Thinking I got a decent deal but knowing what I was buying would need some work, I purchased what I thought I knew to be a fireable Miroku/Ultra Hi version of an 1805 Harper's Ferry pistol repro. The lock appeared to be the same as the locks of my old Japanese .67 pistol, and the barrel breech looks identical. I noticed it was stamped "Tower" and thought simply that somebody had swapped out the orginal lock with a replacement. Years ago, I handled a pistol that looked identical to this one, but with the standard Miroku/Ultra hi low eared buttcap instead of the tined buttcap that real Harper's Ferry pistols had. The one on the "gun" I'm discussing is sort of an in-between, but I assumed that was just a variation that Ultra Hi made.
When the pistol arrived, I was tickled. Although of course it wouldn't be historically accurate, I though it would be fun to shoot, and I got a deal on it that I couldn't pass up. I should have passed it up, lol.
I noticed the vent was missing, but figured it just meant I'd had to drill one. Not too big a deal. Then, I dropped the rammer down the bore and it stuck out 2 inches or so past where it should.
Turns out, the bore was never fully drilled. I take this as evidence that the Japanese British style pistols were made by cutting out the whole barrel shape tang and all, drilling the bore and vent in a blind drilling situation. Safe enough with reasonable loads so long as there's enough metal at the breech (like the early cast handcannons.)
Don't know what to do now. The lock seems to be functional, but not hardened as it would not spark. I plan to harden the parts and try to get a spark out of it, and finish boring out the pan to a proper shape. Might make an ad looking for a barrel from the firing version of the gun. Maybe I can find a machinist to finish boring the barrel?
Thoughts amd advice appreciated. May this be a lesson to us all to make sure you can see a vent hole in a picture before buying a gun online. I have kicked myself multiple times. I should have known when the seller listed it as replica, but in my snobbery I thought that they had simply listed it wrong. I was humbled. Perhaps this will be a neat project nonetheless, and at least others might learn from my folly.
When the pistol arrived, I was tickled. Although of course it wouldn't be historically accurate, I though it would be fun to shoot, and I got a deal on it that I couldn't pass up. I should have passed it up, lol.
I noticed the vent was missing, but figured it just meant I'd had to drill one. Not too big a deal. Then, I dropped the rammer down the bore and it stuck out 2 inches or so past where it should.
Turns out, the bore was never fully drilled. I take this as evidence that the Japanese British style pistols were made by cutting out the whole barrel shape tang and all, drilling the bore and vent in a blind drilling situation. Safe enough with reasonable loads so long as there's enough metal at the breech (like the early cast handcannons.)
Don't know what to do now. The lock seems to be functional, but not hardened as it would not spark. I plan to harden the parts and try to get a spark out of it, and finish boring out the pan to a proper shape. Might make an ad looking for a barrel from the firing version of the gun. Maybe I can find a machinist to finish boring the barrel?
Thoughts amd advice appreciated. May this be a lesson to us all to make sure you can see a vent hole in a picture before buying a gun online. I have kicked myself multiple times. I should have known when the seller listed it as replica, but in my snobbery I thought that they had simply listed it wrong. I was humbled. Perhaps this will be a neat project nonetheless, and at least others might learn from my folly.
