I’ve been trying to find sources for information about renaissance-era gunsmithing for a while now, with no luck, so I though I’d ask the question here. What I’m looking for are books on tools and techniques used in 16th century gunsmithing. I’ve got piles of information on gun types, locks, calibers, and so on, but I haven’t been able to find anything on the nuts-and-bolts stuff, like barrel boring tools, stock and barrel finishes, and things like that. Has anyone seen books or other materials dealing with this sort of thing?
You might want to check with the people at the Liverpool Museum. That link will take you to a list of their publications which includes the following book on 16th and 17th century firearms.
An e-mail request to them might yield good results.
"Early European Hand-Firearms in Liverpool Museum
This is the first fully illustrated catalogue of firearms from Liverpool Museum. It includes pieces which can be attributed to Adolf Bosch, Benjamin Reismüller and Lazaro Lazarino Cominazzo. The catalogue includes a chapter on the history of the collection and an introduction to the history of firearms. 119 pages text, 9 colour and 93 black and white illustrations.
Written by Michael G. Spencer and Fiona A. Philpott, 1992
ISBN 0 750900 58 X
Published by Alan Sutton for National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside"