Building a Fusil de Chasse

[Rob M.]

Can’t wait to see a picture of it all done even if the picture doesn’t do it justice.

He// ! The pictures make it look better ! LOL ! it'll be a few days , gotta sit with those chemicals on the iron a while

 

[PathfinderNC]

Second shot out of the Fusil . Haven't even proofed it yet . I'm up to a dozen shots through it now ,LOL ! TDM ...loving my powder measure ! Man ! This Fusil is d@mn FAST and sweet ! Lordy ! Its good to be an insane middle aged hillbilly gunbuilder !

Fantastic!

 

[Rob M.]

Thanks bud . Crazy thing is ... There are still marks from the course sand paper , 40 grit , you can just make out if you look hard enough esp. near the buttplate . There always are and two things ...I'm not sanding it anymore , its too much , AND if I did it would go too low or make a dip In the wood . I have no idea how Ken Netting does it . He uses oil not varnish or shellac , and it shows EVERY little detail and the smallest sanding scratch . He's amazing , I have no idea how he does it ...he must sand for a week . The originals some times had tool marks left so the guns made today certainly have better finishes than the originals did from the maker . Shellac is historically correct and does I deed help hide flaws ....thank goodness . I do smooth the finish and wax it too . I like the looks of that process ...not so " varnishy bright and shiney " if you will

Looks like all that dang sanding paid off. Beautiful smooth stock and finish. Fast ignition, just great!

 

[Rob M.]

Disassembled lock ....Wire wheel and de grease ... file off mold lines

 

[Rob M.]

Solder on front blade / sight . Use paste flux . I use 50/50 solder . Best . Folks ask where I get my sights . Its nothing but 20 years worth of saved brass scrap . Solder it to barrel then shape it . The originals were tiny tiny ....mine bit bigger .

 

[Rob M.]

And this finish job is an experiment of using Laurel Mountain Forge browning solution .Ive messed around d using it but not for a complete brown job on a gun so ....we'll see . Something g tells me I should have stuck with Plum Brown , we'll see ....

 

[Hatman/2nd line]

Shootin her upside down ... 2F load and prime

All I can say is WOW! That is sweet!

 

[BillyC]

Might be a dumb question but I’m a rookie so here goes, why solder they sight on? How do you adjust POI, by moving rear sight ?

 

[Rob M.]

Might be a dumb question but I’m a rookie so here goes, why solder they sight on? How do you adjust POI, by moving rear sight ?

Hi bud ... Always feel free to ask questions. Its a shotgun so just like modern shotguns the front blade is just like that bead out on the end of a shot , its just a point of reference . If a rear sight were put on this or any other flintlock fowler ( colonial name for shotgun ) then , yeah , the front could be filed down for elevation and the rear sight could be adjusted for windage .

 

[Rob M.]

All I can say is WOW! That is sweet!

Thanks bud . That gotta have fast ignition or they dont leave my shop

 

[BillyC]

Hi bud ... Always feel free to ask questions. Its a shotgun so just like modern shotguns the front blade is just like that bead out on the end of a shot , its just a point of reference . If a rear sight were put on this or any other flintlock fowler ( colonial name for shotgun ) then , yeah , the front could be filed down for elevation and the rear sight could be adjusted for windage .

Oh boy, it really was a dumb question then. LOL
Thanks for the response and I really enjoy your tutorials.

 

[Rob M.]

Naw ! Dont know till ya ask ... Very kind thanks . So rare to find folks that like to talk trade guns ... Loving this forum . Take care bud

Oh boy, it really was a dumb question then. LOL
Thanks for the response and I really enjoy your tutorials

 

[Rob M.]

Barrel looking good ... Octagon sections I ground and filed onto the barrel .

 

[Md80runway23]

Rob, thanks for the great conversation yesterday. Just now finding these build threads. These are great! Keep up the good work!

 

[Rob M.]

Rob, thanks for the great conversation yesterday. Just now finding these build threads. These are great! Keep up the good work!

Oh , hey bud . Was good talkin with ya. Always love talkin trade guns ! Glad yer on here . Take care

 

[Rob M.]

Sorry no pics and or updates lately . The iron parts and barrel were sitting browning and now they are soaking in oil . The Browning solutions are first hard to get them started then afterwards they are hard to get them to stop so I soakem in oil for couple days to stop the process . I'm making a new oil trough to soak my barrels in too . Hopefully couple more days and I'll be doing final assembly on the Fusil de chasse .

 

[Rob M.]

Wipin oil off all the iron parts and assembling her . Slowly ... I'm really digging the texture on the barrel and ramrod pipes that Mtn Laurel leaves on the iron parts .

 

[Rob M.]

Little trick I learned ... So the oil and solution doesnt leave cr@p on year ramrod ...I sand clean the insides of the ramrod pipes before mountin them on the stock . The entry pipe gave me fits tryin to get it mounted back in stock ....Ughhh !!!! Always somethin ....

 

[BillyC]

So after I asked my dumb question the other day I did a little research and determined that a fusil de chase and a trade gun are both shotguns so what is the difference then, stock design? Hardware? Finish?

 

[IanH]

Little trick I learned ... So the oil and solution doesnt leave cr@p on year ramrod ...I sand clean the insides of the ramrod pipes before mountin them on the stock . The entry pipe gave me fits tryin to get it mounted back in stock ....Ughhh !!!! Always somethin ....

You can also "card" the inside of the pipes with a stiff steel brush or bronze cleaning brush, it leaves the brown so it won't rust anymore later but knocks off all the loose stuff that schmutzes up the ramrod.

I got a heavy-duty hole brush set with brass, steel, and nylon brushes in all manner of sizes from hobo freight for $5 and use it on all sorts of stuff.

Also a question: do you neutralize the LMF with a baking soda solution before oiling it?