Striker Box by Charles Miller

Photos by Jan Riser.

CLA Annual Show

Quillwork for the CLA Show in 2003.

Photo by David Wright.

Louis Smith Horn

Photos by Robert Weil.

Ken Gahagan Knife

Photo supplied by Ken Gahagan.

MacQuarrie Clan Horn Set

The horn and primer are by Doug Horn, 1999. This is Barry Maxfield's wife's set. Her Mother was a MacQueary, a name evolution from ancestral Macquarrie. Bag and strap by Lally House.

Photographed at the 2004 CLA by Jan Riser.

Jack Brooks Castings of an Original American Hand Forged Lock.

Argus Dowdy

Northern plains style Minnesota pipestone crested pipebowl with lead/tin alloy inlay; dimensions 5.5"L x 4"T x 1.25"W

More work by Argus can be seen on his web site.

Photos supplied by Argus Dowdy.

Exhibit of Ken Netting Rifles

Ron Brimer

The rifle is based on the F KLETE gun from Sevensburg VA from the 1775-1780 period.







Photos by Sharon Brimer.

Tom Conde War Club

Photo supplied by Tom Conde.

Blog Update

Additional pictures have been added to the Jack Brooks pistol.

Hex Pouch by Steven Lalioff

This pouch is not a reproduction of an original but was inspired by a profusely hex decorated Pennsylvanian powder horn that I saw many years ago. The stamps I used are all based upon original decorative elements I have found on original pieces.

The leather I used to create this pouch has a "colorful" past. It was tanned in Japan during the late 1930's or early 1940's. It was purchased with occupation dollars by a serviceman stationed in Tokyo. Word came that the occupation dollars were to be phased out and soon to be worthless, so the serviceman went on a buying spree throughout Tokyo and bought the most valuable commodities he could find with all the currency he had. Luckily for me, he purchased a quantity of vegetable tanned calf skins and shipped them back home in a large, airtight, aluminum tube...and there within they sat for 60 years until he gifted them to me. I have tried to be very judicious with what I make of these skins, (I've only cut into one so far). Some of the skins still have Japanese military tannery labels on the back. I intend to preserve those labeled skins whole. I'm not positive how the military utilized these skins but they are of the very highest quality of leather I have ever seen and are a pleasure to work with.... after 60+ years are still perfectly preserved.

The horn is an original, I am not certain of it's origin. Judging by it's size and style I would say it's circa 1830's. It was carried so much that it is almost worn through on the backside. The plug is walnut and the strap knob is a circa 1800 brass furniture pull. I have dubbed the dot design, "punktated".....as in punctuated. S.L.

Photos by Karen Ambercrombie.

Wild Willy Frankfort

Photos by Ken Gahagan.

Eric Kettenburg Pistol

The bag is by Jan Riser.

Photos by Robert Weil.

Brian Barker Horn

Wabash Pouch by T.C. Albert

Wabash pouch and sheath made by T.C. Albert. Tim also forged the iron hook for the primer.

The horn is the work of Jeff Bottiger.

Kyle Willyard forged the antler-handled bag knife.

Brad Mills crafted the measure, pick & brush set and the copper primer.

I am working on a series of patterns for pouches "inspired" by the history of frontier settlement that reflects the style of bag I would think served the rifles being used when that particular region was first being settled...taking into account as much of that regions actual early history and heritage as I can, and using that with what I know about the evolution and regionality of pouches to design an appropriately "inspired" pattern.

The Wabash was settled rather late by eastern standards, and that bag accordingly has a bit of western and late influence in its design construction technique...its what I think would have been at home on the "Wabash" in the first quarter of the 19th century say around Shawnee Town etc...

I have plans for a "Cumberland Falls" pouch reflecting bags of an earlier style from the times when that region was explored....a "Big Sandy", reflecting bags styled from about 1795 from that region near the Ky. / Ohio early settlement era...a Susquehanna bag from that region and era maybe reflecting the more" golden Age" rifles and those bags...an "Illinois' plain jane bag from the Black Hawk war era...and even a far west Powder river bag for the western fur trade....etc,,,

Thats the general idea of how I'm designing this series of patterns, and as Dave says, they are not bench copies of any one bag, but rather interpretive pieces "inspired" by the settlement of these famous Rivers and valleys as they were settled and the basic styles in vogue at that time as I understand them, and my own artistic vision... T.C.A.

Photos supplied by Dave Beaman.

CLA Annual Show

The 12th Annual Contemporary Longrifle Association Show will be August 15-26, 2008. Below are displays from the 2004 show.

Barry Maxfield.

Mel Hankla.

Gordon Barlow.

Wallace Gusler.

Photos by Jan Riser.

Shell Beads

Here's recent acquisition of mine. I picked these up in Illinois country. They supposedly came from an old artifact collector....but dealers' stories are sometimes less than factual.

I showed them to one of the archaeologists at Cahokia Mounds but he said he's seen nothing similar in connection to the Mound culture.

I assume these are old, perhaps very old. Or, perhaps they were made around 1900 and worn for 50 years by someone in New Guinea??? S.L.

Has anyone seen anything like these before? Any help in identifying these would be greatly appreciated. Please leave any information in the comment section at the end of this post.



Photos supplied by Steven Lalioff.