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This probably falls under the cool story bro category. It was a toss-up whether I put this in OT, black powder, or general guns and it landed here. A
On Veterans Day I took my kids to the open cockpit day at McClellan Air museum. On the way back driving down Watt avenue which of your familiar with the area is not exactly the best, I saw a vacant lot where someone had parked, set up some folding tables, and was having a junk sale. I noticed two rifles leaning against a table so I flipped around and decided to check it out. One was a pellet gun which I probably could have gotten for next to nothing but I didn't know what condition it was in and was not that interested in it. The other one, was a muzzleloader. It was an old reproduction probably from the '60s or '70s so nothing special and it had a bunch of surface rust on it though the wood was immaculate. I blew on the end of it and did not get any air through it. The guy at first was trying to tell me it was an antique and I straight up told him that it was a cheap reproduction. I asked him how much he wanted for it and he asked me what I was willing to pay for it. I told him I didn't really know, it was in rough shape and not what I was really looking for being a reproduction and I started to walk away. He asked how about 20 bucks so I said sure why not for that I can hang it on the wall.
I brought it home and just got around to messing with it. I unscrewed the nipple and saw that there was some sort of powder in there. I took a wire and got some of the powder out. It looked kind of whitish but I thought maybe it was oxidized black powder that had been sitting in there for years. I put a lighter to it and it first started melting then burnt kind of like a sugar. Definitely not black powder.
Then I dropped a ramrod down the barrel and discovered there was about 8 in of something in the barrel and it was soft. I took it outside, put an air nozzle to the nipple hole, and blew it out. It came out with a soft pop and a puff of dust. There was some kind of powder that was not much courser than a talcum powder and kind of a tannish brown color. Almost like a dingy brown sugar type color. On top of it there had been a wad of wax paper packed in the barrel to keep it in. I went back in the shop to get my phone to take a picture of it but the breeze dissipated it to the point where it really did not show up in the pictures.
I have no idea what was in there but a friend of mine suggested it may have been heroin. It would not have surprised me because the guy was pretty sketchy looking. I would think he would not have knowingly sold me a rifle for 20 bucks with a barrel full of heroin but who knows where he got it. I would not know heroin or most other drugs if I saw them. I'm just saying what my friend said. Anyway, I got it cleaned up and put the first step of my super secret patina on it. For $20 it will be a nice shooter that I don't care if the kids drop or bang into something.. just thought I would share
On Veterans Day I took my kids to the open cockpit day at McClellan Air museum. On the way back driving down Watt avenue which of your familiar with the area is not exactly the best, I saw a vacant lot where someone had parked, set up some folding tables, and was having a junk sale. I noticed two rifles leaning against a table so I flipped around and decided to check it out. One was a pellet gun which I probably could have gotten for next to nothing but I didn't know what condition it was in and was not that interested in it. The other one, was a muzzleloader. It was an old reproduction probably from the '60s or '70s so nothing special and it had a bunch of surface rust on it though the wood was immaculate. I blew on the end of it and did not get any air through it. The guy at first was trying to tell me it was an antique and I straight up told him that it was a cheap reproduction. I asked him how much he wanted for it and he asked me what I was willing to pay for it. I told him I didn't really know, it was in rough shape and not what I was really looking for being a reproduction and I started to walk away. He asked how about 20 bucks so I said sure why not for that I can hang it on the wall.
I brought it home and just got around to messing with it. I unscrewed the nipple and saw that there was some sort of powder in there. I took a wire and got some of the powder out. It looked kind of whitish but I thought maybe it was oxidized black powder that had been sitting in there for years. I put a lighter to it and it first started melting then burnt kind of like a sugar. Definitely not black powder.
Then I dropped a ramrod down the barrel and discovered there was about 8 in of something in the barrel and it was soft. I took it outside, put an air nozzle to the nipple hole, and blew it out. It came out with a soft pop and a puff of dust. There was some kind of powder that was not much courser than a talcum powder and kind of a tannish brown color. Almost like a dingy brown sugar type color. On top of it there had been a wad of wax paper packed in the barrel to keep it in. I went back in the shop to get my phone to take a picture of it but the breeze dissipated it to the point where it really did not show up in the pictures.
I have no idea what was in there but a friend of mine suggested it may have been heroin. It would not have surprised me because the guy was pretty sketchy looking. I would think he would not have knowingly sold me a rifle for 20 bucks with a barrel full of heroin but who knows where he got it. I would not know heroin or most other drugs if I saw them. I'm just saying what my friend said. Anyway, I got it cleaned up and put the first step of my super secret patina on it. For $20 it will be a nice shooter that I don't care if the kids drop or bang into something.. just thought I would share
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