Wheellock Project

[Henry Elwood]

Almost 10 now, later this month. I recently did this Spanish piece. . .
View attachment 269842

That is a great Trabuco. I've been thinking about making something similar. I have an extra TRS 619lock, Buttplate, and Trigger Guard. May I ask who made your barrel. I'm thinking steel, about 30", and with a little less bell. Thanks, Hank

 

[Henry Elwood]

That is a great Trabuco. I've been thinking about making something similar. I have an extra TRS 619lock, Buttplate, and Trigger Guard. May I ask who made your barrel. I'm thinking steel, about 30", and with a little less bell. Thanks, Hank

Greetings,
This next piece I call the Side Fence. It helps keep the Pan Cover in place when it slides back and forth. The inside wedge takes on the Angle of the Pan Cover. It is Dovetailed into the Side of the Pan then Riveted in place. After it was in place I Filed the Top decorative shape. There is a pic of the Inspiration Side Pan and then when they were Finished.
Thanks, Hank

 

[Commodore Swab]

May I ask who made your barrel.

I did, I typically go by Swab so if someone is talking about "one of Swab's guns" it's one of mine. I have made many blunderbuss barrels of many different shapes and sizes.

 

[rickystl]

Your son is very lucky. When I was growing up my Dad was into HAM Radio, CW/code only and collecting Telegraph Keys. My brothers and I were not allowed in his radio room. Sounds like you've got a good handle on it. I feel a little silly about keep working on projects. I see you are working on a Spanish Pistol. I really like Spanish firearms. I made this one from photo in Ricard Marti's Book, Catalan especially after Philip took the crown and brought in a French influence. Unfortunately at class in '16 at WKU one was stolen. Keep up your good work, your son is lucky. Hank

Hank: Those miquelet pistols are beautiful !!! I'm envious at your skill level. Just wonderful.

 

[Henry Elwood]

Hank: Those miquelet pistols are beautiful !!! I'm envious at your skill level. Just wonderful.

Greetings,
Thank you for your kind words. It's nice to have folks see what you're doing. And understand. Thanks,Hank

 

[rickystl]

Swab: That deck mount Spanish blunderbuss is fantastic !!!! As well as all your other "gear" LOL Wonderful build.

The reason I asked your Son's age: I have this Spanish miquelet "tourist" gun from the 1950's/60's that likely needs a new home for a kid - that's interested in this stuff. I would have loved to have this pistol when I was 10. But, on second thought, if his Dad is building him a "real" 1640's gun, he probably wouldn't be interested in this imitation. LOL But PM me anyway if you think he might be interested.

Rick

 

[Henry Elwood]

Swab: That deck mount Spanish blunderbuss is fantastic !!!! As well as all your other "gear" LOL Wonderful build.

The reason I asked your Son's age: I have this Spanish miquelet "tourist" gun from the 1950's/60's that likely needs a new home for a kid - that's interested in this stuff. I would have loved to have this pistol when I was 10. But, on second thought, if his Dad is building him a "real" 1640's gun, he probably wouldn't be interested in this imitation. LOL But PM me anyway if you think he might be interested.

Rick

Greetings,
Now for some fun stuff. The Wheel Cover allows for some art work. First redrawing the Wheel Cover to go with the Lock. Then I made a Xerox copies to glue to the plate. Be careful with the CA Glue because it will dissolve the Toner of the Laser Printer so be careful. Then you need the Posts that hold it at the right height from the Wheel. These are Riveted to the Cover Plates. After everything is close then the fine fitting with Filing and Trying. OBSERVATION, I don't know if it was/is necessary but I made a snug fit to the bottom of the Pan thinking it will give it more strength.
Thank you all, Hank

 

[Henry Elwood]

Greetings,
Now for some fun stuff. The Wheel Cover allows for some art work. First redrawing the Wheel Cover to go with the Lock. Then I made a Xerox copies to glue to the plate. Be careful with the CA Glue because it will dissolve the Toner of the Laser Printer so be careful. Then you need the Posts that hold it at the right height from the Wheel. These are Riveted to the Cover Plates. After everything is close then the fine fitting with Filing and Trying. OBSERVATION, I don't know if it was/is necessary but I made a snug fit to the bottom of the Pan thinking it will give it more strength.
Thank you all, Hank

Greetings,
The start of the Chain is next. I needed to see the radius of the Tumbler and how the Chain will go. And how the first Link Pins to the Tumbler. After I had that laid out the Bottom Link needed to be made. It was from 1/8" String Stock. The way this was done was by making to cuts from the side IN leaving 1/8" in the middle. Then the piece was heated "Cherry" quickly locked in a vice and the top was Twisted 90°. I call it the "T" Link. After the Twist don't forget to "Normalize" you still have drilling and filing to do. I leave the Link long for fitting later.
Thanks, Hank

 

[Rudyard]

I certainly' hear 'you I made a' French' and an external spring lock some bits where castings I made no records ' Dunk NZ 'got the French I saw him yesterday at a shoot along with fellow poster ' Something County' not Bedford though he shoots a 40 cal Bedford . He & I made years ago . You are right about the effort & feeling your way , Ime not' in the hunt' compared to your skill But it does give me appreciation of others skill Regards Rudyard

 

[Henry Elwood]

I certainly' hear 'you I made a' French' and an external spring lock some bits where castings I made no records ' Dunk NZ 'got the French I saw him yesterday at a shoot along with fellow poster ' Something County' not Bedford though he shoots a 40 cal Bedford . He & I made years ago . You are right about the effort & feeling your way , Ime not' in the hunt' compared to your skill But it does give me appreciation of others skill Regards Rudyard

Greetings,
Thank you Rudyard for your thoughts. I wanted to put this out there so others can benefit and build on it. So many folks have told me there just isn't any information out there. Hopefully this will help things along. The first pic is after I fitted the "T" Link, the link has been shortened and the Right Foot of the Internal Bridle thinned. Then the anticipation of where the Rectangle for the Nose of the Secondary Sear. I found that the inside of the Rectangle being tapered helps the Nose go in and out. I used my wooden mockup to help fit. Start of making the Secondary Sear from Hot Roll. The Nose needed to be bent up so went to the Forge for a righteous heat to bend. I left enough metal on the Nose to fit the Nose to the Recess in the Back of the Wheel.
Thanks, Hank

 

[Rudyard]

Its clear we are a' band of brothers' on this archaic stuff . in 1995 I wrote an article for' Muzzle loader Magazine' November issue' Observations' on the more archaic locks' from a re enactment angle .It caught Pukka's interest with my .statement re ignitions time .'But the palm for reliability must ever be reserved for the matchlock' A rather flowery and somewhat biased view .But Pukka sought me for years until by chance he found me while selling a ' Mary Rose' style M lock to a friend of his which is how I got posting on the BMF & the Muzzle loaders forums as 'Rudyard '. Small world and a good illustration of how fate links us all. Thanks in great part to both Forums ( If I seem to take' Rudyard' to so many places its because He in my regular guise did travel so widely & traded in India & Africa and like earthy Victorian poetry ).
.Regards Rudyard

 

[Henry Elwood]

Its clear we are a' band of brothers' on this archaic stuff . in 1995 I wrote an article for' Muzzle loader Magazine' November issue' Observations' on the more archaic locks' from a re enactment angle .It caught Pukka's interest with my .statement re ignitions time .'But the palm for reliability must ever be reserved for the matchlock' A rather flowery and somewhat biased view .But Pukka sought me for years until by chance he found me while selling a ' Mary Rose' style M lock to a friend of his which is how I got posting on the BMF & the Muzzle loaders forums as 'Rudyard '. Small world and a good illustration of how fate links us all. Thanks in great part to both Forums ( If I seem to take' Rudyard' to so many places its because He in my regular guise did travel so widely & traded in India & Africa and like earthy Victorian poetry ).
.Regards Rudyard

Greetings,
It is fun to find folks that know and enjoy "different " I met Pukka back in 2003 at WKU in Ron Ehlert's Class. Wish we had really connected with our interest in really early Arms. Today I'm posting about the Capture Spring for the Pan Cover Arm. In a Patchbox Class Gary Brumfield and Wallace Gussler showed us how you can find Brass Springs in some originals. Brass becomes a Spring by Work Hardening by just hammering it. So I have used this several times in the past to figure out Shape and Function of a Spring I was trying to figure out. So with this Catch Spring I used this Process for R&D. The Spring has a Filed Tapered Catch that slides over a Tapered segment on the Upper segment of the Arm. Something I discovered on this Current Project was the OVAL SLOT at the Top of the Arm. In the past I only had a Drilled Hole and so when the Pan Cover slid back it would do so in a little ARC. By having the Oval Slot it moves Flat.The last x2 pics show the Faux Screw / Push Button that releases the Capture Spring that allows the Pan to move forward. In the last pic you see where it screws into the Spring with a 6-40 Thread. In another Wheellock it was just Hammered/Riveted over so if you had to do maintenance you would almost gave to make a new one each time. But with this you can just unscrew it.
Thanks, Hank

 

[Rudyard]

Dear Hank. There's an awful lot about Wheellocks I don't know Ive no milling kit just files &' Indian end mills '(Hack saws ) I did take a friend's original lock out to Cawnpore India to get them copied . If being Indians they didn't let one group make entire locks rather they farmed out in pieces which couldn't be expected to just work perfectly . But it was still a useful basis & I made two rifles Suhl region circa 1660 going by some museum originals both cheek stock one I made in Massachusetts the other my own made across two countries .Ile try get a pic later . The French was a 54 cal rifle made 'After" Louis the 13th Boys gun now held in the Royal Armeries at Leeds or maybe at the Rotunda not sure . Dunk NZ owns that perhaps he will post a pic two others being Rutters Pistols . One I made for Richard Moore of' Sharpes series' fame He gave it to David Edge who was a curator at the Wallace collection . And one time was giving a talk on Armour at a big UK reenactors event at Kirby Hall he ended by holding up the pistol saying "And this is what caused the transformation of amours " .It looked familiar so I asked his assistant, his wife actually . So he concluded the talk saying" And if you want to know more about the pistol ? , I was the man who made it " The only other was copying an external chain & wheel cheek stocked piece that will end up with Tob John . That was a deep end 'guess lock.'& I've to make another spindle /crank shaft whatever term fits best .
Re inventing the Wheel - lock is sort of " Boldly going where no man in his right mind would even think of boldly going " ! . to pinch line from Star Treck .
I have one more Cawnpore lock . its likely the last one ile make I think I had a dozen made in a hot sweaty hovel of a back street ' Bandook Wallas' cave of a workshop on Majeed Armin Rd just off Meston road Cawnpore . I finally got the corner' Chy whalla' to make the usual Asian tea rather than the milky sweetened Ink the locals prefer .While I watched them sending the boy to get cyanide in little conical' Sweety' type paper bags blithely unaware that if he fell on a windy street half that street would cop it . 'See the fun" as they used to say . Ide better quit .If you ever wanted to know about India I always recommend you read Eric Newbies "Slowly down the Gangees '
Regards reminiscing Rudyard .

 

[Flint62Smoothie]

Love the perspective and history that you add Rudy!

 

[Flint62Smoothie]

Hank - Oh if we were neighbors, we would be in so much trouble, our wives would never see us … we’d be out in the workshop all the time!

I wish it were true!

I need to retire soon, you guys are killing me with these excellent Wheellock builds!

 

[Henry Elwood]

Dear Hank. There's an awful lot about Wheellocks I don't know Ive no milling kit just files &' Indian end mills '(Hack saws ) I did take a friend's original lock out to Cawnpore India to get them copied . If being Indians they didn't let one group make entire locks rather they farmed out in pieces which couldn't be expected to just work perfectly . But it was still a useful basis & I made two rifles Suhl region circa 1660 going by some museum originals both cheek stock one I made in Massachusetts the other my own made across two countries .Ile try get a pic later . The French was a 54 cal rifle made 'After" Louis the 13th Boys gun now held in the Royal Armeries at Leeds or maybe at the Rotunda not sure . Dunk NZ owns that perhaps he will post a pic two others being Rutters Pistols . One I made for Richard Moore of' Sharpes series' fame He gave it to David Edge who was a curator at the Wallace collection . And one time was giving a talk on Armour at a big UK reenactors event at Kirby Hall he ended by holding up the pistol saying "And this is what caused the transformation of amours " .It looked familiar so I asked his assistant, his wife actually . So he concluded the talk saying" And if you want to know more about the pistol ? , I was the man who made it " The only other was copying an external chain & wheel cheek stocked piece that will end up with Tob John . That was a deep end 'guess lock.'& I've to make another spindle /crank shaft whatever term fits best .
Re inventing the Wheel - lock is sort of " Boldly going where no man in his right mind would even think of boldly going " ! . to pinch line from Star Treck .
I have one more Cawnpore lock . its likely the last one ile make I think I had a dozen made in a hot sweaty hovel of a back street ' Bandook Wallas' cave of a workshop on Majeed Armin Rd just off Meston road Cawnpore . I finally got the corner' Chy whalla' to make the usual Asian tea rather than the milky sweetened Ink the locals prefer .While I watched them sending the boy to get cyanide in little conical' Sweety' type paper bags blithely unaware that if he fell on a windy street half that street would cop it . 'See the fun" as they used to say . Ide better quit .If you ever wanted to know about India I always recommend you read Eric Newbies "Slowly down the Gangees '
Regards reminiscing Rudyard

Greetings,
Rudyard I really enjoy hearing your experience. These are the things that need to be heard and repeated.
Thanks,Hank

 

[Henry Elwood]

Hank - Oh if we were neighbors, we would be in so much trouble, our wives would never see us … we’d be out in the workshop all the time!

I wish it were true!

I need to retire soon, you guys are killing me with these excellent Wheellock builds!

Greetings,
Flint, by all means retire soon, you will soon be asking yourself how did I have time to go to work. LOL Being in the Shop working and bouncing ideas back and forth sounds like a great wish. Thanks,Hank

 

[Rudyard]

Well seems I strook an harmonious cord . The first one made in Hardwick was at Eric & Lucindas place you know that house I expect. The ' detachment Chamble 'F&I Marine artillery with there little grasshopper gun we used to fire salutes to the Constitution on turn rounds '& at Ft Niagara . Havn't seen Eric since we did a Fort at Number Four gig with John Soule . I had my infant (she's 23 now ) good memories I think I made for Tom Brown or maybe Peter Gobbles a big' English lock' piece I kept a' got up' Snaphance there to Do King Philips war but never got onto a group.
Regards to all Memory lane ,Rudyard .

 

[Bucks Co]

I certainly' hear 'you I made a' French' and an external spring lock some bits where castings I made no records ' Dunk NZ 'got the French I saw him yesterday at a shoot along with fellow poster ' Something County' not Bedford though he shoots a 40 cal Bedford . He & I made years ago . You are right about the effort & feeling your way , Ime not' in the hunt' compared to your skill But it does give me appreciation of others skill Regards Rudyard

Perhaps we should shoot Matchlocks next year??

 

[Rudyard]

Perhaps we should shoot Matchlocks next year??

Dear Bucks county. Welcome to the forum . Yes Matchlocks good idea but we might be stressing the Blenheim lads as they mostly only have the detonater rifles with their spiral scratches in the bore a curious idea but seemingly popular with them. Despite the good fungus growing on the range sign as Brer Dunk pointed out .Some folks still don't understand the new way backwards. Hmmmm Now where did I leave my tinder box? .Must be getting old.
Regards Rudyard