Introduction
The following photos of an antique muzzle loading black powder rifle were taken for me at a gun show that was held at the Renfrew Museum in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania in 2019, on a day I had to fly to Texas. The rifle was built by Daniel B. Border, a talented 19th century
gunsmith who worked in Bedford County, Pennsylvania.
L. Dietle
Photo of the lock area of the rifle
The first photo, immediately below, shows the signed and lightly engraved rat tail lock, with its graceful Bedford-style hammer. The deeply-curved hammer spur was and still is a desirable and easily recognizable characteristic of the percussion rifles associated with the Bedford School
of gunsmithing. Notice the generally vertically oriented and visually pleasing flash deflector/flash guard that is built into the lock plate behind the drum and nipple to protect the stock from the flash of the percussion cap. Most of the periphery of the lock plate is beveled. As is common on Bedford County rat tail locks, a vertical slash-like feature is located adjacent to the thinner tail portion of the lock plate. Although this rifle was made at a time when commercial gun locks were readily availible, this handsome lock was hand-made.
The periphery of the lock panel of the rifle stock tapers toward the rear, complementing the rat tail of the narrow lock plate. It is easy to tell that the stock has a slender profile by comparing its vertical thickness to the size of the flats on the octagonal barrel. A drum supports the percussion nipple. At the left-hand edge of the photo, one can see the tip of a metal decoration on the wrist. Although the shape of the breechplug tang is not visible, its length is, and that length is substantial.
The double set trigger setup of this old gun is also visible inside the adequately-sized bow of a cast brass trigger guard. The curvature of the set trigger is much greater than the curvature of the hair trigger, to provide tactile feedback to the shooter. The trigger adjustment screw is visible between the pair of triggers. The tag hanging from the rifle identifies the riflesmith Dan Border, and gives his birth and death years and the name of the Pennsylvania county he worked in.
Photo of the buttstock and patch box
The next image shows that this muzzleloader rifle incorporates the typical four-piece brass patch box employed by the Bedford School, with five piercings and a Q-shaped finial. While the side plates of the patch box have half-circle piercings, some riflesmiths used more complex piercing shapes. The engraving on the patch box lid is similar to the lid engraving on another Daniel Border rifle that is featured on this website. The photo also shows the curly nature of the maple stock. The profiles of the comb and belly of the buttstock are generally straight, which is a characteristic of the Bedford School of gunmaking. The buttstock terminates in a typical crescent-shaped buttplate.
Visit the Gunsmith Index to learn more about the gunsmithing history of Pennsylvania.
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