Some questions

[standslong]

Last fall I went to a flea market where I got a Traditions Kentucky rifle kit in a brown paper bag.There was a parts list and nothing else,on checking all the parts were there
This is my plan after cleaning up the inletting I am going to assemble the kit and see what wood has to be removed for the best wood to metal fit I can get
I am not looking for show piece just a decent looking deer rifle,I have talked to a friend who has 1 ( factory assembled ) who said his rifle is spot on and has dropped deer out to 80+ yds
Iam going to need help on finish,fitting and bluing or browning
thanks in advance
Jackthedog

 

[Eric Krewson]

The first advice I would give you as a beginner is not to use a Dremel tool on your build. They can get away from you in the blink of an eye and really mess things up.

Look up some previous threads of folk rebuilding these types of guns to slim them up and make them look really nice.

 

[MSW]

that old guy from Alabama is spot on - leave the power tools in their respective boxes... even the relatively modest "Dremel" will get you into show-stopping trouble in (literally) a couple of heartbeats - much faster than your reflexes will cope with the damage and get the tool disengaged. Part of the fun of building these guns is that you 'sneak up on it,' and thus get a really great wood to metal fit. Most of the guns which are home built still have way too much wood on them ... go to where you think you're taking off too much, then about ten to fifteen percent more.

as regards metal finish, there are several very nice rust brown or blue finishes out there ... this site will be a great resource. For the stock, i would recommend TruOil or Permalyn ... there may be others out there which are as good, but i've not tried them and see no reason to depart from what works. Do not fall for the siren song of "BLO" (Boiled Linseed Oil) or BLO / turpentine mix ... they will fail in the field.

You may want to get a copy of The Gunsmith of Grenville County, by Peter Alexander. https://www.trackofthewolf.com/Categories/PartDetail.aspx/321/1/BOOK-GGC
It will set you back about forty bucks, but this is a good investment if you consider that once you read it, you will avoid ruining parts, having to wait for their replacements to arrive, and then there's the time in purgatory for the bad language ... just don't go there ...

only buy tools as you need them, and buy the best ones you can afford. especially chisels ... if you don't know how to get the edges neurosurgery sharp, you should let your search engine find you some good on- line stuff about sharpening ... the edge you get when it comes from the factory is not sharp - it's just ground... you will need to sharpen and strop your own edges ... yes ... strop, as in razor sharp... dull edges will get you hurt, and getting bloodstains out of a nice stock is a real pain in the %^&* ... don't as me how i know...
:cursing: :redface: :redface: :redface:

good luck with your project, and send pictures ... we love pictures!

 

[standslong]

Thanks to both of you,NO Dremel,get book,and keep in contact with people who have been there
JACK

 

[standslong]

Thanks to both of you,NO Dremel,get book,and keep in contact with people who have been there
JACK

 

[Eric Krewson]

There are a lot of videos on you tube about assembling a Traditions Kentucky kit, here is an example;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bckHzUNkm18

These kits tend to be very slab sided in the forend, when you make your kit, work at making the forestock oval instead of flat sided.

Another thing is the lock molding, the kit comes with one a mile wide and clunky looking. Look up pictures of these rifles (google Traditions Kentucky rifle) and see how much better thinner lock moldings look.

 

[Eric Krewson]

Big ugly lock panel;

I tried to find a picture of a slimmed down panel but could't, they were all butt ugly.

A guy on here did a really nice rebuild of one of these kits with proper lock panels. Perhaps you can find the thread.

 

[Zonie]

Eric is talking about the width of the flat surface around the lock when he talks about the lock panel.

Notice in the picture, the width along the bottom of the lock plate is about 3/8" to maybe 7/16" wide.

That is a lot wider than the real guns had so you might want to think about tapering the bottom of the stock from the triggers up leaving maybe 1/4" or so of the flat surface.
The area along the top of the lockplate can also be tapered to get a similar width along the top of the lock plate.
If you do this, don't forget to reduce the size of the flat area on the other side.

Generally speaking, the Frontier rifle is a continueation of the rifle imported by CVA.

Some of the older CVA's had rather poor locks.
By the time Traditions started importing the gun, most of the locks were OK but not the greatest.

The barrels were always good shooters so yours should be accurate if it isn't rusted in the bore.

Have fun.

 

[MSW]

again, the Alabaman is right ... good videos abound ... here's a link to Duelist 1954's vid on u- tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxPpfCA8T6k

if you take the time to watch the vids (some of them are longer than they need to be, but that's just one guy's opinion ... free and doubtless well worth the price) you will be much less likely to be overwhelmed by the whole deal.

Good luck with your build!

 

[VsTrees]

Thanks for the pictures of how not to do it. I've read about leaving too much wood around the lock but now I've seen it. I'm building a flintlock right now... haven't got that far yet, but will. Again, thanks for the pictures.

 

[Eric Krewson]

A TC is on the same lines, you should end up with something like this; I actually removed a bunch of wood from an original TC Renegade stock to make these lock panels. I could have gone smaller but I want the gun to look like a Renegade.

 

[standslong]

A big thanks to all who replied for a while there I was begining to feel a little like the guy who sold the kit at the flea market-1 step at a time and keep in contact with you all
JACK