Patch box engraving
- Thread starter Bama
- Start date
Well, now that I see some good close up pictures I gotta tell ya, it's fabulous. In this world of photographic quality bulino and stunningly perfect scroll work it may be difficult for some that have not studied the work on original longrifles to appreciate what they're looking at here but I gotta tell ya, IMHO it's truely awsome. The design and layout are just wonderfull as is the execution. It has that certain "something" that has continuously eluded me in my work. I've pretty much resigned myself to building english guns and contemporary longrifles because I can't find that quality that you've achieved here in order to build good represenative longrifle recreations. I hope you don't mind but I've downloaded these pics for my E-library of fine engraving examples for study. In case I'm not making myself clear I LIKE IT.
Cody
Cody
KSnyder
Elite Cafe Member
Bama, I agree with Cody, alot of the originals were / are more what I would call folk-artish. You gotta remember most of the rifle makers had no magnification and only candles & mostly one southwest facing window for light. It looks right for the time period.
Btw, is that a Frederick Sell box?
Kent
Btw, is that a Frederick Sell box?
Kent
Cody I have seen some of your work and I think you are not giving yourself enough credit, yours and Jerry's work are the reason that I have made my attemp at engraving. If you look at the original John Noll rifle in the RCA book you willl see that for his time he was a very exceptional engraver as well as a rifle builder. If I can obtain that level I will be a happy man. Of Course I hope to be able to get good enough to do a few English Doubles along the way.
Kent thank you for your kind words also. I think Frederick Sell used a similar patch box design as this. I took this box design from a John Noll rifle. I photo copied it and then scaled it down to 3/4 size, I built the rifle for a lady friend and the whole rifle was scaled down.
Kent thank you for your kind words also. I think Frederick Sell used a similar patch box design as this. I took this box design from a John Noll rifle. I photo copied it and then scaled it down to 3/4 size, I built the rifle for a lady friend and the whole rifle was scaled down.
FANCYGUN
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Just to make sure I'm not dillusional...is the gun a left handed rifle? What shape graver did you use on this and did you hammer it or power assist the engraving.? Flintlocks are great fun and how i actually got into engraving years ago. Nice job
The rifle is indeed a lefty, I have built 5 left handed rifles over the years and each one is just as hard to do as the first one was. You wouldn't think that a lefty would be more difficult but in a right handed world I have to force my self to do everything backwards, makes me appreciate what they have to deal with everyday.
I only have one graver and it is a square graver. I picked the graver and a small chasing hammer up from Mike Lee about 4 years ago and have been playing with them up until now. I am glad folks think the work is OK, that gives me the courage to continue on. Don't ask me any particulars about the graver because I could not tell you. Mike had all the angles done on the graver and I have just tried to maintain them. I did learn when it was not sharp because it would jump out of the line and go skidding accross the work which would make me say things I should not, so I learned to check the sharpness regularly or suffer the dreaded skid marks.
I only have one graver and it is a square graver. I picked the graver and a small chasing hammer up from Mike Lee about 4 years ago and have been playing with them up until now. I am glad folks think the work is OK, that gives me the courage to continue on. Don't ask me any particulars about the graver because I could not tell you. Mike had all the angles done on the graver and I have just tried to maintain them. I did learn when it was not sharp because it would jump out of the line and go skidding accross the work which would make me say things I should not, so I learned to check the sharpness regularly or suffer the dreaded skid marks.
I am no expert either but it sure does look perfectly suited to the gun to me also.
Being left handed, years back in the days when shooting was unregulated, I encountered a fellow with a flintlock at the large sandpit where I used to shoot. We got to talking and he prepped the flintlock and suggested I take a shot. Scared the heck out of me when I pulled the trigger and the igniting charge flared up right in front of my right eye!
Back to the patchbox....GREAT job!
Peter
Being left handed, years back in the days when shooting was unregulated, I encountered a fellow with a flintlock at the large sandpit where I used to shoot. We got to talking and he prepped the flintlock and suggested I take a shot. Scared the heck out of me when I pulled the trigger and the igniting charge flared up right in front of my right eye!
Back to the patchbox....GREAT job!
Peter
Jim-Iowa
Elite Cafe Member
Bama, you did a FINE job on this one. It is hard to believe it's your first.
And I agree it is Cody and Jerry's work that convinced me I had to give this a try.
Though I have little hope of ever doing the kind of work Jerry does.
Peter I too am left handed and blind in the left eye so shoot righthanded.
I have a very strong blink reflex to protect my one right eye(can you say Flinch).
Which is the reason I only will shoot Percussion.
A flash in my face is more than I can overcome.
And I agree it is Cody and Jerry's work that convinced me I had to give this a try.
Though I have little hope of ever doing the kind of work Jerry does.
Peter I too am left handed and blind in the left eye so shoot righthanded.
I have a very strong blink reflex to protect my one right eye(can you say Flinch).
Which is the reason I only will shoot Percussion.
A flash in my face is more than I can overcome.
Bama, congratulations.
The job you did on this looks very much in keeping with some of the early work done by the old rifle builders.
It has a great deal of the charm of the early work done with loving care and simple tools.
Rich, early Americana feeling.
Best wishes, let's see more. John B.
The job you did on this looks very much in keeping with some of the early work done by the old rifle builders.
It has a great deal of the charm of the early work done with loving care and simple tools.
Rich, early Americana feeling.
Best wishes, let's see more. John B.
Dave London
~ Elite 1000 Member ~
Bama
The old timers would be proud, excellent period engraving. Keep on chipping
The old timers would be proud, excellent period engraving. Keep on chipping
Andrew Biggs
Moderator
Beautiful Bama
The engraving fits the style of rifle perfectly. Flintlocks are a really neat gun and I can never figure out why anyone would want to shoot one of those cartridge guns
Well done
Andrew
The engraving fits the style of rifle perfectly. Flintlocks are a really neat gun and I can never figure out why anyone would want to shoot one of those cartridge guns
Well done
Andrew
I've been studying the book "Longrifles of North Carolina" by John Bivins, Jr. and your engraving is remarkably similar to the works of Thomas Gluyas,the Voglers (John, Christopher, Nathaniel, George, Timothy), Andrew Long, etc. of the 1700's. I'm very impressed.
Flintlocks are a really neat gun and I can never figure out why anyone would want to shoot one of those cartridge guns
Andrew
I agree Andrew, those suppository guns are just a fad. They'll never catch on.
Cody
i've done tons of the brass furniture on the front stuffers. for the style involved- i'd say your work is top shelf
i always liked that kind of work, as there were no logos , roll engravings, and other junk on the surfaces to limit what you could do.
i always liked that kind of work, as there were no logos , roll engravings, and other junk on the surfaces to limit what you could do.
Bama, I have to agree with Cody, your work has that "look". I have a hard time with design trying to get the folksie look, and so far have failed, except for some of my early work, which I am not too proud of. I am beginning to wonder if one can get too good at this to do proper folk art. Cody, you are under rating yourself as far as design. That capper you did had the "look", whether you think so or not. Do you think that maybe if you went back to H&C, it would be less perfect in the cuts, and be more folksie, or are you just too good? I am not sure that I want to get much better in execution, but I sure need help in design. I can not find enough time to practice drawing, that is why much of my work is copy, or modified copy, of others work. I am reaching a point at which, I'm not sure of where to go from here. Something in me wants to do much better work, but I don't want to reach the level that my work is too good for what I'm working on. It is a paradox for me at this time.
Fred Bowen
Elite Cafe Member
Great job! It looks like you've studied all of Shumway's books and sat at the knee of John Bivins.
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