I was given a cva hawkins 50 cal. rifle. the bolster on the side of the barrel that the nipple screws into was broken off. I tried to remove the remaining part of it with an easy out, but couldn't. I then drilled out the broken part. to remove the breech plug, I had to heat the end of the barrel red hot. Long story sort, all came out fine and I have a new bolster on the way. My question is, seeing that I heated the end of the barrel red hot, will the rifle be safe to shoot once all parts are reassembled. Any input will be appreciated. thank you
-
Friends, our 2nd Amendment rights are always under attack and the NRA has been a constant for decades in helping fight that fight.
We have partnered with the NRA to offer you a discount on membership and Muzzleloading Forum gets a small percentage too of each membership, so you are supporting both the NRA and us.
Use this link to sign up please; https://membership.nra.org/recruiters/join/XR045103
cva hawkins
- Thread starter stosh
- Start date
Help Support Muzzleloading Forum:
mjulihn
40 Cal.
Hate to be a stickler here, but the rifle is a "Hawken". If you removed the breech plug (which is not recommended) you must make sure the joint is properly sealed when you reassemble the barrel. If not, hot gases can escape near your face. I would take it to a competent BP gunsmith if you have any concerns about safety.
Rogue River
45 Cal.
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2007
- Messages
- 911
- Reaction score
- 3
Check out this post and it will show you what you're dealing with! The heating doesn't concern me as much as the removal of the drum. Someone with more knowledge will chime in, I'm not a gunsmith! :idunno:
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/263405/
Last edited by a moderator:
Welcome to the Forum, wish you woulda found the place a little sooner.
None of us can see what kind of damage has been done too the threads,,OR, just how hot you got the metal. :idunno:
You say you drilled out the drum, as you can see in the photo in the linked thread, the drum is threaded not only through the barrel but into the plug too. It's those threads that keep the drum attached to the barrel when fired and not become a projectile launching sideways or back into the shooter, neither one of those scenarios would have happy endings.
I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say;
NOPE, it ain't gonna be safe!!
Mark it down as a lesson learned, and start looking around for another barrel. Barrels can be found sometimes here in the classifieds and fairly frequently on auction sites.
Others will have input too, that's just my opinion and worth just what ya paid for it,
Good Luck to ya Freind, :wink:
Kinda scary, without being there in person to SEE what's been done, it's really hard for anyone to give a blanket yes or no answer on that one.stosh said:
None of us can see what kind of damage has been done too the threads,,OR, just how hot you got the metal. :idunno:
You say you drilled out the drum, as you can see in the photo in the linked thread, the drum is threaded not only through the barrel but into the plug too. It's those threads that keep the drum attached to the barrel when fired and not become a projectile launching sideways or back into the shooter, neither one of those scenarios would have happy endings.
I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say;
NOPE, it ain't gonna be safe!!
Mark it down as a lesson learned, and start looking around for another barrel. Barrels can be found sometimes here in the classifieds and fairly frequently on auction sites.
Others will have input too, that's just my opinion and worth just what ya paid for it,
Good Luck to ya Freind, :wink:
ohio ramrod
75 Cal.
- Joined
- Aug 21, 2008
- Messages
- 7,473
- Reaction score
- 2,207
The threads most likely where damaged when You drilled out the part. So fitting a new one in will be a problem. Heating and slowly cooling the barrel will not weaken the barrel since it wasn't hardened in the first place. The breech plug can be replaced if the threads in the area both male and female where not damaged. But getting the parts properly alighned will be critical.Replacing the drum will be the problem you face and with out actually seeing the parts I can not give you a definate answer as to safety. I have repaired several CVA's that people "screwed up" the breech plugs/bolsters on and it is not a simple fix but it can be done safely, sometimes you actually need to cut off and machine the breech plug / drum area. Leaving you with a shorter but safe rifle. :idunno:
Welcome to the forum. 
If you didn't damage the threads when you drilled out the old plug and you get a suitable replacement one you should be fine.
As Ohio ramrod said, the barrels on these muzzleloaders are not heat treated like modern cartridge rifles are.
The steel can be heated red hot and cooled without changing its strength.
If you didn't damage the threads when you drilled out the old plug and you get a suitable replacement one you should be fine.
As Ohio ramrod said, the barrels on these muzzleloaders are not heat treated like modern cartridge rifles are.
The steel can be heated red hot and cooled without changing its strength.
