muzzle crown

[eph289]

I have just relined a barrel with a 54 cal.1-70 twist liner. What angle should I put on the crown and how much crown do I need. Later I may want to cone it also but for now I think I'll just crown it. If anyone would like to comment on coning I'd be interested in that too.
thanks for help

 

[Stumpkiller]

Tis is from L.C. Rice:

CONING
"I do not offer coned muzzles and do not have personal experience shooting barrels so modified. Therefore, I remain neutral as to the practical merits of coning. My policy is to warrant workmanship and materials. Custom alteration such as coning voids the warranty.

"Recommendation: Should you elect to cone, shoot the barrel with its polished 60 degree crown for an accuracy base line. After coning, again obtain a base line for comparison."

Coning tools are available from Joe Wood, Amarillo, Texas 806-353-3032

I have one of L.C.'s barrels and I do not use a short starter (well, rarely use one. I have a 1-1/2" one hooked to my favorite ball block and I do use that). The radius crown is enough that I can press the ball flush when I cut at the muzzle with hard thumb pressure.

 

[Claude Mathis]

Here are some previous comments on coning...
[url] http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/128713[/url]
[url] http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/116326[/url]
[url] http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/96465[/url]
[url] http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/92987[/url]

 

[Stumpkiller]

This is extracted from an e-mail I received from Don Getz:

Personally, I no longer use a coned muzzle gun. This is just MY preference. I remember quite a few years ago, a fellow up our way by the name of Dave Motto won the chunk gun shoot out at Friendship with a little 40 cal. rifle. He came home, had a reamer made to cone his barrel, and after coning it, it tightened up his groups. We still cone quite a few barrels, we don't push the procedure, merely because we don't like to do it. Actually, the little tool that Joe Woods makes does a better job than what we do.
His tool does a longer cone, and, I think if coning is done right, it will not hurt accuracy, and will surely make for easier loading. However, as I stated above, I do not shoot any coned barrels. I still do some over-the-log shooting, which requres good accuracy. I don't know of anyone in this sport that use coned muzzles.

 

[Roy]

I guess I'll address the crowning question. I use a round stone (for a dremel tool) that is about twice as big as the bore and a piece of sandpaper. I put the stone in a manual hand drill take a small square of 220 sand paper and place this between the stone and the muzzle. Crank the hand drill using light pressure and replace the sand paper when needed. This will also remove burrs when you shorten a barrel. :thumbsup: Doing this should remove an equal amount all of the way round.

 

[DrTimboone]

I coned my .54 with one of Joe Wood's coning tools. Absolutely just as accurate after coning and a whole lot more fun to load...no short starter. Coning took the crown away........ :thumbsup: