AmericanLongRifles Forums

General discussion => Gun Building => Topic started by: rfd on January 24, 2026, 11:47:20 PM

Title: Grinding back a breech plug face
Post by: rfd on January 24, 2026, 11:47:20 PM

I've had more than a few of the Pedersoli Bess and Charlie kits where their touch hole was partially drilled into the face of the breech plug.

Here's the breech plug for a Pedersoli '66 Charlie - I was pleasantly surprised to see that its breech plug face wasn't desecrated and the touch hole was perfectly drilled within 1/32" of that plug's face ...

(https://i.ibb.co/nNWNbbM6/plug1.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Q353ffvp)

Here's the breech plug for a Pedersoli 2nd Land Pattern Bess ...

(https://i.ibb.co/xSDK4K7H/bbl-plug-oem.jpg) (https://ibb.co/HDVLJLHd)

Usually I open that plug face channel a bit for ease of cleaning out and better ignition.  But instead, would grinding the plug face smooth and thus removing that 3/32" deep channel be structurally okay to do?

Title: Re: Grinding back a breech plug face
Post by: 45-110 on January 25, 2026, 12:29:12 AM

Just taper their cut into a enlarged tapered funnel, they way many where done.

Title: Re: Grinding back a breech plug face
Post by: rfd on January 25, 2026, 12:31:23 AM

Quote from: 45-110 on Today at 12:29:12 AM

Just taper their cut into a enlarged tapered funnel, they way many where done.

Yep, I've done that near a dozen times, but that's not as good or proper as a flat faced breech plug.

Title: Re: Grinding back a breech plug face
Post by: whetrock on January 25, 2026, 03:34:02 AM

If you were to just cut the whole plug back, then it would no longer fill the threads in the breech. And that would leave you with a dangerous fouling trap--basically a recessed ring all the way around the barrel just ahead of the plug. You don't want that. The threads on the plug should completely fill the threads in the breech. So, just widening the divot and smoothing out the step where the drill stopped so that there is no ledge is the normal course of action here.

Title: Re: Grinding back a breech plug face
Post by: rfd on January 25, 2026, 03:38:48 AM

Quote from: whetrock on Today at 03:34:02 AM

If you were to just cut the whole plug back, then it would no longer fill the threads in the breech. And that would leaves you with a dangerous fouling trap--basically a recessed ring all the way around the barrel just ahead of the plug. You don't want that. The threads on the plug should completely fill the threads in the breech. So, just widening the divot and smoothing out the step where the drill stopped so that there is no ledge is the normal course of action here.

Yup, 10-4, what I figured.  Been there, done that dremeling many times, thank you.