It's Hammer Time

[musketman]

Why do some percussion hammers have a long "V" notch cut into the front of the hammer nose recess skirt and others do not?

Is this to give a place for you to get a pick in to aid stuck cap removal?

 

[Ohio Joe]

I don't know this for sure, but I thought it was put there to help deflect the breakup of the cap outwards away from your face on firing, should the cap fragment as they sometimes do...

 

[roundball]

What Ohio Joe said: Safety

 

[jrdavis]

...its put their so we have to ask this question :bull:

 

The "V" notch is for the cap to partially fragment to the front allowing easy purchase for removal & to direct any escaping pressure to the front, away from your shiny eyeball. With hammers that don't have this feature, it is a good practise to make this cuttout with a 3 cornered file.
: When removing the hammer for this modificaton, do it with the lock OFF the gun. If you try to PRY the hammer off the tumbler, you stand a very good chance of breaking the tumbler. The hammer must be removed with a punch that fits the threaded hole without damaging the threads.
Daryl

 

I recently switched to the fire-shootin' RWS/Nobel #11 caps. I tested them well after sunset with my Remingtons & CCI mags. A bigger 4th of July Show with the Nobels. I think the front slit on my hammer helps release the cap ignition pressures. That's the direction the shootin' flame was goin' anyways... away from my face. If T/C intended it that way -- they did a fine job.

 

If the TC hammers are now built that way, it's good they chose to DUPLICATE this common factor of the originals of the 19th Century. I have yet to see an original 'working' gun that didn't have the notch on the front of the hammer's nose. They were all tht way.
Daryl

 

[Myra lou]

let me see.... my British Pattern 1853 Enfield Rifle Musket.....my 1858 Parker-Hale Enfield Rifle Musket.....and my 1861 Colt (Special)contract rifle musket.......and various confederate copies DO NOT have the notch in the hammer nose......how ever both my Remington 'Zouave' Rifles and both my 1841 Mississippi Rifles do have the notch in the front of the hammer 'nose'.........john......

 

Inteersting- I believe the Mauser .54 commission rifle also has the knotch as well as about any Hawken rifle I've seen closely enough to see the hammer's nose.
: The Original cap-lock English Sporting rifles in the Tower of London's collection all have a knotch in the hammer nose as well. It is usually the first thing we do to a hammer when fitting to a rifle being made.

 

[Myra lou]

I haven't looked but maybe the notched hammer's face makes a full contact on the rim of the nipple and needed a gas escape route.......maybe the non-notched hammer's face made a angular contact with the nipple rim and used that opening as an gas escape.....like I said I haven't checked this out.....one would have to check this using the origional issued nipple and cover the rim lightly with 'prussian blue'.....john......