Brescian Wheelock Progress Report

[bioprof]

My first attempt at heat treating the springs was a disappointment. While timing the wheel, I over spanned the wheel and the mainspring bent. It apparently hadn't been hardened enough. Anyway, I heated the spring again and bent it back to the correct shape. I then heated it until a magnet wouldn't stick and quickly quenched it in mineral oil. I then put the spring in a tin can with enough motor oil to cover, heated it to boiling on my camping stove, and lit the oil. After it burned off enough oil to partially uncover the spring, I let the flame burn out and allowed it to cool. It took about 35 minutes in the boiling oil. It now appears to have enough spring.

After putting the lock back together, I discovered that it works!!! :grin: I don't have a pyrite yet though, so I don't know if it will spark. The wheel does turn and the pan opens, so everything seems to work so far.

I also polished the lock plate while I was tempering the mainspring, so I will be posting pictures as soon as I replace a few of the buggered screws.

 

[ChrisPer]

Well done! you are really romping ahead. :hatsoff:

 

[Leonredbeard]

Bioprof,
congratulations. Get you some pyrites, now.
volatpluvia

 

[bioprof]

The lockplate still has some file marks, so more polishing may be in order. Then again, I have seen some 16th century lock plates that still show lots of file marks, so maybe I should leave it as is. Here's another pic:

The dog jaws seem to line up with the fence rather than the middle of the wheel. Should I bend the dog arm so that it points more towards the wheel? Any advice is appreciated.

 

[ChrisPer]

I think when you wrap the pyrite in thin leather and allow for its thickness (5-7 mm) the jaw is exactly right. Remember you can adjust the offset by the angle on the nose of the stone.

 

[Leonredbeard]

Bioprof,
You can also easily bend the dog so the pyrite gets to the wheel if it won't otherwise. I had to do that to all my wheelies.
It really looks great.
volatpluvia

 

[bioprof]

Thanks for the advice on the positioning of the dog jaws. One more line of questions that I think is probably important. Now that I have it put together, are there any parts that should be hardened such as the chain or the area around the hole for the axle? How about the part of the dog that contacts the dog spring? What is the best way to do this if it is necessary?

 

[Many Klatch]

Bioprof. Why won't flint work? I was looking at a copy of Swedish flint lock the other day that dated from 1690. The flint struck the steel flat like it would on a wheelock instead of as we are used to, yet it still threw a shower of sparks.

Many Klatch

 

[mckutzy]

i thought that on a wheel, the pyrite was generating the sparks not the wheel, ie. the flint would grind the wheel down without any sparks?.....

 

[Teleoceras]

Mckutzy:

i thought that on a wheel, the pyrite was generating the sparks not the wheel, ie. the flint would grind the wheel down without any sparks?.....

Correct. In the case of the Wheellock, the sparks come from the iron pyrite which is softer than the steel of the wheel.

On a flinter, the sparks come from the steel shavings since the flint is harder than the metal.

If flint were used on a Wheellock instead of pyrite, the wheel would be ground down rather quickly.

Slowmatch Forever!
Teleoceras

 

[PitchyPine]

Really looks nice bro, nice job. :thumbsup:

 

[Leonredbeard]

Bioprof,
I am still experimenting. I don't know what parts to harden. I am afraid that if you harden the chain it will break under the extreme stresses it has to take. I had heard that the boss at TRS doesn't harden anything but the wheel. The parts are cast from 4140 steel so it is good and tough already. When it comes to my homemade locks the metal stock is to mild to harden so I would be wasting my time.
volatpluvia

 

[Many Klatch]

Ah well, I always wondered why the Iron Pyrite was used.

Many Klatch

 

[Leonredbeard]

Manyklatch,
Don't let anyone tell you that there is anything else. Some of us have tried mightily to find a substitute that will give reliable ignition. So far, nothing exists. :blah: :shocked2: :shake: :grin:
volatpluvia

 

[pegro1]

Everything looks great bro, great job.

 

[bioprof]

Thought some of you might be interested in some history that I discovered concerning the original maker of this lock. There is a makers mark on the inside of the lock plate that I could barely make out. It has the words "Sola Sole Gaudet" around the outside of an oval and the letters G.A.G in the middle of the oval along with a Phoenix. I purchased a copy of Nolfo di Cargpena's book on Brescian Firearms and was pleasantly surprised to find the same makers mark in the book. It turns out that the mark was made by a famous lock maker by the name of Giovanni Antonio Gavacciolo. According to the book, he was considered to be one of the best lockmakers of his time. It also said that he made locks for firearms made for King Louis XIII of France and the King of Persia. It also states that the locks attributed to him could have been made no earlier than 1630's, when he was already in his fifties. He also apparently used two other marks on his locks, the letters GAG and a seal with the letters GAG under a crown.

The book also states, "At present, only the following conclusions can be suggested: A) Surviving specimens of Gavacciolo's work - however signed - considered as a whole, confirm his leading position among the Brescian wheel-lock makers of the 17th century. B) Consequently, the perfecting, if not the invention, of some individual mechanisms such as the "Brescian" type of self-spanning lock, can be reasonably ascribed to him. C) He does not seem to have contributed to the transition from wheel-locks to flintlocks. On the contrary, his style of decoration probably inspired the late production of high quality wheel-locks".

Self-spanning locks? Has anyone ever heard of such a thing? Some of the locks pictured in the book appear to have gears as part of the mechanism. Would this be part of the self-spanning feature? How would this work?

btw, my first reaction to receiving the book was disappointing. Most of the pages just describe the makers marks, and list references for each of the makers listed therein. There are no photographs of the weapons themselves, only line diagrams of selected firearms along with line diagrams of the inside and outside of locks as well as decorations found on the stocks. The abbreviations that Carpegna uses are very confusing and make it difficult to determine the maker of the pictured firearms. I am happier now that I've found information on the lock that Blackley's has copied.

 

[ChrisPer]

A couple of books I have mention self-spanning wheellocks. They do not discuss mechanisms.

 

[wulf]

The dog was rotated and used as a crank to wind
the chain and when done returned to its flat
position against the plate...one other thing is
you read down this far...I use the chain from a
ten speed bicyle on my wheel locks. They are
strong and already "done". They haven't failed in
over twenty years...I am sure that won't float.

 

[Leonredbeard]

Wulf,
Hhuuummmnnn! I looked at bike chains when building my first one. The links were too long for the lock I was working on. How did you make this work? I am all eyes. I am quite sure that if one would fit that it would give long years of service considering the stress they take on a bicycle.
volatpluvia

 

[bingo1952]

Go to McMaster-Carr's site and do a search on "roller chain" you may find something you like.