Sharps40
Old Mossy Horns
With all that's going on, selling the house, frustration at work, hunting season, grandkids learning to drive, etc......I need some sort of outlet.
I have been through a bunch of muzzleloaders. None have really suited me, though all have been nice, some of the builds exceptional. But, I've always wanted a 45 caliber box lock with a scope on it.
A long time ago, I proved to myself that the slow twist green mountain barrels in 45 and 50 caliber would shoot accurately and stabilize Round nose bullets and full wadcutters like the Lee REAL well past 100 yards and always proved wonderful killers of deer.
So, a very long term project. Build my own simplified box lock, twist no faster than 1 in 48" and more likely the slower twist of the green mountain barrel so I can practice with PRB. Caliber .45. Scope as far back on the action as I can get it and I think I'll tweek the action for fitting of readily available stocks, like the Marlin 336/Texan or Win 94....or perhaps one of the readily available Savage/Springfield SxS shotgun stocks. Should save a bunch of carving
I intend to make at least the action and some of the guts by hand, using, primarily, handtools. I have some ideas to build it strong without any welding or casting.
I am reasonably sure that I'll be making some or all of the parts from wood first. It may be best for me to build the wood action first so I'll have the bugs mostly worked out before going to metal.
Looking through the junk box turns up a few parts, some for use. Some just for ideas/shapes. I thought I had a good Davis DSDP trigger to adapt to the lower tang but I think I sold it here last year....so, when the time comes, perhaps I'll buy one and save hours of carving by transferring the guts to this action.
I'm sure my basic action will be thinner, perhaps making up the bolsters on either side using either burled walnut panels or fitting Damascus Steel on the outside to simulate the thick bits of the casting in the photos below.
But, the real gem in the collection of junk pictured below is the length of 5/8x18 steel threaded rod to use as the breach and rear mounting point. I've not decided on hanging a ram rod under the barrel as I may strut from the action to a point forward of the breech to really support the barrel/strengthen the mounting. If so, I suppose I can come up with some form of multi piece ram rod that can fit the cargo pocket of the pack for that occasional slow and educational reload in the woods after a clean miss! I've missed plenty with a muzzleloader! I also thought about doing a side mounted ram rod on the off side of the gun....but that might look a bit goofy, of course, some would opine that a scoped Wesson/Sanftl style box lock with scope will look a bit goofy. Ah well.....it'll be for me in the end.
For now, I've done some rough scales on the action I'd like to try to build and I suspect the tumbler will be the really difficult part to build from scratch and by hand. But I have some nice 4140 steel on hand that if I work at it, should give me several tries at sear and tumbler making....just gotta find the steel! Its around somewhere, probably in the workshop junkbox. All the stuff above came from the Garage workshop junk box.
The idea makers....
Maybe this is prettier than mine will be (assuming I can even build it) but the Sanftl style trigger guard for target shooting control reminds me of my old Sanftl Schutzen Free Rifle that I won many a chicken or steak or pork roast or can of Goex BP with in my competition days.
And, the initial rough scaling of the action and perhaps this weekend, off to the shop to round up pine and oak and plywood to start ginning up some size and shape that is pleasing to the eye and fully functional.
I have been through a bunch of muzzleloaders. None have really suited me, though all have been nice, some of the builds exceptional. But, I've always wanted a 45 caliber box lock with a scope on it.
A long time ago, I proved to myself that the slow twist green mountain barrels in 45 and 50 caliber would shoot accurately and stabilize Round nose bullets and full wadcutters like the Lee REAL well past 100 yards and always proved wonderful killers of deer.
So, a very long term project. Build my own simplified box lock, twist no faster than 1 in 48" and more likely the slower twist of the green mountain barrel so I can practice with PRB. Caliber .45. Scope as far back on the action as I can get it and I think I'll tweek the action for fitting of readily available stocks, like the Marlin 336/Texan or Win 94....or perhaps one of the readily available Savage/Springfield SxS shotgun stocks. Should save a bunch of carving
I intend to make at least the action and some of the guts by hand, using, primarily, handtools. I have some ideas to build it strong without any welding or casting.
I am reasonably sure that I'll be making some or all of the parts from wood first. It may be best for me to build the wood action first so I'll have the bugs mostly worked out before going to metal.
Looking through the junk box turns up a few parts, some for use. Some just for ideas/shapes. I thought I had a good Davis DSDP trigger to adapt to the lower tang but I think I sold it here last year....so, when the time comes, perhaps I'll buy one and save hours of carving by transferring the guts to this action.
I'm sure my basic action will be thinner, perhaps making up the bolsters on either side using either burled walnut panels or fitting Damascus Steel on the outside to simulate the thick bits of the casting in the photos below.
But, the real gem in the collection of junk pictured below is the length of 5/8x18 steel threaded rod to use as the breach and rear mounting point. I've not decided on hanging a ram rod under the barrel as I may strut from the action to a point forward of the breech to really support the barrel/strengthen the mounting. If so, I suppose I can come up with some form of multi piece ram rod that can fit the cargo pocket of the pack for that occasional slow and educational reload in the woods after a clean miss! I've missed plenty with a muzzleloader! I also thought about doing a side mounted ram rod on the off side of the gun....but that might look a bit goofy, of course, some would opine that a scoped Wesson/Sanftl style box lock with scope will look a bit goofy. Ah well.....it'll be for me in the end.
For now, I've done some rough scales on the action I'd like to try to build and I suspect the tumbler will be the really difficult part to build from scratch and by hand. But I have some nice 4140 steel on hand that if I work at it, should give me several tries at sear and tumbler making....just gotta find the steel! Its around somewhere, probably in the workshop junkbox. All the stuff above came from the Garage workshop junk box.
The idea makers....
Maybe this is prettier than mine will be (assuming I can even build it) but the Sanftl style trigger guard for target shooting control reminds me of my old Sanftl Schutzen Free Rifle that I won many a chicken or steak or pork roast or can of Goex BP with in my competition days.
And, the initial rough scaling of the action and perhaps this weekend, off to the shop to round up pine and oak and plywood to start ginning up some size and shape that is pleasing to the eye and fully functional.