1st range trip with new Pistol--impressions

[dmills]

.50 Traditions Kentucky
.018 pillow ticking
.490 Hornady RRs
old container of Wonderlube
15 yds.

Ok, I know I was planning to get and probably announced here somewhere that I was getting a Lyman .54, but ran across the above Pistol NIB for a very good price and got that instead.

Went to the range yesterday afternoon and took a few shots. Using the rest, it was about 2" high and 1" left at 15 yards. Very consistent.

I haven't shot a pistol in 20x years so my offhand shooting was not so good. But after 15 shots, I noticed that a chunk had blown-out/fallen off the end of the nipple. This was the "stock" non-SS nipple that came on the pistol. I think it must have been a manufacturing defect or maybe the pistol had been dry-fired excessively before I got it.

The hammer is very stiff compared to my TC and Lyman rifles. Would this be normal and will it ease with use? Of course, the rifles have coil springs in the lock and this pistol has the leaf spring. Would that account for the difference?

The trigger is loose side to side and but has an acceptable pull. I saw that JR and some others have retrofitted the L&R single set trigger on the CVA Kentucky. Is that also done on the Traditions Kentucky and how much mofication is needed to do this?

I was not using a loading rack but was holding the pistol up on a piece of carpet. This combination of ball and patch would not thumb start (I'll be moving down to thinner patches until I reach that point) so I was pounding the ball into the muzzle using a short starter. Is there any concern that this action will crack or break the stock?

 

[renovato]

The hammer might break in with use. My Traditions Trapper was stiff for a while too. It's very smooth now. I used Tetra teflon lube on mine and it smoothed up pretty quick, so it might just be lube related.

I wouldn't worry too much about pounding on the ball starter unless you're having to really hammer it in. If you are having to hammer it, you definately need thinner patches. My Trapper shoots best with as tight of fit as I can force down the barrel.

I don't know about fitting a new trigger, but you can smooth the contact surfaces in the trigger you have and get some improvement there. Again, lubing helps too.

Mostly, I'd say spend some time shooting it. It might break in perfectly and need no tinkering.

 

[patch knife]

I would go with a thinner patch , dmills . Pounding a ball into a pistol not only might crack your stock , but you also run the risk of the pistol slipping off the bench . I like a snug patch , but not so tight that I have to use excessive force to get the ball down the barrel .

 

[BadHeart]

I have a .50 Tradition Kentucky pistol also. The trigger was really stiff when I got it. I took it apart and polished all the parts inside to a mirror finish and then put it back together. the trigger pull was 100% better. So much that I did it to all my smoke poles. I used sandpaper that I use to sharpen my carving chisels it is measured in microns. :thumbsup:

 

[dmills]

Thanks for the replies.

I do plan to go to a patch/ball combo that can be thumb started. I was not having to use a hammer, just the palm of my hand, so it won't have to be much thinner.

The trigger pull is not really bad, just kinda loose side to side and has about 1/4" free play when the hammer is at full cock.

The hammer is hard to pull. Not just a little stiff. This is the first new ML I have had but this is unexpectedly hard. Feels more like a hard spring than a lube problem. But I will pull the lock again and lube before next trip. I did not see any means to adjust the spring.

 

[renovato]

You can probably shim the side to side free play. I'd polish the contact surfaces before playing with spring weight. Traditions is easy to deal with about shipping parts, so don't worry too much about tinkering. If you make a mistake, they'll send you new parts quick and cheap.