Patchbox Dimension ?

[kmeyer]

Hi all. I am putting a vertical hinged, 3 piece patchbox on a verner. I have all three pieces drawn on the stock, but have not begun inletting yet. With the measurements I just took, I can route out a box in there of about 2.5 x 1 inch. I will be it 1/2 inch deep I think. No more than 3/4 inch. Is that about right? Can some of you post the size of your openings under the lid? I am surprised at how much of the stock it is taking up though. I thought there would be more room above and below it. Thanks.

 

[George F.]

Hi K. The patchbox cavity should be cut after the entire patchbox is inletted. After it is inletted, and the filler piece on the lid end is installed you can lay-out the cavity. It should be a 1/16" revealed edge from the upper and lower side plates, about 3/8-1/2" exposed from the hinge, and at the catch side its dependent upon the location of the release spring. You need enough room for the spring and wood to attach it to, leaving enough as not to weaken the back of the cavity( you don't want it to break or chip out). That's 1/16" on the long egdes and 3/8-1/2" on the edge under the hinge. As for the depth, 3/4" is a good depth, just make certain that you have the room as you don't want to break out underneath.
I just re-read yor post, and you are using a 3 piece patchbox. A 4 piece patchbox has the finial, the lid, upper and lower plates. A 3 piece, is that a side opener? If that is your critter, I'm guessing that you have a finial, upper plate and a lower plate with the lid, I'm sorry I have yet to make one of those, but the revealed edges I would think that they still apply. The lid on the side opener attaches on the inside edge of the cavity I believe.
How about it anybody??? Good luck.....George F.

 

[kmeyer]

My mistake. It really is a 4 piece. I have it drawn on the stock almost identical to the dimensions you have listed. Like I said though, the cavity as it is now, will only be 2.5 x 1 inch. I'm trying to figure if thats the norm. Thanks.

 

[George F.]

HI K, Is this a patchbox you made? or is it one out of one of the catalogues? My lids measure 1-1/2" wide, but I use a 5-1/4" butt plate. What size butt plate are you using? If its to narrow, it will throw off the proportions, 1" seems kind of narrow. My first gun, had a short butt plate 4-1/4" with a 1" lid and it looks a little out of proportion. Just something to think about. I know its a pain to redo something, but it's better to do that before you put the knife to it. I filed through two patchbox finials after I had inletted them. Had to Make a new hinge barrel, fit the hinge to the lid, recut them, and inlet it back into the existing mortise. Talk about a pain in the a___!! One other thing that you should remember is that brass work hardens, make sure it's annealed well at the start of inletting. Another problem I had I couldn't understand, I couldn't get the finial to lay flat in the inletted stock so I kept going deeper, and when I filed it flush with stock, I caught myself just in time before I filed through that one too. It just needed to be annealed again and tweaked a little.
I wish I had this forum when I first got started, I wouldn't of made as many mistakes, but making them gave me more confidence and experience...
........Good luck......George F.

 

[kmeyer]

It is a Pecatonica box. I guess my real question is the cavity length? The lid is only a 1 1/4 so 1 inch opening will be fine and leave a litte wood before the side plates. My question is, is 2.5 inches long enough for the cavity? Visually it looks small, but is that the norm? How long were the cavities in a pc long rifle?

 

[Mike Brooks]

I make my cavities 3 to 3 1/4" inches long, or about as long as the lid is. I also make mine at least 1" deep. All the old ones I've sen are deep.