In which I attempt to build a Pecatonica Blunderbuss

[Drain_Bamage]

Well, I finally did it. After lusting over it for the better part of a year, I finally broke down and bought the Pecatonica Blunderbuss parts set.

http://longrifles-pr.com/blunderbuss.shtml

I'm very new at this muzzleloader building stuff, but I figure this should be a good learning opportunity and might make for a fun winter project. I'm a recovering machinist so I'm pretty comfortable working with metal, but I never have been much of a woodworker. My plan is to use this thread as a "build log" of sorts to detail what goes into building one of these things and the challenges faced by a rank amateur such as myself. This will be the thread I kept looking for before embarking on this project. It will be picture heavy and may include a few videos, but we'll see. I'll do separate posts about the stock, lock, barrel, furniture, and some basic test fitting as I get started. There will be an initial flurry of posts while I document things, then it will slow down and updates will be few and far between as most of my project timelines can best be measured on a geological timeline.

Ok, so first things first... let's see what's in the box!



Stock, barrel, bag o' parts. Simple enough.

I'd asked for a chunk of walnut to test stains and I also received a thin plank of walnut, similar to the maple the barrel is taped to in the image above, but not pictured. That piece of maple will find a home with another project. That's it, other than the mess of styrofoam peanuts and the ramrod.



Furniture, hardware, lock, and ramrod tip & jag. First impression is that it is in fact a complete set of parts but will require quite a bit more fitting work than I was expecting. More on this later.

As you can see, most of this stuff is iron and steel which fits well as I've intended to be a very functional "working" gun, so no inlay or other fancy stuff. This is definitely not going to be davec2's Copy of an original blunderbuss thread, or Noeyebrows' English style blunderbuss build and 4 bore English Blunderbuss is done threads, I simply don't have the skills to match those guys. A mans got to know his limitations.

Next up: The Barrel

 

[Drain_Bamage]

Here's the barrel, in all its .75 caliber glory.



22" OAL w/tang, 20" from muzzle to shoulder, 19.25" from muzzle to the bottom of the bore. I appreciate that 0.75" of breech plug engagement. Its about 1.125" across the flats of the hex, 1.23" OD and 1.1 ID at the muzzle. She weights in at 2lb 13.5oz. No makers mark, no proof marks, no flash hole.



The breech plug is indexed to the flats and then it appears the hex was draw filed, including the tang.



It sits nice and flush but is a little rough and will require some cleanup.



When I initially placed the order I'd asked for the underlugs to be installed, then thought better of it and called back the next business day and asked that they not be installed. That didn't make it into the final calculus and both lugs were installed. The rear is on a small dovetail.



The front is soldered on.



I'm not sure what type of solder this is, and while its a little rough it does seem to have wetted completely under the lug



As someone coming from TC Hawkens and Renegades with big chunky lugs for keys, these things are absolutely tiny! The width on both is 0.425" and height is 0.175"!

I don't know if its worth removing the underlugs while I fit the barrel to the stock, we'll see.



The "wedding band" features are very nice, if not a little chattery. I'm hoping I can maybe clean that up a bit.



The "business end" is impressive but not exactly what I expected. I suspect the flare may have been a separate piece that was added later, probably welded on.



It's quite rough and I'm hoping I can polish it out while keeping it concentric, I wouldn't want to ruin the transition.

Apparently there is a 10 image limit per post so that's it for the barrel.

 

[Drain_Bamage]

On to the lock and trigger!



Here is the "L&R Queen Anne Flint" lock, as supplied by Pecatonica



I'll admit the surface rust was a little surprising.



It's going to take a lot of grit to get this cleaned up. I haven't decided how I want to finish this yet, I'm thinking maybe some sort of browning process to keep it subdued.



L&R stamp on the backside of the lock plate.

It didn't include a flint so I can't test it, and I still haven't bothered to see if a file skates across the frizzen but I'll update when I get there. L&R says 3/4" flints on their website page for the Queen Anne lock, so I've ordered a couple 3/4 x 3/4" square FLINT-ENG-6S from Track. Unfortunately their 3/4 x 7/8" FLINT-ENG-6 is currently out of stock, but I'd like to get a couple of those to try out as well.

The trigger assembly is very basic, almost primitive looking.



It's got some odd casting artifacts in the surface too. I can't really find a match for it anywhere online.



The trigger pad is very wide and the whole thing is pretty rough. Also no provision for mounting. Hopefully I can knock that cross pin out so I can break it down and clean it up. It's really sloppy in the bar/plate so that might get re-cut and perhaps earn a bronze bushing. I need to keep reminding myself I'm not building the space shuttle, but after years of manufacturing prototype surgical tools its going to be hard to keep those urges in check.