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Restocking a English Percussion Muzzle loader.


demonwolf444
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Escaped to the workshop for a couple of hours, both lockplates in, needs a little but more adjustment on the ends, putting a bit much pressure on the barrels.

 

The tape is just there to hold the barrels in, have not inlet the key yet

 

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Just need to inlet for all the lock components, cut slots for the triggers, fit triggers, more than likely adjust triggers. shape the stock. fit the metal furniture, get the hammers.

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Vision yes... Skill... less so, but hopefully ever improving!

 

I make all sorts, i enjoy seeing things through, i know what i like and what i enjoy, i like to be proud of things i take ownership of. I kind of wish i had applied for different college courses and such, and then might have had the opportunity to become an apprentice for a gun smith, however I'm just not convinced there is all that much work for smiths.

 

For now at least i'll be doing countryside management starting in September, and carry on making custom air rifle stocks for people which i really enjoy doing, to keep the money coming in throughout college.

 

I will always do this as a hobby though, i don't find air rifle stocks massively challenging, they are fun, but its not the same test of your skills and therefore not as rewarding when it all comes together I wish i had the skill to be able to do things perfectly, like professional level work, but its something that eludes me with shotgun stocks, but i think that's part of why i enjoy it so much.

 

Anyway in true testament of my lack of skill i overtightened the cross bolt that holds the two lock plates on, this has now sheered which i spent an hour extracting the sheered portion, and now i have to source another one. Rang around places the nearest engineers with ready stock of witworth and bsf to me is in york, so its an excellent excuse to visit york guns as well. I wanted to replace this bolt at some point anyway as someone had wrecked the head by using a normal screw driver.

 

Just wanted to mention special thanks to Welsh Warrior who has helped me out for a number of projects. If you ever want any gun smithing work doing this is the man to go to, one of the most helpful people you will meet.

 

And special thanks to Old Farrier who kindly sent me some bits from his parts box and has instructed me on making scrapers, which is very much appreciated; i am sure many of you have seen his thread on building a punt.

 

It really restores your faith in humanity when people you have never met willingly give their time and expertise to help others, its one of the best things about pigeon watch, and in general the wider shooting community.

 

Hopefully when i get back tomorrow i can continue fitting lock components, shape the stock, fit some more of the metal parts, after which i just wait for my castings to come through, finish those up, get it on ticket and test the barrels.

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Had both lock plates in the other day:

 

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Then sheered the bolt that holds them together.

 

Spent a full day on it today to get the locks fully inlet in.

 

First port of call was to get the bolt i sheered fixed. Called my dads friends after my bolt box came short and i could not find an appropriate thread anywhere. Night mare. Anyway an hour and an half spent cutting the bolt and extending it by 4mm so i could use what was left of the threading on it. No i did not do the welding, i am have not welded in about a year and before i know it i would have the bolt and vice jaws welded together nicely, so i left it to a friend of my dads. Excellent chap.

 

Any way with this fixed i carried on in-letting parts of the lock mechanism. which require so much room to move there was hardly any wood that did not need removing. I tediously traced all the parts in their various positions and cut away as necessary. It took a long long time. Each lock is slightly different so the wood to be removed was different for each side.

 

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Locks all assembled and in.. "remember not to cock them as you have not installed the triggers yet.. "

 

To allow them to move freely i put them in sooted, clamped them up, operated them, removed them, and removed the soot marks.

 

Still to do. Shape the stock, fit the barrel key, fit the stock oval, fit the trigger guard, fit the ramrod tube cap, fit the triggers, make a new ramrod cap, finish the stock, checker the stock, shape the hammers, fit the hammers, fit the but plate.. ( regarding which, i managed to remove, thanks old farrier ) so best not get ahead of my self still plenty to do.

 

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Getting there slowly.

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used the dremel at 20,000 with a drill bit, to cut the trigger slots. Interestingly the locks need to be inlet deeper still at the rear. The left hand lock plate needs to move in about 1.5mm and the right hand 3mm. I can see why these muzzle loader stocks are so prone to breaking especially when over oiled just as so much wood is removed.

 

On all my guns i apply a liberal coat of sanding sealer into the inletting area's. Just in the hope that it will help stop the wood soaking up any oil applied when cleaning.

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So the but plate was really heavily pitted, so i decided to cut it and file it. So now i have a heel and toe plate.

 

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The forend marked out to be shaped more.

 

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Stock shaped slightly. But left the end oversize for when i work out what I'm doing.

 

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Think i went just a little thin around the grip, should not matter too much with any luck.

 

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Decided to set the heal and toe plates into buffalo horn and carve that into a butt plate. If you have not worked with horn before google "working with horn" as it doesn't work easily without some processing.

All the parts left to fit.

 

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What i had to fit into the horn.... naturally my first instinct was to reach for the dremel, but google saved my skin ( and the lump of horn i was about to butcher )

 

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Started by roughing out.

 

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Temporarily screwed the horn in place while i heated the parts to be inlet in to red hot with the propane torch. Horn melts so forcing the red hot metal into the horn gave me a nearly perfect fit. Only let down by the fact that i had tried to inlet it with the dremel, and chisels, neither of which worked very well.

 

All the steel is flush with the horn now. When fully finished, i expect the horn to finish up in a highly polished black, the steel will be blued and the screw heads will be polished brass. I may file lines across the horn.

 

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The other difficulty was the toe tang which is about 3 1/2 inch long which i think you can see in this picture.

 

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I have also inlet for half the trigger guard. I still need to do the ramrod tube cap the barrel key and the stock oval. Then it will be finishing on the stock. Still to do will be the hammers and the worm cap for the ramrod.

 

Thankfully i dampened the stock to see the grain today. The tiger striping that the boxlock stock has is there on this piece of wood too. Which i really like.

 

Seriously tempted to re colour case harden the lock plates, top tang, possibly the trigger guard, and hammers As that would really make it look special. However failing that the hammers will be blued the locks polished along with other parts.

 

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