L&R Bedford Flintlock ?

Does anyone have a rifle with the L&R Bedford lock on it? How does this lock perform in comparison to your other flint rifles?
Thanks,
Don

 

[Zonie]

Both the Percussion and the Flintlock work fine on my Bedford (It has interchangable locks).

When I built the rifle and had the lock stripped for browning, I did polish the tumbler notches and browned the outside.
I also did a little to the inside just to add a little extra to it.

The "pull" is weaker and smoother than most of my Silar Flintlocks. I attribute this to the "link" between the mainspring and the tumbler.
Despite the weaker pull, the lock is fast and it throws a good shower of sparks.
It has never given me any problems.

Zonie

 

[JOHN ZUREKI]

I built a Bedford some years ago using an L&R flint lock. I have not shot it in some time. I don't recall having any problem with the lock itself. It sparked pretty well. I do recall having a time trying to get a flint to fit the jaws of the cock just right. They use a real small flint. A mizzy wheel would have helped. By the way, I have only seen one picture of a flint Bedford rifle. It was buit by Peter White and that lock looked more like a Ketland. I'm sure there were more percusion rifles built than flints because of the period in which most were built. There are other flint Bedfords no doubt, just don't know what the locks looked like. None of this helps you, I'm sure. OH .....my original Siler's and all my Chamber's locks are my first choice, but nobody else makes a Bedford.

 

So the half cock notch is putting the cock to close to the frizzen? Is that the reason the flints have to be short?
I am making a Bucks County rifle and I intend to re-shape the tail for the Bucks rifle. The barrel is a real long slender Oct.to round and one inch across the flats at the breech. I like the looks of the Bedford but I don't want the long square tail of the bedford on my Bucks rifle. I am still in the decision making process as to which lock to use on it.
I appreciate the response from both of you guys,
Don
BTW Zonie, that lock would look good on a neck chain it's so pretty. :grin:

 

[SusieB]

L&R locks could stand a bit of production improvement to their quality. They make so many they are really pushed to get them out the door. Regardless of who makes a lock, there is most generally room for improvement. To improve any lock, flint or percussion, begin by totally dismantling your lock and polishing the inner surface of the plate. Don't forget the tumbler hole, but be careful to only remove the gritty surface; your aim is to polish! Step thru your grits until you get to 400 or 600 on the finish. Its time consuming, but believe me, its worth it. Next, look at every spot where metal to metal contact exists and polish it. I am fortunate to have a lot of equipment in my shop. My favorite is my Scotch 3M fine burnishing wheel. I use this to highly polish the tumbler and all contact surfaces. They are expensive but last a really long time. If you take the time to polish each surface where each part "glides" instead or "digs grooves" you will improve its performance and speed. At this moment, only L&R has Bedford locks, so tuning them is the only choice short of handmade.

 

[bioprof]

I used an L&R lock on the Bedford rifle that I finished this spring. The sear had a notch in it and there was a lip on the sear notch that required about a 10 pound pull to set off the lock before I polished it. After stoning the notch and polishing the sear, it was much better. The first time I used it, I had no misfires out of 15 tries. Ignition seemed instantaneous with plenty of sparks. I am relatively new to flintlocks though, so I don't have much to compare it with. The mainspring seems a lot lighter than the Siler that I just got for my next build.

 

[SusieB]

You are doing fine! This is a great place to find years of experience to help you. Just so you know; 99% of every mainspring produced in production locks today is an investment cast spring. Most of us have learned from hard experience, that castings are doomed to have voids and imperfections no matter how good the steel or the foundry is. The result is that we have to make larger springs to be safe. Some manufacturers make the claim that a big tough spring makes the lock faster. Thats a sales pitch to justify our industry problem with cast springs. I own two original matched John Manton flintlocks and all the springs within are handforged and baby tiny in comparison to the Siler and L&R springs. Another Henry Nock lock I have has another tiny (in comparison) mainspring. All three of these locks are incredibly faster than anything you will see on the market today. And, the old locks are all handmade and show that amazing quality of manufacture which makes us look pitiful today. The springs don't have to be big to be fast or do the job!