swivel breech

[fatboy]

Hi has anyone ever heard of a Lenard May swivel breech perc rifle any info would be helpfull

 

[gordy]

In some of the books and catalogs I have back in West Texas,theres an artical on a man who was makeing custom swivel breech guns I think that Mays was His name.Wether He's still alive and makeing guns i can't say.He made them in many combonations .50cal rifle w/.69cal. smoothbore Etc.He also made them in Flinters,They wern't cheap!My Wife is back in Texas at the moment ,if I can remember the book it's in, I'll have Her send it here. :thumbsup:

 

Leonard Day made swivel breeches for years. Don't know if he still does. perhaps Lenard May is a typo??

Cody

 

[fatboy]

Yea cant spell worth a dam should have been Leonard Day. Looking for info as to quality of work on other pcs I have come across one and dont know much other then it seems real nice and made well perc .45 .

 

I have a short-barreled double flinter that I made with a swivel breech from L. Day. Quality of the breech was not 100% - a little bit off center and in locked condition, you could still wiggle the barrels a bit. As the breech and the lock belong togather, you are stuck with the lock that is provided and this was not top quality (not as L&R etc.). But with some work, it all can be corrected. The gun is not a bad shooter.

Robert

 

[Zonie]

In my 1980 Dixie Catalog, there is a write up about Leonard Day. At that time, Dixie was selling his Swivel Breech
Rifles at $415 for Precussion and $540 for Flint.
At that time, that was a Lot of money.

Day lived in Massachusetts and strived to keep his rifles PC.
The Flintlock was stocked in curly Maple while the later era precussion was stocked in plain maple.
The barrels have wood panals.

The guns the article speaks of used .450 land to land Numrich barrels and they recommended using a .435 dia ball.
It also says the locks were custom built by Day using Dixie internal parts

 

[Gary]

Jim Chambers was selling a swivel breech flint action. $1,100. It's excellent but way beyond my budget. :cry:

 

[Stumpkiller]

Below is a link to a discussion from last week or so in the Percussion section.


Leonard Day Swivel Breech - click me

Small world.

 

[fatboy]

Thanks for the info Stumpkiller totally didnt see that before I posted here blind in one eye and cant see out the other ::

 

[flintkeeper]

Speaking of swivel breech systems: is there a book or a booklet available, that best describes and shows the guts of such a gun? any thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[fatboy]

Hey Flintfan I dont think so but there maybe some out of print data that someone has . I would be interested in seeing it ! Heard rumores of someone else making these but cant pin a name down yet will post if I find anything .

 

[cwrdwt]

TRY HERE - http://www.swivelbreech.com/

 

[flintkeeper]

Made you wonder,eh? ::
Thank you for your input!

By the way, there is a booklet sold by TOW, it's about pistols of different lock systems; the author (if I'm not mistaken) is Bill Newton (?). Does anybody in this forum have it? Supposedly, there is a swivel breech pistol description or a drawing there. :hmm:I was thinking, a swivel breech rifle HAS to look the same as the swivel breech pistol.
I might be wrong.
What say you?

Flintfan.

 

[flintkeeper]

Miked, I just went to the website you mentioned, and YES, that's what the doctor ordered! Thanks! :thumbsup:

 

[mule ear]

I have purchased Dave Waters book. Its excellent, an easy read with supurb drawings and pictures. Well worth the $$$. Even if you don't make a gun exactly like he describes, the book is a fountain of knowledge. :m2c:

 

[Dave Waters]

I saw Leonard Day and his son at Friendship this fall.
He is still active.
His address is:

3 Kings Highway
Westhampton, MA 01027

His phone is 413-527-0184

Dave Waters