The "Snapping Matchlock" was Europe's first attempt at what might be considered a "modern firearm" by today's standards. That is to say, these crude muskets were the first guns that could be fired at the push of a trigger (or button), rather than having to be lit by a separate lever or "linstock" held separately in the shooter's other hand. These guns featured spring loaded serpents that could be locked into a "cocked" position; ready to fire the musket with the simple twitch of the shooter's finger, without ever having to remove oneself from the weapon's sights. This allowed for more accurate shooting and the beginning of the concept of "marksmanship" as we know it today.
The first snapping matchlocks were military weapons whose lock components were unique in that the lock parts are all attached directly to the wood stock, with no traditional lock plate. When the serpent was set to full cock, it was held in place by a simple sear. A button located at the end of the sear lever was pressed with the shooter's indexed finger to release the serpent and fire the gun. These simple weapons were robust and well suited to military service, however as the matchlock evolved throughout the course of the 16th Century, its mechanisms became more complex; particularly in the hands of civilian gunsmiths who produced weapons for the sporting market.
This particular matchlock is a loose copy of a complex late 16th Century Germanic "Sporting Rifle", and is entirely hand made by noted gunsmith Brian Anderson. Anderson is a very wellknown gunsmith who specialized in custom early (pre 18th Century) firearms.
Anderson built this rifle completely from scratch. The only component that he didn't make is the Getz 36" swamped .40 caliber rifled barrel. Anderson began the work by custom fabricating the lock. In an article posted on the "Contemporary Makers" Blog, Anderson mentions that the lock was inspired by "German strongbox locks" from the 16th Century, and represents the final itiration of the snapping matchlock. A far cry from the crude military locks from the early part of the 16th Century, Anderson's lock incorporated several design features found on early wheelocks from the same time period, including an automatic pan cover, and riveted spring bosses.
Anderson fabricating this incredibly complex lock completely by hand, and it is a true work of art. Its action is crisp and reliable: When the "serpent" is cocked, the pan can then be primed with powder. Then, the sliding pan cover can be slid over the primed pan to protect the priming charge from the lit match, or an accidental spark. When the trigger is pulled, the pan cover automatically opens to reveal the priming charge as the serpent drops into the pan. This mechanism requires well made parts and good timing to work properly, and Anderson's skill as a builder are on full display here with the lock working flawlessly with every pull of the trigger.
With the lock finished, the next step was to assemble it into a working firearm. Anderson selected a beautiful piece of lightly figured English Walnut for the stock, and finely shaped it to the proportions of a slender "fishtailed" Germanic sporting rifle, with styling that was appropriate for the late 16th Century. As a small caliber rifle, Anderson made some rabbit motifs out of bone and inletted them into the forestock, belly, and butt of the stock.
Just like the lock, Anderson custom made all the furniture for this rifle, including the sights, trigger, trigger guard, butt plate, and ram rod thimble. These pieces are all of the utmost in quality and match the overall styling and time period of the gun very well.
The finished rifle is beautiful to behold and a joy to shoot. It measures a very handy 52" in overall length, with a very comfortable 13.75 length of pull. It remains in excellent condition with a perfect bore and mechanically excellent lock. We have testfired this wonderful rifle and were delighted at how naturally it pointed and how fast the ignition was.
Brian Anderson has largely retired from gunbuilding so the only way to obtain one of his beautiful works of art is to purchase a rifle like this one. Don't wait!
