Antique British gun case restoration project

[BGGMKLR]

First attempt or not...very nice work.
Well done.
Spike

 

[Russ16]

Nice work. How did you attach the corner covers and loops. I assume you didn’t stitch them on I’m guessing glued. Did you fabricate them or source them.

A project like this isn’t tempting.

 

[Altitude sickness]

Stitched and barge cement. I used 3M 77 spray on the interior baize

 

[Altitude sickness]

So this is the progress so far up to today. We

 

[Altitude sickness]

I still need to build the snap cap and oil pot storage.

 

[Altitude sickness]

The 2 piece cleaning rod is stored under the barrels. I used leather and Buffalo horn to make a keeper to keep the rods secure to the bottom of the case.

 

[Altitude sickness]

So I am waiting for ribbon material to go under and lift the barrels. And build the snap cap and oil pot storage.

All the while adding coats of Leather N Rich once a day.

 

[flying sailor]

So I am waiting for ribbon material to go under and lift the barrels. And build the snap cap and oil pot storage.

All the while adding coats of Leather N Rich once a day.

Very nice. Projects like this are not done in one night. I am looking for a case also, for a rifle. Terrific results.

 

[Altitude sickness]

After restoring this one. I see why quality cases are so expensive. The leather thickness and quality of the leather. Hardware costs. Etc
Without labor costs

 

[Ontario Hunter]

Not being critical but thought I should pass on some advice. It appears you did the stitching with a single needle and thread. Result is thread appears to skip holes. The corners and straps would originally have been stitched with a harness or cobblers sewing machine employing needle and two sources of thread: spool and bobbin. To replicate this you would use a threading awl to push a loop of thread from top spool through hole in the top of leather, pass the other thread through the loop on back side, pull the awl back through, pull thread on top side taught, then push another loop through next hole, and repeat. That way you have a continuous line of thread from hole to hole. FYI for next project.

Edit: Looking at the photos again, it appears you used both single and double thread methods. Double where the straps for handle are sewn to the box and single thread skip-stitch for leather handle and corners.

 

[Altitude sickness]

You can achieve the same lock stitch with a needle at each end of the thread. The replacement corners are more to cover the torn and worn 150 year old corners.

On the next one I will most likely take it to a nearby Amish horse tack maker. And have him sew the edges and corners with his machines.

 

[Russ16]

Stitched and barge cement. I used 3M 77 spray on the interior baize

I’m pretty ignorant on stitching. I’d like to know how you stitch to leather that’s already affixed to the underlying wood.

Or are you saying you stitched the leather pieces together then glued to the case.

 

[Russ16]

I’m pretty ignorant on stitching. I’d like to know how you stitch to leather that’s already affixed to the underlying wood.

Or are you saying you stitched the leather pieces together then glued to the case.

Sorry for the dumb question just trying to learn.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

You can achieve the same lock stitch with a needle at each end of the thread. The replacement corners are more to cover the torn and worn 150 year old corners.

On the next one I will most likely take it to a nearby Amish horse tack maker. And have him sew the edges and corners with his machines.

Yes, two needles can get the lock stitch look but that requires pushing two needles completely through the same hole. An awl is much quicker because only the point of the awl must be pushed through the hole once. And awl is more comfortable to manipulate and penetrate than a skinny needle. The awl method would be much more preferable for repairing existing sewn leather with thread missing or worn out. You have existing holes to work with. I would NOT take old leather to be resewn with a machine. That would just punch a lot more extra holes in it, weakening the already weak leather. Definitely use an awl to repair sewn straps, etc.

 

[Altitude sickness]

The corners are just to cover the worn leather. Not for strength. And not re sewn through the old leather and wood on the corner.

Now the handle attachment were sewn thru the wood and done with a lock stitch.

 

[Papa72]

Very impressive work!

 

[MontanaPat]

That is some really nice work, case is looking fantastic. You did a beautiful job replacing the interior, I really like the scarlet baize color, everything looks like a nice custom fit for that gun.