Im an *****, HELP!

[enfield]

I don't know , what should be wrong or complicated in screwing out the breech plug .

Being not only a shooter but also a collector , occassionally I've already picked up a new gun for my collection with a clogged ignition tunnel or , even worse , being charged with whatsoever , and I REALLY hate the idea for storing a loaded weapon !

I clamp the barrel as hard as I can into my strong vice , the jaws being protected with brass or aluminum and with a heavy , adjustable t-wrench I turn off the plug and clear the barrel , vent hole etc. If that shouldn't work in the first attempt , I pour some rust remover into the muzzle and let soak for a day or two .
There is really nothing artificial in that .
If Your wrench is equipped with teeth , just grind them smooth or also underlay with some brass shim . It is important to have a firm grip .
The breech plug out , I push the obstruction out ( from the muzzle ! )
Cover the threads with some copper paste and screw the plug back , exactly to the position where it has been before unplugging ( mostly You will find a punch mark that has to coincide barrel/plug .

I never had any problems with that method !

If You don't have a strong vice / wrench , ask Your friendly neighbour or mechanic .

Sure - You shouldn't do that too often or Your theads will wear . But I think , this experience should have been the only one for having learned Your lesson .

Good Luck

 

[Flinty Scot]

His gunsmith should sort this out. I'm not familiar with that maker's breechplug system but I wonder if the tip might have been snagged by slotting the ramrod tip; fitting it with a thin spreading wedge; then fitting it back into tip and tapping the rod to spread the rod tip enough to grab the tip collar might be enough to grab and pull it out.
I realize that wedging it too much could lock the whole mess down there.
I don't have workshop access, so I look for low tech ooptions.

 

[Grenadier1758]

I remember many years back, that I broke off my cleaning jag with brass threads at the breech of my flint lock rifle while I was cleaning it at home. My flint adapter didn't blow it out with the CO2. Where I live in St. Louis County, the local ordinances frown on firing a gun in the back yard, so putting powder in the through the touch hole was not an option besides with the flat breech, the jag was past the touch hole anyway.

I was the one who breeched it and I had the equipment to unbreech the plug from the barrel. Pushed the broken jag from the barrel and finished cleaning the rifle. Posted on here to pass on my I got all sorts of advice saying I should have shot the jag out, used CO2 and done most anything but unbreech the gun. By the time I got all that advice I had the rifle cleaned and back in storage for my nest outing. I appreciated the advice, but the deed was done.

I am sure by now the OP has his rifle back and hopefully fully ready to go to the range.

I wrote my tale of woe (rather experience) to let the OP know that others, in this case namely me, have done things that were idiotic. Using a brass threaded jag being one of them. The point is that we can recover from most of these lapses in judgement and make them a learning experience with little harm done to us other than being made to feel somewhat silly for airing our mistakes. The Browning Mountain Rifle is a very good rifle that is out of production and some care needs to be taken when doing a breech plug removal. It does have a chambered breech and the chamber could have caught the tip. For some of us its simple. We have the tools, the work benches, the vises and local help to save us. For others, removal of a breech plug is something not to be attempted. He chose the approach that seemed best for him. Hope he has a rifle that is ready to get back on the shooting line.

 

[Tinhorn]

I have a Johnathan Browning Mountain Rifle in 54. It was given to me about six months ago. While out shooting last week I had a misfire. I ended up having to put a little 4f in the nipple and shot out the charge that way. Just to be sure I dropped the ramrod down to make sure it was clear.

MISTAKE! The ramrod was stuck so I yanked on it and out came the ramrod WITHOUT one of the metal tips!

I went home and did the hot water and dawn soak hoping it would loosen up. No luck. Tried to use my cleaning rod and a patch to do the suction cleaning in an attempt to dislodge it. Nope!

I used a flashlight to look down and can see it at the end of my the barrel. It is not threaded and was only held onto the end of the ramrod with some very old glue. When people talk about never trusting a ramrod now I know why.

I've tried the following things:

- put the ramrod back down and tried to tap it back into the metal ramrod tip and pull it all out at once

- wire coat hanger

- letting it soak for an hour (maybe its lodged in fouling) then using compressed air through the nipple hole

- 4f in the nipple hole then firing a cap

- 2f filled through the nipple hole with three patches as a blank load over the ramrod tip. It fired but didn't dislodge the ramrod tip.

What do I do? My club shoot on Saturday will probably be cancelled due to Corona. Am I approaching replacement barrel time? Is there a way to screw off the rear of the barrel?

Thanks!

I am a new member, but have shot my beloved .50 Browning for 35 years, so here is my 2cents: Your rifle has a cone breech to promote fast ignition, there's no telling what is in that cone, and MY investment cast breech plug is about impossible to unscrew. You need a gunsmith that knows the Browning Cone Breech and its' internal shape. My new Browning came with a special cone shaped jag just to clean the breech. Somebody has stuck something in the cone, and maybe pulling the cleanout screw out from the center of the rams-horn nipple snail will reveal what it is. LAST RESORT FOR THE UNLUCKY- There is a small #8? machine screw in the center of the breech hook. Possibly removing it with a little heat? may give access to the fire-cone for a small .100" diam punch to tap the obstruction loose. Good luck, maybe this post will help somebody else, too. The cone is about 1" long. Hank 'Tinhorn' White, Anderson, Ca.

 

[smokepoletex]

I reassembled it and put it away for now to work on other stuff. I specifically didn't attempt to unscrew the barrel plug.

I'm in Northern Oregon (near Portland). Anyone recommend a good gunsmith?

If you haven't been able to fix the issue, you might want to contact The Gun Works in Springfield OR. They might be able to help you. Here's their number (541) 741-4118

Best of luck.

Paul

 

[FishDFly]

If you haven't been able to fix the issue, you might want to contact The Gun Works in Springfield OR. They might be able to help you. Here's their number (541) 741-4118

Best of luck.

Paul

Good advice and they are nice folks.

The OP has not been here since mid-March, like someone posted before, wonder what happened with the rifle.

 

[Crow-Feather]

I once read about a method for pulling brushes etc. out of a bore without damaging the barrel. A "cup" of thin strong metal is made to the diameter of the bore with sharp edges on the cup, and the bottom of the cup securely attached to a ramrod. Slide the cup down the bore so that it slides tween the bore and the stuck object. Then pull the cup, with the object inside out of the bore. Does it work? Don't know. Never needed to try it.