Hi RDGAC.
Congrats on your new purchase. And thanks for the photos and descriptions. I enjoyed reading your text. Maybe I can add to the conversation here.
Your gun indeed appears to be a Moroccan Altit long gun from the Little Atlas Mountains Region. Could be anywhere from the 1st to 3rd Quarter of the 19th Century. (where as Blue Lander's gun appears to be an Afedali from the Sous Valley Region with a replacement lock from another gun).
The lock on your gun was made on the English pattern, which seem the most common on Altit guns. The lock on Blue Lander's gun is the Dutch pattern, and is common on Afedali guns, but I've seen both patterns used on Afedali styles.
About these Snaphaunce locks: Having spent a few years working and having these locks repaired, the weak part is the sear to hammer slot engagement. The sears and tumblers on all these locks I've examined were simply not hardened. The sear would wear down short. The locks must have been in a constant state of maintenence and repair. The only way to repair this in most cases is to add metal to the end of the sear and file to fit, then flame harden the finished sear. Or make a new sear. While I'm at it, I'll have the tumbler hardened also. This makes the lock work much better.
Yes, the English style lock on your's does look like it may have been a latter replacement. The lock plate screws on these guns often extend out past the lockplate, but the screws on your's does seem to the extreme. By the way, are there only two lock plate screws on your gun? Can't quite tell from the photos. There should be three.
I'll post some photos of these locks below.
Rick.
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