One way to do it

[James Wilson Everett]

Guys,

I am finally assembling the gun I have been working on for a while and showing the steps on this site.  One problem, I remade an old wrought iron percussion barrel that started as a straight octagon, .36 and made it into an octagon to round .42.  The barrel is about 0.9 across the flats at the breech and is straight sided.  I want to make a Lehigh gun where the wrist is wider than high, but with a straight sided and thin barrel, how do you do it? 

When making the lock I left the lock interior bolster block a good bit higher than is usual.  I made it about 0.35 above the lock plate interior rather than the usual 0.25.  In order to get the proper dimension at the wrist I tapered the bolster block so that the lock plate acts like it is mounted to a tapered barrel with a nice thick breech.  Looking at this photo, I hope you can see that the tail end of the lock plate is flared much more away from the barrel than the nose end.  This is how the wrist area would look if using a swamped barrel with a good 1-1/16 breech.



This photo shows the lock plate with the tapered bolster block and the angle it would make with the barrel surface.



This photo shows the two lock screws and the difference in length due to the taper of both the lock plate and the side plate surfaces.  This is what you expect when using a nice swamped barrel, or with this "fix".



Another way to do this is to buy a store-bought lock and solder a thin plate on the bolster block, then file the plate to a taper.

Now it is easy to get that wrist wider than high and have a nice Lehigh gun.

Jim

[bob in the woods]

I got everything except the " easy" part 

[Old Bob]

I used a Siler kit on my first rifle which had a straight 13/16" barrel. I shaped the stock for a slightly wider breech and brazed a piece of hacksaw blade to the bolster then filed a taper. For the muzzle, I flared the muzzle end of the stock a little. From a distance it resembles a swamped barrel. I also had a McCoy precarve halfstock and I did the same thing with a straight barrel and a Manton Waterproof lock.

[pushboater]

Jim,  I've used this method a couple of times and it works great for getting that wider wrist and giving you a little more wood to play with to the rear of the lock panels.  On the last one I used this method on I made a nose cap out of black horn and flared the end out giving the same effect Old Bob was talking about.  From a short distance it looked like a swamped barrel.  Keep us updated on your progress.

Capt. David

[Keb]

Another way to do this is to buy a store-bought lock and solder a thin plate on the bolster block, then file the plate to a taper.

The problem with this is the frizzen lid will no longer cover the pan without adding the same amount of stock to it as the bolster. I'd much rather add a plate to the side of the barrel, solder it on & install a vent liner thru it.

I'm no expert but I play one at the rondyvoo...

[Jim Kibler]

Sorry, but in my view these aren't too good of "fixes".  Much better just to start with the right barrel.  But then again, everybody comes from different backgrounds perspectives etc.   Others may find this useful.

[Don Stith]

Gets funny when you look at many originals buit with swamped barrels and see the"swamp"filed straight for mating to the lock

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

...but original rifles weren't made with 13/16" barrels.

[Acer Saccharum]

Jim, that is a good trick to get more flare to the breech end of the stock thru the wrist.

Some of the Lehighs I've examined have barely discernible swamp. I needed to measure it to determine if they were indeed swamped. But the barrels are more robust, 1 1/16 or 1 1/8. There ain't much wood in a Lehigh. It's mostly barrel.