Several years of rust, DARN HORSE

[flintbuilder]

I have a 54 cal Green Mountain Barrel that I haven't shot in about 6 years. While on an elk hunt my horse threw a fit and smashed into the butt of the stock and snapped in two. :barf: It was my first build and I almost cried. It must have had a week point cause it didn't take much to brake it. I am planning on rebuilding it finally. When I put it away I cleaned and swabbed the bore real well and lubed it with bore butter. Unfortunately I never got back to the barrel and it now has some good rust going on. I don't know how bad it is, if it's pitted or not. I need some help figuring out what to do. What do I do? How can I tell how bad it is, if it is worth fixin, and how do I fix it? I also have put 300 to 400 balls down the barrel and still had trouble with blown patches. I ran 0000 Wool down the barrel hundreds of times and still had troubles. What do I do? HELP! :idunno:

 

[Birddog6]

Send it to Bobby Hoyt and have him make a .58 cal out of it. :wink:

Keith Lisle

 

[Zonie]

If you don't know how bad it is then get out the steel wool, a cleaning jag, a cleaning rod and plan on using a lot of elbow grease.

Scrub the bore from end to end until your tired.
Then do it again.

Do not be tempted to use Naval Jelly to remove the rust. It will leave a frosted surface which is exactly the kind of finish you don't want in a bore.

After scrubbing and wiping and oiling and scrubbing and wiping and oiling, take the gun out and shoot it.
Pay special attention to the condition of the fired patches. If they are not torn or ripped your barrel will probably shoot about as good as it ever did.

If it was so badly damaged that there is no way to clean up the pits and damaged surfaces then give Birddog6's comments some serious thought.

PS: Don't fail to let others know how poorly Bore Butter works as a rust protection.

 

[gonzomann]

I would recommend using green "scotchbrite" on a jag if the steel wool isn't doing the trick.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Pay attention to the spent patches you shoot. They will not only tell you where the patching is being cut, but HOW. If you don't know how to read patches, invest in Dutch Schoultz's Black Powder Accuracy System.
http://www.blackpowderrifleaccuracy.com/

I have seen many new rifles that were cutting the patches at the muzzle, because of sharp edges on the front of the Lands. All that was required was to polish the crown of the muzzle well, and the problems went away. Most of what you are PROBABLY seeing is ONLY SURFACE RUST. It will clean out quickly. Then you can have someone do a bore inspection to check for deep pits.

The most important part of the barrel for accuracy is the last 8 inches behind the muzzle. If you don't have severe pitting in that 8 inches, the gun should shoot just fine. :thumbsup:

 

[BrownBear]

I'm pretty sure I'd have used the rifle to shoot the horse, broken stock or not! :grin:

I'm with Keith and Zonie. If it doesn't straighten up and fly right with just a little bit of messing around, go ahead and have it opened up to a 58. You'll like that bore so much, you'll kind of wonder why you bothered to try reviving it as a 54.

 

[flintbuilder]

Thanks guys, I will go run some wool down it and get my daily exersise in. I don't have a way to go shoot it until I rebuild the stock so I can't check the patches just yet. How expensive is it to have it turned into a 58 cal? That might be a good option if its not oo costly. Have any of you used Dutch Shoultz's accuracy system. I would like to learn more about accuracy and the like. Is it about as good as any other information out there?

 

[paulvallandigham]

I would not have recommended Dutch's system if I didn't use it, all the time. I keep my copy on a shelf above my computer, to use to help answer questions about patches, on this forum.

Dutch also takes phone calls from his customers, and helps them work out problems. I have called him several times, to discuss questions that come up on this forum. He is a member here( you can find his personal information under "Dutch Schoultz", in the Members section on the banner across the top of this page), but doesn't always post. He is both shy, and modest, and doesn't want to be seen as blowing his own horn.

He figured out how to work up accurate loads long before chronographs became cheap enough that everyone can own their own. For the beginner BP shooter, his system will augment anything you get from a Chronograph, and reading your spent patches will actually tell you more than you can learn from a chronograph. :thumbsup:

paul

 

[Birddog6]

How expensive is it to have it turned into a 58 cal? That might be a good option if its not too costly.

Best to talk to talk to him, then it is not a guess. :wink:

Bob Hoyt
700 Fairfield Station Rd.
Fairfield, Pa. 17320.
# 717-642-6696.

 

[Brent]

Throw away the bore butter next time.

 

[ohio ramrod]

Before scraping or reboring the rifle. I suggest pouring a lead slug and lapping the barrel. P.M. me if you need detailed instructions on how to make a lead lapping slug. :hmm: