Musket Restoration -- Need help IDing

The broad arrows of the sale mark are close together, point to point. I suspect the ones on this gun are just decorations to set off the name.
Look on the left side of the barrel breech - this is a likely spot for proof marks, although they can also appear on the bottom of the barrel.
I cannot tell from the photos - is the stock relieved just behind the hammer? If the gun were flintlock at one time, the stock will be relieved so that the shoulder of the #### can stop against the lockplate. If the stock is not cut away there, the lock was flint at one time, but had been converted to cap before being installed on the gun. Or the gun was restocked.
Behind the hammer the tips of the sear spring and sear screws can be seen. Below the sear screw, just above the bottom on the lockplate, there is a mark which could be a third screw - or is it just a rust mark? If there was a screw there, it would have been for a dogcatch, a safety hook, which would have engaged the ####. I have seen dogcatches on Newfoundland sealing guns. Have also seen 3 screw locks on them. Three screw locks and dog catches are also found on muskets made ca 1700, but I really do not think this gun is that old.
 
Kinda has the look of a french 1766 charleville or one of those yank comittee of safety muskets..
Though inspected and converted to percussion by Canadian/Brit standards.

Its really very interesting
 
One of the screws going into the wood from left to right to hold in the side plate is missing. I will attempt to remove more rust in the next day or two, to see if there's anything else I can find. It's really hard to remove the wood without damaging, because the screws are pretty right and I'm trying to remove without damaging.
 
Eureka! Uploading pics for you guys right now. Left side of the barrel I found 2 more markings. One I'm not sure, it's blurred a bit, still working anti rust gel into it. The other seems to be two swords with a crown on top and a shield(or something similar) on bottom. Think that will help some?

1a.JPG

1b.JPG

1c.JPG


The cam doesn't take good pics, I apologize. It's a lot easier to see with the naked eye then in those photos. I outlined a few things in some of the pictures. Now that I look at the photos, the one with the crown/sword stamp , the marking above it looks like a giant crown.

The end of the barrel has a minor squat in it but you can still take an accurate measurement of the inside diameter. It was a little under 2.3cm so I guess that's a little under 0.9 inches
 
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the two stamps are Birmingham proof marks. Both are crown over crossed over maces. The puzzling thing is the writing which looks to me like "warranted", a word I associate with Belgian guns. The proofs however show that the barrel must have been made in Britain unless there is a missing (rusted away) lighter stamped belgian mark and the gun then reproven in Britain. 7 guage is .873" diameter.

cheers mooncoon
 
Puzzling indeed. Still no dice on screw removal. Being extra careful and if it takes extra time, it'll be worth it... instead of anymore damage. Bad enough it's missing half the trigger, trigger guard and made up for the weight in rust.
 
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