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REMOVING THOSE BARREL MARKINGS

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Parzifal

45 Cal.
Joined
Oct 24, 2006
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:hmm:
Hi everyone!
1st of all I would like to start by thanking you all for the great info and fun.

Ok now time for my question
I just received my traditions tenesee its real pretty,solid and has a good abbeit TINY lock. I am refishing the stock lynseed oil and walnut and doing the rod striping I found on here.
But now my question is ....Can I take them barell markings off or what??
Would it make my barell all unsafe?
Its my 1st rifled rock lock"all others are military smoothbores" and I know they have to be loaded tight! And if I can remove em can I just use various files and then polish the marks off with fine emory cloth?
 
You would have to take off quite a bit more metal than depth of markings to make barrel unsafe. That said, remember that lots of reproduction guns use very soft steel.

A few years ago read an article on cap & ball revolver parts hardness. The Traditions revolver steel part barely registered on the Rockwell hardness scale. An original Colt cap & ball revolver part registered 25 if memory serves.

Read an article about moving nicked, dinged or messed up metal back into place on a valuable Colt Single Action Army steel backstrap.

Author used a ratchet wrench round handle and lots of elbow grease to "roll" the metal back into original place. Some Traditions rifles have fairly shallow mark stampings so this method might be worth a try before you go the file and sandpaper route.

Good luck! :thumbsup:
 
Go up to the search button and do an advanced search on "draw fileing",make sure to use the quotation marks, you will find lots of good info there. You should be able to draw file the markings off with no problems. I plan on removing the markings on my GPR when I refinish it this year. Best of luck with your project.

Gary
 
Does anyone make a jig or guide to hold your file square for drawfiling? I just filed two barrels and its a bugger to keep that file level.
 
If you are having trouble letting the file rest on the flat, you usually are pushing too hard, and often are using a dull file. Let the file do the work for you. Reduce the amount of pressure per stroke, so that the teeth do the cutting without you putting undue pressure on the file. Its that large muscle effort in your shoulders that will cock the file from one side to the other as you are stroking it down the flat. The more pressure you put on that file, the quick it dulls. Don't do that. Let the file do the cutting, and take it easy. You will actually do LESS filing if you don't lean on the file, than if you do!

Paul
 
Removal or alteration of serial numbers, manufacturers name, trademarks or country of origin, violate federal law. Several laws in fact.
 
not all that hard tio get off , I just did one with rusting then steelwoling it down, didnt take any metal off gunlooks old and well taken care for. which ever you do, dont mess with serial numbers. Fred :hatsoff:
 
I think if you file enough to take the stamping out of the metal on the barrel, it will be obvious you did so, thus I would leave them alone. I have seen several of them filed out & can spot it right away. Usually this is on rifles a not so honest dealer has that he is claiming the rifle to be hand built & of course he thinks everyone else is a stupid as he is, & would not know the dif..... :shake:

Were it me I would leave the name & etc. on the rifle, get it finished & just enjoy it.
:thumbsup:
 
Trigger said:
Removal or alteration of serial numbers, manufacturers name, trademarks or country of origin, violate federal law. Several laws in fact.
That doesn't apply to Muzzle Loaders, dose it? I thought that was a Cartridge gun thing.
Jeff
 
Absoolutely that (law) applies to muzzle loaders. Do not remove the manufacturer's name or serial number. All guns made after 1968 by a maker who makes 50 or more guns a year are required to have serial numbers on them.

There is only one reason I know why anyone would want to remove a serial number. The gun is either already stolen, and they seek to conceal the proof of ownership, or the gun is being altered to defraud a subsequent buyer. If you make the barrel yourself, or at least install it on a gunstock yourself, you can do anything you want to the barrel. However, you cannot do something with the intent to defraud another. That is a crime under both state and federal laws. Which law sends you to jail will depend on who you attempt to defraud, where they are from, and where you do the act.
 
paulvallandigham said:
There is only one reason I know why anyone would want to remove a serial number. The gun is either already stolen, and they seek to conceal the proof of ownership, or the gun is being altered to defraud a subsequent buyer.

Reason number 3.

You are a reenactor and do not want a whole book printed on the top flat of your RELIC OR CURIO for demonstration purposes.

Not everyone in the world that is not a lawyer or cop is automatically a criminal.

:hmm:

Is it ok for me to cut the tags off of the sofa pillows?
 
There may be a couple states like CA, MA and IL that have laws for this but there are no Gun Control Act laws that apply. Below is directly from the ATF web site.


Do antique firearms come within the purview of the GCA? [Top]

No. "Antique firearms" are defined in the following:

TITLE 18 U.S.C. CHAPTER 44 SECTION 921(a) (16)

(16) The term "antique firearm" means-

(A) any firearm (including any firearm with a matchlock, flintlock, percussion cap, Or similar type of ignition system) manufactured in or before 1898; or
(B) any replica of any firearm described in subparagraph (A) if such replica- -

(i) is not designed or redesigned for using rimfire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition, or

(ii) uses rinifire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition which is no longer manufactured in the United States and which is not readily available in the ordinary channels of commercial trade; or

C) any muzzle loading rifle muzzle loading shotgun, or muzzle loading pistol, which is designed to use black powder, or a black powder substitute, and which cannot use fixed ammunition. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term 'antique firearm" shall not include any weapon which incorporates a firearm frame or receiver, any firearm which is converted into a muzzle loading weapon, or any muzzle loading weapon which can be readily converted to fire fixed ammunition by replacing the barrel, bolt, breech-block, or any combination thereof.

27 CFR 178.11

Antique firearm. (a) Any firearm (including any firearm with a matchlock, flintlock, percussion cap, or similar type of ignition system) manufactured in or before 1898; and (b) any replica of any firearm described in paragraph (a) of this definition if such replica (1) is not designated or redesignated for using rinifire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition, or (2) uses rinifire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition which is no longer manufactured in the United States and which is not readily available in the ordinary channels of commercial trade.
 
Your right ghost but to a lot of people they are. :hmm: Fred :hatsoff:
 
Last I heard this was not right anymore the director said any kind of ammo can be made now." uses rinifire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition which is no longer manufactured in the United States and which is not readily available in the ordinary channels of commercial trade;" Just what I was told calling ATF in WAS DC. FRED :hatsoff:
 
You arent kiddin, and it does it fast too.

These barrels I have look like billboards. There are 3 flats covered with garbage stamps. The thing I found is that the stamps upset a lot of metal which smashes out to the side and stands up. I drawfiled that down to the level of the barrel and it sure made it a lot less obvious and I think it will mostly go away when it is browned. At least now, it is just an depression and not a lister ridge.
 
I don't doubt that could be the case now with old cartridge guns(you'd think they would update their site then) but as far as the ATF is concerned 'antique' muzzleloaders have nothing to do with the GCA. No serial number laws in it can apply. Unless there is another non-ATF set of laws(please anyone post it if you know of them) I can find nothing to make you need a serial number. Even if you did it would not be the barrel that would need it, it would be on what houses the firing mechanism like other guns.

Having said all that I would probably leave a serial number on. Easier if they are stolen or if some day another act makes serial numbers on muzzleloaders mandatory it will just make life simpler.

Tim
 
And dirt grown in your garden ! Ive seen the place's that clean up C W repos put the # back on now in some place it's not sen so good. Well they put it another way. The guy at ATF daid with all the basic brass no rifle or handgun couldnt have ammo made up now? :shake: Fred :hatsoff:
 
Bountyhunter
If you get a barrel spinner like the one Brownells sells it will work good for draw filing. Insted of the barrel spinning it will follow the file. If you lean a little hard on one side the barrel will lean with the file. It wouldn't be hard to make one.
 
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