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Traditions 3 band Enfield kit build

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Mooney 78865

Mooney 78865

40 Cal
MLF Supporter
Joined
Jun 29, 2021
Messages
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Location
Clovis CA.
Hi all. New member to the forum and I wanted to start a thread about building a Traditions 3 band Enfield musket rifle. I've done a bunch of searches on the web and on YouTube but have found nothing definitive about the Traditions Enfield, at least not in the last 3-4 years and that was only one.
Anyway, the kit should be here in the next couple days along with a Birchwood-Casey barrel bluing and stock finishing kit. I have also ordered .577 and .575 Minie' Bullets to start the process of finding out what will shoot best.
I have been shooting BP pistols for a few years and have wanted to buy a kit now that I've just retired and have some time.
I have a few questions already but figure I should wait until the rifle shows up so I can attach pics if needed. If you folks have hints and tips on how to get started I'd appreciate it.
 
Today I received the Traditions 1853 Enfield kit I had ordered from Deer Creek last Friday.
The folks at Deer Creek did an outstanding job packaging the kit as well as the Birchwood Casey finishing products I had ordered. The rifle arrived unharmed and ready to go. Packaging inside the Traditions box was also well done. The barrel was set in the stock and secured with tip ties to prevent it from shifting. All of the hardware was packaged by "group" for easy identification, and secured in the container with foam cushioning inside the formers used to outline the rifle. I was pleased with the level of detail. I also noticed that the Traditions box had been opened and resealed. My thought is the folks at Deer Creek inspected the contents prior to shipping. Good for them!
I have been watching various Traditions rifle builds on YouTube while I waited for mine to show. I thought I had a pretty good idea of what to expect. Actually, I was wrong. The butt plate and stock have already been sanded to match, the barrel tang was let in, and with the exception of having to remove a little material from inside the stock, the lock fit perfectly. To say I was amazed is an under statement. Don't get me wrong, there is a lot of sanding on the stock, fitting of the end cap, and the three bands, and of course doing the brass bits. But the band shoulders are in place and the end cap is really minimal. I seriously doubt there is 3-4 hours wood work to prep the stock.
The barrel seems to fit very well with the end cap needing to be "let out" to be perfect. I even "powdered" the plug end where it fits up against the stock, and it fits tight as well.
In about an hour and a half I had installed the lock, trigger and the barrel. Had to come inside because it was going so well.
Tomorrow morning I'll go out and lay out a plan on stock, to damn hot to play in the garage this afternoon!
IMG_20210701_151553_3.jpg
IMG_20210701_152112_3.jpg
IMG_20210701_162352_2.jpg
IMG_20210701_162404_3.jpg
IMG_20210701_162659_1.jpg
 
I couldn't stand it and went back out after dinner and did some filing on the stock to set the 3 barrel bands and did some work on the end cap. Still need to relieve the area where the barrel sits as it is about a 1/16th or maybe 3/32 to high. I can get a little flex in the stock to the barrel with it in place, but no movement at all with it removed. Not a big deal. One thing I noticed is the trigger pull is crazy light! Will need to look at that at some point as well.
 
Took my 3 band Enfield hunting with 60 grs of 2f and the original Minnie many years ago. Did shoot my deer but it was a day that I will always remember. The front sight was so small and thin, I could not see it in the woods. I kept sighting on the sight base as I thought that it was the sight. I missed 4 close deer and could not figure out what I was doing wrong. The only reason that I got a deer was that it was looking over it's shoulder when I shot at it's shoulder and I hit it in the head.
 
I've spent a couple hours sanding this morning, I was wrong when I posted earlier that there was only about 3-4 hours of wood work. I'm well past that and am only down to 150 grit paper. Still, it's why I bought a kit. Getting "sharp" edges that are even/square, and allow the shoulders on the bands to sit properly has been a lot of it. Patience is the key. I have all 3 now set and the extra material leading up to their resting point removed. I'm pretty happy with the result.
I've been looking at pictures of original 1853's for reference, which has been a big help. Still not sure what to do with the 3 bands though. Leave them as they come in a steel finish, or sand and blue them with the barrel. Can't really tell in the images I've seen. Thoughts?
 
Mooney, here's a copy of the Sealed Pattern 1853 3rd Model from the Royal Armories. It appears that the barrel bands are polished & blued.
I like your project and dedication to going slow and getting it right. Looking forward to more photos of your work.

[click to enlarge]
P53 Sealed Pattern.jpg
later, Mike
 
So I have all of the sanding complete through 220 grit. Multiple times out in direct sunlight to look for any "holidays" then mark them with a pencil, sand and repeat.
I have wet down the stock with water to raise the grain, will sand with 400 grit and repeat until smooth. Tomorrow!
All of the bright work is contoured matched to their corresponding attachment points so those are off waiting to be filed, sanded, steel wool and polished. I figure I will do that work while the stock is drying during the various processes of finishing. Then there is the barrel. I would like to remove the laser etched markings. Unfortunately they are pretty conspicuous. Fortunately, they were not aggressive when they applied them so hopefully it will not be to much of a chore.
Attached are a couple pics of today's progress. The stock is only wet with water to raise the grain, but it does have an interesting grain. I'd like to end up with a shade or two darker than the water look in the picture. And the brass is just the brass.
And No, the stock is as smooth as a baby's bottom! Looks different huh? The fore end is in the second pic foreground. MAYBE, I'll be ready for color tomorrow....
IMG_20210702_184324_4.jpg
IMG_20210702_182456_3.jpg
 
Sam squanch said:
Is the Guinness to stain the stock with?😀
Click to expand...
Na, it's the extra stout. Probably to dark.
Nice thing with Guinness, when it's 103 outside it sure goes down smooth warm! Took me the first 10 years of marriage to get my wife to not put it in the fridge! Cool, not cold please. We've been married 39 years and she STILL won't drink it. Bless her heart....
 
 
I would not go more than 220 grit on the stock with the sand paper. I've heard it said going finer will not produce any better results.
 

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