Breech plug advice

[Micah2]

Am I "allowed" to remove my breech plug for cleaning or should I clean with it in and only remove if absolutley necessary?  Thanks.

[JCKelly]

Grandfather told me he removed the breech from his (his Grandfather's) rifle about once a year for cleaning. After three generations of this the plug is loose, does look like the rifle has been re-breeched at some time. Dad sealed it with solder wire to shoot it once, indoor Pittsburgh range. Got an X. Grandfather was displeased when I told him this (the solder, not the X).

Me, I'd leave the plug alone. Maybe use a little silicone-aluminum anti-seize on it in case it rusts shut one of these generations (depending upon Nov 6).

[KLMoors]

I leave mine in for cleaning. I almost never take the barrel out of my longrifles. I don't own any longrifles that have keyed barrels though. I might take it out if I did.

I have one of those little hoses that clamps onto the touch hole so I can pump water through the barrel. I do it with the gun upside down and tipped a little muzzle down so no water gets down onto the stock or lock. I only do this once in a while though.

Most of the time, I just use a scraper, soft brush, and patches to clean. I oil it up pretty good with CLP and have not had any problems.

[Acer Saccharum]

I put anti-seize on my plugs. I never take them out. The only reason if I was going to convert to percussion, and that ain't gonna happen in my lifetime. 

[James Wilson Everett]

I would not remove the breech plug for cleaning.  I can almost be certain that breech plugs were not removed regularly in the 18th c, who had a stout post vice and a good breech plug wrench in Lonely Crossroads village, Pennsylvania?

Jim

[Acer Saccharum]

Most antique rifles that have had the plugs removed, were removed at a later date: the barrels show the imprint of pipe wrenches and toothed vise jaws. These are not marks from the 18th Century. Top edges of the plug are rounded up by an ill-fitting wrench: creating a gap between wood and metal.

[oldarcher]

I would not remove the plug unless there was a specific mechanical reason to do so. I believe that each time you release stress on the threads and then re tighten them you increase the dimension and actually go past the previous index to tighten the plug snugly. This may not be noticeable once or twice, but with regular loosening/tightening you will see the difference. Just my 2 cents....

[Dphariss]

Am I "allowed" to remove my breech plug for cleaning or should I clean with it in and only remove if absolutley necessary?  Thanks.

You can do anything you like so long as you are willing to accept the consequences.
If properly breeched  (and this is another can of worms) there is no valid reason to remove the plug unless in some extreme situation.

Dan

[Micah2]

Thanks for the advice.  I have a hooked breech hawken I have never removed the plug on.  With this new fowler I finished I guess I just became overly familiar with the breech and barrel during construction.  I agree with you all however and do not want to wear out the threads.  Thanks for the reassurance.  Sometimes when working on these guns you have nothing more that instinct and common sense to rely on.  This is another example of the true purpose of this forum.  I feel confident knowing you guys are out there for support.  Thanks so much.

[Acer Saccharum]

Once all the machine work is done during the build, ie: installing the vent/drum/coming, there should be no reason to pull the plug. Later on, definitely remove the plug for freshening the barrel, or lapping it if rough spots develop. Any time the shooter forgets to put powder under the ball, the ball can usually be pulled, or shot out with some powder trickled behind the ball.