporting market.

Needless to say, the barrel has been severely shortened from an original length of probably 34-38 in. For use by a poacher or gangster, perhaps? A pity that it has been so abused and neglected, it was probably quite a fine gun in its prime.