AmericanLongRifles Forums
General discussion => Gun Building => Topic started by: Flint62Smoothie on March 12, 2013, 12:11:21 AM
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Hello. First off, I respect and am extremely grateful to those who take the time to share their knowledge, so thank you!
I have a custom John Bosh Fusil de Boucanier, 65-cal, that wears a 54" barrel. I know our forebears would have shot their FdB bareball, or with tow wadding, ... but I had used a patch and whilst toting this 'artillery piece' along at a primitive snowshoe biathlon (9-deg F out) and I've broken the ramrod :( .
This was highly tapered, from 9/6" to < 3/16" at the breech end and that's where it broke, 3.5" up.
Any ideas?
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A long while ago someone was offering 60" hickory ramrods for sale, that might have been a one time deal though - perhaps they can chime in. Hickory usually runs pretty straight, if you can find a board with straight grain and little to no run-out, you can split a few blanks and use a plane and scraper to bring it to size.
Did your ramrod break clean across the grain or did it split at all? You might be able to glue it back together securely if it split with the grain. If it broke clean across then I might try drilling a 1/16 hole about 1/2" deep on either side and insert a 1/16" steel rod, then glue it all back together. Might work well or might just be a crutch depending how well things hold up. I'd love to see pics of your Boucanier fusil as well! Good luck,
-Eric
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I split my rods from hickory logs.
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Good afternoon Sir; Best ramrod supplier I have seen in many years.---Steve Bailey---sbailey@brick.net---ph. 573-547-4540. Good luck. AJ
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Knob Mountain has 60 inchers.
Bill
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thanks all ... you're a GREAT source to us lurkers, dreamers, and wannabe's ... but we all must start somewhere.
I thought about making my own from stock, so I'll try all 3 - in that I have a lathe (attempt a splice), made a ramrod tapering tool (will try my hand at splitting some stock), will get a couple from Knob Creek.
I'll get some pictures up ...
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Mr VonA,
Great to have you back.
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Thanks Dane, I'm glad to have some time to be back! Already buried in the shop and it feels great.
-Eric
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I bought some 5 ft dowels to use as atlatl darts a few years ago
might be a good place to look
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Ever think of squaring it off at the break, putting a 8-32 or 10-32 tip on it and make an extension to make up the difference? I have a 50" barreled gun I did this to. Works for me.
Yer pal, Keb
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Ever think of squaring it off at the break, putting a 8-32 or 10-32 tip on it and make an extension to make up the difference?.
Ken, yes when I attempt the repair using the lathe, I plan to do something like that. But I'm considering 'ribbing' some piano/music wire, to give the glue some mechanical hold too, as threaded rod is too big.
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I split my ramrods out of ash. Same stuff we use for snowshoes, and my dog sled. It's a common tree here, but don't know for how long what with the introduction and spread of the "ash borer " insect.
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Ever think of squaring it off at the break, putting a 8-32 or 10-32 tip on it and make an extension to make up the difference?.
Ken, yes when I attempt the repair using the lathe, I plan to do something like that. But I'm considering 'ribbing' some piano/music wire, to give the glue some mechanical hold too, as threaded rod is too big.
I think you misunderstood me. I mean:
Cut the old ramrod off square where it is broke.
Glue & pin one of these on (5/16 or 3/8 tip):
(https://americanlongrifles.org/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.trackofthewolf.com%2FimgPart%2Frt-5_0.jpg&hash=1a825fd28dcd9594d0d85a4ec17fe41ccb435610)
Make up an extension that will mount to the new tip that equals the total length of the old rod.
Now you have a 2 piece ram rod.
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I think you misunderstood me. I mean:
Cut the old ramrod off square where it is broke.
Glue & pin one of these on (5/16 or 3/8 tip)
Make up an extension that will mount to the new tip that equals the total length of the old rod.
Now you have a 2 piece ram rod.
Wow, yes, I did read that wrong. Unfortunately, the rod is about 3/16" where it broke, 4" up. As stated, it is (was) thin and highly tapered.
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Does the rod have to be tapered so much? I mean, I know that some old original rods were very strongly tapered. But the real question is how much room is there down inside the ramrod hole at the point where the lock bolt passes through the web. if you are going to make a replacement, you might want to first push a larger rod down the hole (gently) and see what your limits are. It might be possible to make a new rod slightly larger, so as to keep it from being so fragile. 3/16 is pretty small diameter! I recently saw an antique that had an antique rod similarly tapered, down to about 3/16 like yours. And the rod practically wallowed around down in there, like a little boy wearing his daddy's boots.
As for making a new rod, if you want to make it yourself, you might see about getting a piece of hickory or ash, or even white oak flooring. Flooring companies often have culls that they just dispose of, so you don't have to buy a bundle of flooring to get one board. You can check the end grain to find a piece that is quarter sawn. On a quarter sawn board, it's fairly easy to draw a saw line that follows the grain (so that you don't have to split it). (I have split them, too, but sometimes the edges splinter and splinters can be hard to control. Sawing on the grain can get you to the same place but with a reduced risk of ruining the material.) Then round it up somewhat with rasps, but leave it oversize. It will be wavy, but that easy to fix by wrapping wet rags around the bent sections for a few hours. The rod will soak up some water, and then you can heat it gently with a torch or over a forge fire until it gets soft enough to straighten. When it cools it will stay straight. When it is straight as you can get it, let it dry for a few days, then you can finish rounding it and tapering it to finished proportions.
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Ever think of squaring it off at the break, putting a 8-32 or 10-32 tip on it and make an extension to make up the difference? I have a 50" barreled gun I did this to. Works for me.
Yer pal, Keb
Tightwad! Buy a new one for crimini's sake! ;D
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Amen !!! This mule is dead!
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Seems like I saw Dunlap Woodcraft selling some longer rods at the shows last year.
Jim
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Taylor has made me a few tapered hickory rods from a straight grained one X six hickory board we found at the lumber yard. I think it was planed so it was about 3/4". Then we just ripped the centers out of it. Made beautiful rods with no run-out whatsoever. Used Acer's handy little shaper tool. Does Acer still hang out here?
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Used Acer's handy little shaper tool. Does Acer still hang out here?
Acer does indeed; and that ramrod scraper tool he makes is TOPS. (that's another buck ten forty-eight Acer). ;D
dp
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Still very much alive, but quite pre-occupied for the last month. Tomorrow is election day for Villages across NYS, and I am foolish enuff to run for Mayor AGAIN. Trying for a second term. See how it goes, eh.
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Also, I am OUT of scrapers, and am making up a new batch. I'll post when I have 'em. ANd thanks for the kind words!
Tom