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  1. E

    Do I need a nose cap, entry pipe and buttcap?

    Here is a photo of the heel plate on the last gun i built. Sorry for bad picture, but it sould give you the general idea. They can be wider or longer, can be brass. I have seen a Hersel House rifle that had a horn heel plate.
  2. E

    Do I need a nose cap, entry pipe and buttcap?

    What you are discribing is a Shimmel or a Poor Boy style of rifle. Most of these style of rifles also lacked side plates, toe plates, some only hand one ramrod thimble (usually the front one) and used a simple trigger guard. What you can do to help protect the wood at the butt is add a heel...
  3. E

    Gaps Around Parts--how to avoid?

    My first question is the same as Swampys are you filing a draft on the parts prior to inletting them? Are you trying to use the chisel to out line the parts? Any photos?
  4. E

    Taps, what is your choice? (technical question)

    Sounds like we had the same teacher. I was also taught to cut a 1/4 turn at a time, back it off, cut again, always use tapping fluid and a spring loaded center in the mill, lathe, drill press, etc.
  5. E

    what do you guys use for pins?

    Music wire gets my vote too. Any good hooby shop will carry it.
  6. E

    brown or not to brown

    Before you make up your mind pratice on a some scrap steel, polish them to the same level then brown one, leave one bright, use navel jelly on one, blue one with cold blue and rub the blueing off with steel wool (gives a splotchy blue,gray color). Let them sit in your shop and look at them every...
  7. E

    Need a stiff, reusable substance for practice

    While its only semi reuseable you can get hard maple lumber at the Home Depot. Buy a few feet cut it into squares, you now have two sides to pratice on. If you screw up take a belt sander or a plane and clean off the carving and start again.
  8. E

    should I blue

    The blued bores are most likely a result of the blueing salts leaking into the bore during the blueing process.
  9. E

    should I blue

    No, blueing/browning are for the outside of barrel. The bore should bare steel kept oiled to prevent rust.
  10. E

    Ramrod channel

    Between the pipes, the forearm hole and good old friction they stay put very well.
  11. E

    I might die....

    Never heard fatal builders frustration, the wait is always worth it in the end.
  12. E

    Jim Chambers Lock Kits

    A 5/16" chucking reamer will cost between $9.00 for an imported one to $50.00+ from one of the big tool suppliers (MSC, ENCO, etc).
  13. E

    Jim Chambers Lock Kits

    I hate to bring this up, but unless you have the right tools you'll have add them to the price of the lock kit. The taps 8-32 & 6-40 they should be carbon steel in case you break one in the hole. Tap drills for the above. A letter N drill and a 5/16 chucking reamer for the tumber hole in the...
  14. E

    Barrel Shortage?

    7/8" in .45 and .50 both seem sizes that are hard to come by.
  15. E

    Smooth bore hawken?

    To get a short barrel with a choke your going to have to look at ordering a custom barrel from Rice, Getz, etc. If you find a Green Mt. you'll have to get it cut as standard lenght for them is 36" or 42" and have it choked. Good luck, sorry I couldn't offer more help.
  16. E

    Barrel Shortage?

    Funny, several other builders and I where just talking about this on the at a local shoot yesterday. The more popular sizes seem to be hard to come by, I know Dixon's barrel selection is low.
  17. E

    building secrets?

    It shouldn't be a secret but it bears repeating "keep your tools sharp". There is nothing that will ruin and inlet, cut you, splinter wood, skip off and gouge in and make a mess of wood quicker than dull tools. This also applies to metal, dull drill bits, cloged files all can make for problems.
  18. E

    Waxing a stock

    With any finish, I like to wait till the smell is gone before I apply wax. I figure as long as there is an odor the finish is still cureing.
  19. E

    Carving or no carving?

    I have to agree with Stophel, people had very diffrent view of everyday items firearms included. We live in the "clean era" smooth lines, little in the way of decoration on items. Back then it was diffrent, people where proud of what they made, look at the fancy painted dowery chest of the PA...
  20. E

    How hard is the first one to build?

    You got some good advise already in the need to do your "homework" by getting a book or two and maybe a video. Then if you do take the plunge go slow,I spent the better part of a year on my first build. If you get stuck ask a question here, before you move ahead. On tools buy good tools and...
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