New to me vent liner, your opinion please

[bud in pa]

My first FL was a Pedersoli Kentucky. The gun was about 20 years old when I bought it. I had a few flashes in the pan. I bought a new TH liner and checked on some BP blogs about flash hole sizes. I don't remember who told me to check out the Chambers White Lightning liner. After looking at pictures of that liner I decided to cone the inside of my new liner. I used 2 different size drill bits, went all the way through with the smaller bit and about 1 half to three quarters through. As long as my flint is sharp I never experienced a flash in the pan. I also surprised a lot of my friends when they saw how fast it would fire.

 

[Larry (Omaha)]

Coning the vent hole creates a venturi effect which increases the speed and pressure of the explosive wave. That will have some effect on what happens with the flash, and probably increases its effectiveness in squirting the flame deeper into the main charge. Some bright soul could probably figure out some way to measure that effect. I figure that if the Old Boys (who had to make a living with their guns), took the time to do it; there was most likely a good and tangible reason. So I cone my liners, leaving the shortest throat I can. Works for me.

Conning is not questioned at all here, with respect to that style being a better vent. What end of the liner is your preferred end? You speak of increasing the flash, which a cone should do, but did not clarify/specify which end of the vent works best in your opinion.
Thanks for posting
Flintlocklar

 

[oldwood]

For years been using those cheap , 1/4 "x 28 thread per in. , "file it off to the barrel surface vents" Only mod is drill the vent hole to 1/16 " The are inside coned. No problems.Instant Ignition...............oldwood

 

[flntlokr]

Conning is not questioned at all here, with respect to that style being a better vent. What end of the liner is your preferred end? You speak of increasing the flash, which a cone should do, but did not clarify/specify which end of the vent works best in your opinion.
Thanks for posting
Flintlocklar

I make my liners out of set screws. I drill a 1/16 hole through the bottom of the set screw socket, and cone the hole using a countersink from the outer end. I have also run a drill as big as can go down the socket without damaging the hex, and just touched the bottom to make an angled surface, which I then drilled through for the flash hole. (I don't think that changed anything, so I stopped doing it.)

 

[nhmoose]

The gun shop at Colonial Williamsberg has an original tool for coning the inside of a vent.

New type is a die grinder [Dremel on steroids] with a ball mill on a lung shaft and go easy on the cut.

oldwood When I had my lathe in the shop I always made my own that way. Never bought a liner and used a common thread for them.

 

[oldwood]

NHMoose............I thought I was maybe the only guy that would admit he uses tools like a die grinder . Use mine to install butt plates , and when Shaping stocks from the blank. Perhaps another humorous idiosyncrasy,due to my impatience , use four dremel type tools w/different , most used , bits in each one . Hate having to interrupt some task on a m/l rifle build just to change a bit. To go a step further , I bought a power tool called a Bad Dog Biter. ( Sheet metal nibbler , driven by a drill motor.) It's a sheet metal cutting tool , that's the fastest thing I've ever used to cut out sheet metal patch box parts and inlays. Never been able to use one of those saws w/the thin metal cutting blades. All I did was spend more time changing broken saw blades than working on cutting. Sorry , I'm off in the weeds............oldwood

 

[oldwood]

NHmoose.......Assuming you're choosing a touch hole liner to install in a traditional m/l rifle , there are many types. The reason I choose to use the $2.00 ones w/ screw driver slot is , they are already internally counter sunk. I file , or mill off the screwdriver slot once installed. I'm not a fan of removable touch hole liners. I've had to repair too many rifles w/damage to lock mortises when touch hole liners are improperly removed and reinstalled. Custom m/l gunbarrels are made w/lead bearing steel ,and the threaded holes for touch hole liners can get worn and sloppy from constant removal and reinsertion creating a safety hazard . ............hope this helps , oldwood