smoothbore dilema

[Huntinfool]

Ok fellows here's my problem. I've got a beauty of a 12 bore flintlock. It's a half stock that kind of puts one in mind of Remington's first gun if you ever saw it.

As best I can tell it's bored with a modified choke. I've been kicking around for a long time of honing the choke out of it so I can shoot rb also. I'm thinkin' that would make it much more versatile as well as easier to load.

I figure a brake cyl. hone would do the job. I've got calipers and mikes to tell when enough is taken out. I know that I may get a tighter patterns with mod. But I'm not so sure I once had a cyl. bore 12 ga. that shot very even patterns good enough for small game huntin' out to 30 or 35 yards.

Any thoughts on this.

Chuck Goodall
"The Original Huntin' Fool

 

I've done quite a lot of work on 10, 12 and 20 bores with the brake hones and they work just great. I found emery cloth glued to the pads with cyanoacrylate glue works better then the factory stones. If memory serves, I used 220 grit on a 1,000RPM drill. The work goes fairly quickly, so priodic checks are needed, of course. A tiny bit of choke is OK, say in the .005" range and will shoot shot beter than cylinder. If the patched bll goes down, it wil come out OK. There is not very much obturation in a round ball, but some.
; Friends of mine load patched .684RB's in shotshells and keep them for Moose while duck and goose hunting. They'll shoot into 5" or better at 50yds. through a full choke with a normal trap-type load. I wouldn't worry about .005" in the .12 Flinter, but would try for that or a bit closer to cylinder.

 

[musketman]

Another option would be to have the barrel cut down past the choke and then smoothed out and reblued...

Some people do this, it depends on if you want to loose about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of barrel length...

Just a thought...

 

[Huntinfool]

Thanks for the info Daryl when and if I decide to go that route I'll keep you in mind if I have any problems.

MM good idea I never thought of that, but actually it might be a better idea. If I was to cut the choke off then I could mount a front bead as it were so as to be more on the spot for rb aiming. Ya reckon?

On second thought after looking at it just now it would be a lot more work to cut it off.

First I'd have to cut not only the barrel but the rib under it as well as the ramrod. Then I'd have to re-brown it and remount the front bead.

Either one of you have any thoughts about how this will effect my patterns either negative or positive?

Thanks for your input!
Chuck

 

[Rebel]

Huntingfool i have a Navy Arms double barrel .12 ga. with both barrels cylinder bore. I just took it out and tried it with rd balls. See results in this category under title ".12ga. double and rd. balls." With shot, mine works fine with the cylinder bores out to about 35-40 yds. I use it for everything from dove and quail, to ducks and geese, with a lot of jackrabbits thrown in too. I much prefer the cylinder bore over a choked bore. A lot easier to get wads down them too.

 

[musketman]

Either one of you have any thoughts about how this will effect my patterns either negative or positive?

It will load easier and swing faster on target, less weight and the pattern should be equilivant to true cylinder bores...

Barrel ribs and ramrods can be resized easy enough, no real big issue there...

 

Cutting the barels off is no big deal, but then with patience, neither is grinding the chokes out.- Provided!
: There is a question needs answering- is there an END-CHOKE - that is a cylinder section between the choke and the end of the muzzle. This is common on European guns, but not on some british, Belgium or American guns. with them, the choke starts some 2" to 2 1'2" behind the muzzle with the tightest part right at the muzzle, with no cylindrical section. The cylinderical section, ie:"End Choke" I speak of can be up to 1 1/2" long and will be the same size as the tightest part of the choke.
: If this is present, there is a LOT more grinding needed as that entire section has to be ground out.
: As I understand it now, this barrel has a .710" bore dia.(modified) as .702 is Imp Modified. You could still easily use .684 ball and patch, even though choked.
: The easiest way to solve the 'problem' is to cut off the barrels & ribs, shorten the ram rod at the small end, and carefully re-fil the ribs with solder(without separating the barrels), drill and replace a bead of small silver blade for a front sight. TRACK sells a little beauti of a silver blade with heart-shaped base for fusils- this one is very nice.
: Perhaps a gun smith should do this job? You have to be careful with heat with soldered ribs and barrels. Belgium guns are normally brazed.
: If running a set of calipers as far into the barrel as possible, gets you a larger measurement than right at the muzzle, the gun does not have an 'end' choke'. Special depth measurers are handy for this.

 

[Huntinfool]

Thanks for all your help fellows. I think I'll try it with a rb and see how it does before I do anything. My main concern about tryin' that is keeping the ball tight agaist the powder.
BTW it's a single barrel.

Thanks,
Chuck