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  1. mhb

    Bear oil

    FWIW: 'Whale oil' is rendered from blubber, and primarily used as lamp oil. The lubricating product is 'sperm oil', derived from the headcase of the sperm whale, and is a much rarer and more expensive product - it was, and still is, an excellent lubricant, and was used for patch lubrication...
  2. mhb

    Bear oil

    In working-up loads for my C. Foehl Philadelphia .38 Schuetzen rifle (a picket gun), I tried bear oil, because Uncle Alvaro recommended it... While other lubes worked as intended, the bear oiled patches were blown to smithereens with the same charges. Why? Beats me. mhb - MIke
  3. mhb

    Patch size?

    The general rule for pre-cut round patches is that they should be twice (2x) the diameter of the ball. Slightly larger does no harm, but smaller can't be depended on to properly wrap the ball. mhb - MIke
  4. mhb

    Barrel Marking Questions

    Suggest you post this on the British Militaria Forums... mhb - MIke
  5. mhb

    British Dueling pistols question

    As a potential customer (see Tac's comments, above) I'd recommend that a potential builder of Wogdon duellers look closely at Dave Person's pair. If you can match the obvious quality Dave built into his pistols, I'm definitely interested. I would be happy to provide the details and...
  6. mhb

    British Dueling pistols question

    At the risk of overstating the case, most of the potential buyers of fine reproduction flintlock pistols are well aware of the differences between duelling pistols and target pistols. There are many modern reproduction target pistols, some of which are pretty fair copies of the originals, and...
  7. mhb

    British Dueling pistols question

    Tac: I'm confident that no British Gentleman would ever contemplate or condone such a base and deceitful practice. I'm equally confident that Wogdon would never have stooped so low. The French, on the other hand... ;) As a practical matter, having shot smoothbore flintlock pistols fairly...
  8. mhb

    British Dueling pistols question

    My 2 cents: Having handled and/or shot a fair number of original duellers, flint and percussion, the type I'd most like to see reproduced in the highest quality is the fullstock Wogdon flinter of, say, 28 bore, smooth. Of those I've handled, the Wogdons are, to me, the most perfect instrument...
  9. mhb

    Dry ball idjit

    Any ML shooter who says he's never forgotten to load powder before ramming a ball... probably lies about other stuff, too. mhb - MIke
  10. mhb

    Barrel wedge DIRECTION

    My experience is that British makers inserted the wedges from the left, and most American makers from the right. Not sure about European makers. mhb - MIke
  11. mhb

    What would they have used

    I suggest you post your query at the British Militaria Forums. mhb - MIke
  12. mhb

    Here’s another

    Welcome, 'dog. The Spencer was issued to Union forces, and, of course, Confederates made use of any arms they could capture, but they were unable to manufacture proper ammunition for the Spencer, so had to rely on the small amounts of ammunition they were able to capture with the arms. The...
  13. mhb

    Here’s another

    Presumably .56-56 Spencer rimfire, which is the most common chambering in the Civil War issued rifles and carbines. mhb - MIke
  14. mhb

    Here’s another

    It's a Spencer Civil War carbine. The lock is missing. mhb - MIke
  15. mhb

    Dueling Pistol set...

    Dave: Thanks for the response. I certainly agree with you that the alteration of the original Wogdon pistols was a mistake, not to say a complete desecration. I have handled 2 pairs of original Wogdons, though I was not able to shoot them. They are, to my mind, the perfect development of...
  16. mhb

    Dueling Pistol set...

    I guess the answer to the question I raised lies in the original Wogdon pistols. I have inspected, handled and shot a fair number of original duellers, both flint and percussion, and currently own and shoot a J.Probin "Maker to His R. H. the Prince of Wales" 20 bore flint dueller. In no other...
  17. mhb

    Dueling Pistol set...

    I looked closely at a set of the Pedersoli Hamilton-Burr pistols with the intention of buying them - until, on close inspection, I discovered that, in attaching the brass forearm weight, Pedersoli had used a screw from below... and drilled the threaded hole in the barrel completely through into...
  18. mhb

    Filing Flints With Diamond File

    If you use a powered wheel to grind flints, it is a very good idea to wear a mask or respirator: the operation creates a lot of dust, and silicosis is bad for you... Probably a good idea to do the same when filing flints, for the same reason. mhb - MIke
  19. mhb

    rather be lucky than handsome!

    Ahem! It's harder to get lucky, if you aren't handsome... On the other hand, someone told me a long time ago that you get a lot more dates if you set your standards low enough. mhb - MIke
  20. mhb

    Flintlock vent liners in the 18th century??

    Many high-grade arms were made with vent liners, beginning with gold, in the last quarter of the 18th century. My J. Probin 20 bore officer's dueller, made ca. 1785, has a gold liner. Later, platinum was used, and is much more durable. mhb - MIke
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