Blackbeard -- Prepwork: Intermezzo (2)

With the enhancement of the beard rapidly coming to a conclusion--I figure one or two more sessions should wrap it up--the time has come to shift my focus to the pistol.

I have not yet decided what to do with this somewhat iconic accessory. These are my options as of this writing:

1. Keep as is? 
2. Lengthen the barrel?
3. Eliminate the barrel?
4. Replace with a scratchbuilt turn-off (Queen Anne) pistol?
5. Eliminate the gun altogether?

The last was seriously under consideration until this morning. But as I mentioned above, the bandolier of charged pistols is iconic for the subject--and given the design of the bust, an aesthetically integral component. 

The first option is still under consideration, but the research has not yielded the evidence I seek to confirm the use of a short-barreled dragon pistol in the first qtr. of the 18th c. Most barrels of this time period were over 12" in length (pistol overall length: 18-20").

Right now, option #3 is the most viable. . . 

Stay tuned!

FOLLOW-UP. . . The extension of the beard has been completed, and all 7 tassels have been attached. While there will be the invariable tweaks and touch-ups right up to priming, all that  remains to be done is completing the "filling out" of the right side of the face. . . Movin' right along. . .