Bad Bore

[Valkyrie45]

I bought a TC New Englander 50 caliber ML with a bad bore. I got it for a wall hanger and only have $50 in it. Can it be rebored to say a 58 cal. or bore it out for a shotgun or should I just forget it and leave it on the wall? I read a post about someone named Bobby Hoyt, what would he be able to do with it?

 

[jamesthomas]

I would go for a .54 Cal. A .58 might leave the barrel to thin. If ya want a smoothbore, a .56 might be the ticket. :thumbsup: It all depends on what the barrel is across the flats.

 

[bubba.50]

12ga new Englanders have the same outside barrel dimensions so ya should be able to have it took out to whatever ya want within reason. 58cal rifled or 62cal smoothbore would be neat.

 

[larry wv]

Is it safe to fire. Have you tried to see if it will hold a group? If it's not safe no use boring it. If it shoots ok maybe leave it alone :idunno: Those are nice rifles. Larry

 

[Billnpatti]

Quite often a "bad" bore can be cleaned up and you may find a nice bore under all of the crud. If the rest of the gun is in good shape, just send your barrel off to Hoyt and let him fresh out the bore or re-bore it to a larger caliber. His work will be cheaper than buyin g a new barrel.

 

[Valkyrie45]

The New Englander looks great, nice wood and no rust on outside of barrel. I was told by the previous owner that he bought it used and could not get it to group consistently. The bore is rusty and I have not tried to shoot it or clean it for that matter. What is the purpose for having a smooth bore in the larger calibers? Are they very accurate? I think I would want a rifled 54 or 58 caliber rifle or a shot gun. How would you choke a rebored barrel? How do I contact Mr. Hoyt?

 

[necchi]

Robert Hoyt.
717:642:6696

He's a one man shop and running the machines alot, he isn't at the phone to answer every minute,
Just keep trying or leave a message.

 

[redneck]

bob gets 65 to rebore smooth. and 85 for a rifled one. dun two for me so fer

 

[Clovis]

With regards to choking a bored smooth bore, I know of two ways. One is to have the barrel jug choked which involves opening an area down the barrel from the muzzle to a larger diameter, the other is to have the muzzle threaded to take a new modern style screw in choke which can be interchanged to suit your needs. With the screw in choke system they sometimes require you to remove the choke, load the barrel with wads and shot and then replace the choke tube as the wads may not fit easily past the tighter constrictions of some of the chokes. I guess in this situation it really is your call. I think I would clean and shoot the barrel as is and see how bad it is with various loads and projectiles. That may be moore fun and cheaper than a reaming project. Take care

 

[ohio ramrod]

Before giving up on the bore I would recomend you try lapping it . Many "not perfect" bores will shoot well after lapping. Pouring a lead slug and some lapping coumpound is a cheap "repair" that often ( not always but often ) can salvage a poor bore. :idunno:

 

[steved]

B Street,

I had Bobby Hoyt ream and rifle my .56 cal smooth Renegade barrel into a .58 rifled barrel. Shoots great. I'll bet he could convert your .50 into a .54 rifled bore in his sleep. As others said, just keep dialing because it can be frustratingly hard to reach him but once contact is made you will be pleased with his service.

 

[Valkyrie45]

Thanks to all of you for your input, I'm going to ponder on it a while.