L&R Locks

[The Crisco Kid]

What's the general opinion of them as to quality? I used one years ago and it seemed fine. I'm looking for a good back action lock and am not sure if I want to restore an old shotgun lock or just buy a new one from L&R.

 

[MAC1967]

Very good locks in my opinion . . . only complaint in my opinion is often their mainspring seems too stiff . . . great people to work with. I bought a Manton flinter on Ebay that was advertised as New unused . . the mainspring broke and L&R replaced it with a better one ( I think for free) as if I was the original owner, even though I was totally honest with them. It was a year or so ago I don't recall the details, and I have not finished my build, but I do remember that I was very impressed with their service and their professionalism.

 

[GANGGREEN]

I think a lot of the more serious builders that know what a tuned lock should look and act like will tell you to avoid them and that the Chambers locks (among others) are a better deal for only a few bucks more. That said, I've had several L&R locks and they've been fine. Full disclosure, I did send one to Cabin Creek for tuning once (I can't even remember what was wrong with it or why I sent it) and I've had it for a long time since then and it works flawlessly.

 

[French Colonial]

Does Chambers make a back action lock?

 

[Kansas Kid]

I’m left handed so a big fan of L&R locks since they make more choices for me. I do own others but the L&R locks have been good. Used the little Manton style last winter on a Tenn 32 cal hog rifle. Fastest lock I ever used.

 

[user 34300]

Expect to tinker tune and possibly replace some parts, depending on your ideas on how a lock should be made. They a made from cast parts that are assembled quickly. The lock will work as received. Do not expect a high quality perfectly fitted lock. That kind of lock will cost you double or more.

They are a board sponsor here, that is appreciated.

 

[rich pierce]

Does Chambers make a back action lock?

No

 

[Norman Brooks]

L&R are mid-range on quality. They need to be tuned (polished and deburred, spring tension played with). Jim Chambers locks are a lot better...

 

[pooch156]

My dealings with L & R have not been satisfactory. Quality control appears to be non-existant. I believe that a lock should be properly tuned and functional right out of the box. L & R locks are not. Buyer beware. Be prepared to have the lock tuned by a professioal. Something the buyer needs to keep in mind. I had a bad experience with both a L&R Manton and a Bedford County lock. I have purchased a Chambers Large Siler, Small Siler and a Late Ketland with no issues whatsoever. I don't mind paying $25.00 more for quality and peace of mind. Food for thought . . . .

 

[erhunter]

If you get an L&R send it right to Cabin Creek for tuning. Brad & Shane Emig do great work. They tuned my L&R RPL #5 and it works great! Just make sure you don't ship it FedEx, they lost my first lock I was sending to Cabin Creek. Send it USPS Priority, insured mail.

 

[ohio ramrod]

I have had three L&R locks and was happy with all three.

 

[The Crisco Kid]

That's what I was afraid of, mixed reviews. For the price difference I wouldn't expect the L&R quality to be that of the new Kibler I have. However, as far as I know no one else but L&R makes a back action lock. I suppose I will see if I can repair and tune the old shotgun lock I have on hand and if that doesn't work I'll buy the L&R. The reason for the back action lock is to build a bench copy of my ancestor's original. There's a thread about a Joe Meek rifle build from 2008 here but I don't know how to attach it. His rifle, Old Sally, is pictured in Hanson's book The Plains Rifle and it has a back action lock. It's probably the ugliest rifle I've ever seen but I sure enough wouldn't say that to Ol'Joe himself!

 

[tenngun]

Over the years I’ve heard complaints about them. I’ve had a couple and they were the best out of the box lock I ever owned…. But that was many years ago.
Just like lemons sometimes companies make diamonds. The worse lock I ever got was a Davis, but generally had good luck with Davis.
Chambers makes a good lock, but I have a couple of Siler and one is an older chambers and one from an unknown maker, I can’t tell the difference

 

[PathfinderNC]

I have an L&R Durrs Egg that is 38 years old. (The mainsprings back then we’re cast.) It recently broke, and they asked me to ship the lock to them . They replaced the main spring which required drilling a new mounting hole in the plate and filling the old hole. NO cost except for shipping.
it came back within a week and is great. 38 years old and sparks like a champ to this day.
Yes, I am pleased with the company from my limited experience and very pleased with this lock.

 

[Ben Meyer]

I bought one of their RPL locks. Regardless of what they say, they are not drop in replacements. THAT said, I sent it back to them, they worked on it and now it works fine. A+ for customer service.

 

[Eric Krewson]

I sent a RPL lock back twice and ended up fixing it myself, I couldn't believe a professional lock builder would sent me a lock back in the condition my lock came back in TWICE.

I admit this was only the two locks I got from them, a flawed first and the much worse flawed replacement they sent me.

 

[rich pierce]

A percussion lock is a pretty simple mechanism compared to a flintlock. I recently used one of their back action locks. I did the usual tinkering and it works fine.

 

[Sidney Smith]

My smoothbore came with an L&R Queen Anne style lock. I've heard people say L&R stand for Loose and Rusty. They were not far from the truth. My lock was rusty out of the box, and the frizzen is not a tight fit where the frizzen screw is. It's as if someone filed the frizzen a bit too much where the screw goes through it. I can't tighten it up no matter what I do. As a result I have had some issues with this lock. It works OK, but is nothing spectacular.

Would I ever buy another on, probably not.

 

[Rifleman1776]

I have had good luck with L&R locks. That said, I consider some tuning an expected procedure when buying a lock. Have had very lousy experiences with Davis locks. My Chambers was extensively rebuilt/tuned by Dave Person and is excellent. I cannot comment on out of box Chambers. But, in the past, all Silers were very good if built by a qualified person. (original Silers were only sold as kits)

 

[Flintlock2024]

Speaking from experience, do not replace a factory Lyman GPR lock with a L&R lock.
Pan and touch hole do not line up and there is considerable gaps between the L&R lock and the stock.
The performance is the same or worse than the factory lock.