Building Matchlock smoothbore

[Leonredbeard]

TN
Since I was pretending we can go ahead and assume that I killed the elephant and my servants dressed it out for me and took the meat to the nearest village. Hee, Hee!
volatpluvia

 

[mckutzy]

right above the fish, it also looks to have one on the front with the lock,

 

[Leonredbeard]

Mckutzy,
Yes, it does have a scallop on both sides. I am pleased myself at the way it came out. I have a round scraper with different radii. It looks like a metal volute. At one spot on the radius it fit the two scallops just right.
volatpluvia

 

[Musketeer]

Hey, volat, I assume you made those lock bolt inlays out of some kind of brass sheet/plate? If so, what thickness did you use and how were they cut out? Thanks. :hmm:

 

[Leonredbeard]

Musketeer,
I used eighth inch thick rolled brass. I designed the inlays on card stock, cut them out with a scissors, glued them to the brass sheet. Then I could see them clearly to hacksaw them out. Then file, file, file, drill holes, polish, with block and emory cloth and they are done.
volatpluvia

 

[Musketeer]

Thanks, volat. :thumbsup:

 

[Leonredbeard]

Musketeer,
I did get a spring fashioned and installed on the lock. The dog returns right smartly and there is enough trigger pull so that you know you are pulling the trigger.
Well, we did make a lot of smoke and noise yesterday. We introduced a number of neighbors to the matchlock. At the end of the shooting when almost everything had been packed up, our host introduced me to another neighbor who had just arrived. He said the gent had never shot a muzzleloader. Can you imagine your first experience firing a muzzleloader is a matchlock?! Well I loaded and primed the Lively Bounce right quick and let him shoot her. He was pleased, to say the least!
Here is a pic of Audie shooting Lively Bounce.

Here is a pic of one of the neighbors shooting Carol Ann, Audie's Dutch 1630s musket.

Now I don't know how well I shot. Everyone was shooting at my deer target. The object was to shoot everyone else's gonne and let the neighbors shoot our gonnes. Fun was the order of the day and we had a lot of grins.
volatpluvia

 

[Musketeer]

That looks like lots of fun. Confoundit! :grin: You're getting me in the mood to try and build my own matchlock now. That's got to be especially satisfying to go out and successfully shoot something you actually put together yourself. :hatsoff: What were you guys using for slowmatch? Did you get a chance to try any of the hollowed out sash cord? :hmm:

 

[Leonredbeard]

Musketeer,
I was using some cotton match cord that I bought already nitrated. At the Ft. Frederic Market Faire in April I bought 50 ft of quarter inch three strand hemp cord. I nitrated it the other week. I soon switched to the hemp. I find both hard to keep lighted between shots. But it was still a hoot!
volatpluvia

 

[PitchyPine]

I find both hard to keep lighted between shots. But it was still a hoot!

Hmmmm wonder what`s up with that, my cloths line cotton rope stays lit till ya put it out. :hmm:
Neat pics bro, looks like fun by all, smoke and noise ya can`t beat that. :thumbsup:

 

[Leonredbeard]

Ya know, Pitchy,
I've been thinkin about that. I did not nitrate the cotton cord, it does a bit better than the hemp. I think the hemp is wound so tight it doesn't absorb enough of the nitrate. Now when you pull the center out of the cotton cord the nitrated water can enter from the center of the cord as well as from the outside. That should make the match cord work very well. Maybe I shall go get my cotton cord out of storage and pull some center out and try that. I may have to have ten feet of totaly reliable cord for the first day of buck/doe rifle season.
volatpluvia

 

[PitchyPine]

I don`t understand what ya mean about pulling the center out, the 100 percent cotton cloths line rope doesn`t have a center that you can pull out,
The whole rope soaks up the nitrate. If you can`t get it where you live let me know and i`ll send you some.

 

[bingo1952]

Dissolve your nitrate in hot water and put the cord in while still hot; it will penetrate the cord much better.

 

[Leonredbeard]

Pitchy,
Another member somewhere said that the cotton cord with the nylon center can be used by cutting short pieces and pulling the center out.

Runnball,
Thanks for the tip. I will have to try that.
volatpluvia

 

[PitchyPine]

I see, well if it don`t work out give me a shout and i`ll send ya some pure cotton rope. :thumbsup:

 

[mckutzy]

its amazing how many rope and cordage dealers have "all cotton rope" or sash cord, and its poly cored even tho it says all or some times 100% cotton, im still trying to figure out what to do with the 100' i have of the stuff. :cursing:

 

[PitchyPine]

its amazing how many rope and cordage dealers have "all cotton rope" or sash cord, and its poly cored even tho it says all or some times 100% cotton, im still trying to figure out what to do with the 100' i have of the stuff. :cursing:

I was surprised to find mine, found it at Mills Fleet Farm and is 100 percent cotton through and through.

 

[Leonredbeard]

Pitchy,
This week I was busy nitrating hemp cord using runnball's method. I tried some short pieces, each cut from a different length that went into the jar. I thought at first that it hadn't worked, as all three pieces kept going out. But as each piece burned closer to the end it burned better. I lighted each four inch piece where I cut it off from the longer cord because the end was unraveled. The unraveled ends burned with sparklers. The ends dried more easily than in four inches. So I realized that I did not have them dried sufficiently. So they went into the mother in laws oven (electric) on warm. I will try short pieces again tomorrow before going out Monday to hunt turkey with the Lively Bounce. The last two lengths are still in the oven as I write this.
volatpluvia

 

[PitchyPine]

Glad it is maybe working out volatpluvia, i`ve dried mine in the oven also and it drys it fast.
I can`t remember if you said you have tried the 100 percent cotton rope or not ???

 

[Leonredbeard]

Pitchy,
I have some pure cotton rope that was nitrated and sold to me at Ft. Frederick. It works very well in that it keeps burning. It is when you fire the gonne that you have trouble keeping it lit for the next shot. I am taking it out tomorrow with the lively bounce for turkey. I figure it will burn all day. If I only need to shoot once it doesn't need to keep burning. But if I need a follow up shot, I can trim it and relight it. I will have my bic along. Hee Hee. I did not even look for my cotton cord that has a nylon core, yet.
volatpluvia