Quackenbush Air Guns
9am-6pm Central time No Sunday
calls!!
Liege Lock
(Outside Lock)
The Amaranth is a butt reservoir, tap loader in .375 and .43
cal. The version I chose to make has full-sized parts to clearly
demonstrate the clock-like escapement mechanism that is the lock.
It is not surprising that an inventor of the time would adapt
a then-advanced mechanical movement in gunmaking. This is an airgun
that, like a hit-and-miss engine, is wonderful to watch it work.
One's eye is drawn to the odd lockwork, with its primitive, yet
intriguing movement.
When the Liege Lock was first made, they had not yet devised
rifling, blueing and browning, breech loading or adequate sights.
Some of these innovations were incorporated into late-era rifles.
An early Liege Lock would be a muzzleloading smoothbore with
bead sight and a bright finish. To make shooting easier, I added
anachronistic features: 18th century rifle sights and rifled,
tap-loading barrels. But the finish is still bright. I include
with each rifle a silicone cloth to preserve the finish. You can
brown your own rifle, if you wish.
Drum tap
-
Sleeve tap
These are the types of rifles I had available January '99:
January '99-Available Amaranth/Liege Lock
.43 cal. Smoothbore-26", muzzleloader, bead sight $600
.43 cal. Smoothbore-26", muzzleloader, rifle sights $630
.43 cal. Smoothbore-36", muzzleloader, bead sight $630
.43 cal. Smoothbore-36", muzzleloader, rifle sights $660
.375 cal. Rifled-24", drum tap loader, rifle sights $710
.43 cal. Smoothbore-26", muzzleloader, bead sight
.375 cal. Rifled-24", drum tap loader, rifle sights
(Interchangeable barrels)
.445 cal. Rifled-24", sleeve tap loader, rifle sights $700
.445 cal. Rifled-26", sleeve tap loader, rifle sights $700
Rifles are marked alphabetically. "A" through "H"
were made in 1995, "I" through "Z" in 1999.
Rifle "A" was given to Tim Kinney for loaning to me
his Liege Lock as a pattern. Tim is also the person who leather-covered
the butts on these rifles. Since it took five years to sell 20
rifles, I have not made another batch.
