How bad did mess up my dovetail?

[Spikebuck]

If the factory drill marks are still there you didn’t go deeper than they did. It will be okay.

Personally, I think there's a big difference between very small holes drilled to a "certain" depth and a relatively large piece of metal removed to virtually the same depth. The risk of exposure to a groove coming to the top under that large of a surface area is much greater.

 

[Spikebuck]

Welp….took the plunge and said “F’IT” and tried my hand at doing a dovetail. Yeesh. It ain’t purty, but the rear sight is on my Hawken. Any “constructive” criticism would be appreciated.

SnyperX...one thing to keep in mind is that many of the cast sights come with bases that are WAY too thick. Just because a sight comes with a thick base doesn't mean you have to create a dovetail to match that. If I get a cast sight with a base that is ridiculously thick, I take some of that base thickness off while I'm doing other clean up on the sight. You have a lot of flexibility on how much to remove if you don't have a dovetail on the barrel already, or have one that is relatively small compared to the new one. Dovetails can be quite shallow and work very well. When I make my cuts with a hacksaw, I don't go any deeper than the teeth, as a general guide. From there, after carefully smoothing the bottom of the dovetail, it's a safe file only.

I see you are in Wisconsin. Anywhere near La Crosse?

 

[Sidney Smith]

Don't forget....make a "safe" file if you haven't.
Safe means one side of the trianglular file has been declawed; the file part sanded down or removed so other way.

You're better off buying a dovetail file. I tried making my own safe file, and it turned out badly. The two sides that I filed the teeth off were not parallel, and they were not smooth for their length. I could not get that thing to make even a half decent dovetail. Promptly threw it in the trash, and bit the bullet and bought one from Brownells. They're not cheap, but they're worth every penny.

 

[Daveboone]

Tie it to a tire with a double charge and pull the string from a distance. If it holds...then your sight is good to go and you learned a lot. If it doesnt hold...you learned even more.. Chances are you will still have some barrel to practice dovetailing on.

 

[1BadDart]

If it's close enough to the breech can the barrel be set back?

 

[SnyperX]

SnyperX...one thing to keep in mind is that many of the cast sights come with bases that are WAY too thick. Just because a sight comes with a thick base doesn't mean you have to create a dovetail to match that. If I get a cast sight with a base that is ridiculously thick, I take some of that base thickness off while I'm doing other clean up on the sight. You have a lot of flexibility on how much to remove if you don't have a dovetail on the barrel already, or have one that is relatively small compared to the new one. Dovetails can be quite shallow and work very well. When I make my cuts with a hacksaw, I don't go any deeper than the teeth, as a general guide. From there, after carefully smoothing the bottom of the dovetail, it's a safe file only.

I see you are in Wisconsin. Anywhere near La Crosse?

Not near La Crosse, near the Madison area.

 

[Archer 756]

Proof the gun its easy to do Dixie Gun Works has information on proofing a gun in its catalog.

 

[Davey Boy]

Get a larger rear sight and re- do that mess.

I very much like this idea.

I congratulate you for making the effort and it looks great for jumping in.

Make a new rear site using that one to give you what it should look like.

Making the new rear sight yourself will educate you in working metal.

When you begin making a new rear site, make extras. That will give you practice.

Don't hesitate to make one from aluminum, wood, or carved from soap to serve as a guide for making an iron one.

 

[billraby]

I don't think that one is safe. I would replace the barrel. Use this one to practice cutting dovetails.

 

[hinamanra]

It may be alright, if your worried about it though, have a welder fill it with a tig welder, he'll be able to control the heat and keep the temp low enought not to warp it.

 

[SnyperX]

I don't think that one is safe. I would replace the barrel. Use this one to practice cutting dovetails.

i am likely doing a new barrel, but so far finding a replacement has been futile. At this stage it will likely be some time before I can run down a replacement.

 

[Old Hawkeye]

If the factory drill marks are still there you didn’t go deeper than they did. It will be okay.

WRONG!! The diameter of the drill holes is a fraction of the area exposed by the ridiculous filing of the dovetail area. Maybe you should be the first one to fire it!! Then let us all know how that worked out.

 

[The Crisco Kid]

I've been told by folks who know that you never want to weld on a barrel. It will put a tight spot in the bore. We don't know if the dovetail is too deep without knowing the bore and barrel dimensions. It's an easy calculation to make. As far as how much remaining metal is safe to shoot I don't know. It is sure too deep for the sight though. I'd try to file a filler to fit the dovetail but a little oversize outside and peen it in to close the gaps. Then recut it. A good square is needed to keep the bottom square with the barrel flats. Also before you start, glue the bottom of the sight to a dowel or stick of some kind to hold it and clean up that cast sight. Anyone who has built rifles has buggered up something somewhere but the thing is not to do the same thing twice! The other thing to do is to use the rest of the barrel to practice dovetail cuts and buy a new one who you have the process mastered.

 

[SnyperX]

It may be alright, if your worried about it though, have a welder fill it with a tig welder, he'll be able to control the heat and keep the temp low enought not to warp it.

I like this idea. I actually have my own MIG welder, but have a couple of tig welders/metal shops near me.

 

[hawkeye2]

TIG welding ain't no miracle worker. The base metal still has to be molten to fuse with the filler rod, same end result.

 

[deerstalkert]

I don't think that one is safe. I would replace the barrel. Use this one to practice cutting dovetails.

from God's mouth to your ear!
the pressure spike in the barrel at 1600fps gain lasts for 14 inches. after that the pressure drops precipitately. if that dove tail is within that 14 inches it is in the danger zone. can't tell, but is it (the gun) worth it?

 

[2 shots]

proof it ??? if it does not let go the first or second time what about the 8th, 20 th, 100th, what about someone down the road who doent know and uses a heavier charge? scrap the barrel [ or shorten and replug to a carbine] not worth the risk. heard many times an old damascus breechloader is safe to use with low brass smokeless shells. some may hold up forever , but a range near me has a wall with a bunch of them that did not. do you want to be the guy behind that gun???? just a pennies worth for thought

 

[hinamanra]

If you're anything like me. You just thought: I got a mig. Don't do it, by the time you get a puddle started its too hot. lol.

 

[Boston Bill]

Jed

https://jedediah-starr.com/closeup.asp?cid=90&pid=918
Move it as needed to obtain the desired length. But...you are already too deep for this to help.

Jedediah-Starr has an impressive collection of black powder revolvers in stock!

 

[SnyperX]

If you're anything like me. You just thought: I got a mig. Don't do it, by the time you get a puddle started its too hot. lol.

Oh I had no intention of trying to use my mig welder.

Again my plan is to replace the barrel, but finding a replacement barrel for the Traditions St. Louis Hawken has been a dead end so far. I may end up buying a second kit for $360, but really really really don’t want to do that.