New member needs advice on first kit.

[lentuk]

Hi all, I have been lurking for some time reading as much as possible, I have just ordered several books on building that forum members here have recommended.
I have very good metal working skills but my wood working skills are not great.
My budget has left me with a couple of choices, buying the Lyman GPR .54 flint kit seems like the safest place to start but I don't like the lock and would be adding the additional dollars for an L&R replacement to the total cost.
 I could keep saving and get something like the Tennessee Valley Muzzleloading Early Virginia Rifle kit or I would love to get a Jim Chambers kit but I am not sure if I should try one of these as a first rifle and end up with a pile of expensive hacked up parts.
Wood inletting a barrel channel seems to be my biggest fear.
Your advice would be much appreciated.

[smart dog]

Hi,
Chambers kits would be good choices and the vast majority of wood work is already done.  At the end, you will have a very nice rifle without many of the pit falls common to new builders.  Also consider Jim Kibler's new mountain rifle kit. It is a very high quality product that likely requires very little wood working before applying finish. I consider Chambers and Kibler's kits to be the best on the market but other folks such as Dave Keck (Knob Mountain Muzzleloading) and Dunlap Woodcraft also offer very nice kits at reasonable prices. I would urge you to check out all of their web sites and see if any of the styles offered appeal to you. 

dave

[toddsndrsn]

I'm working o my first kit.  It's been great fun.  I have no prior woodworking experience.  You'll make fewer mistakes than you think, but you will make them.  IMO you are better off saving money for the gun you want to build than the gun you can afford to build today.

[smallpatch]

Again, buy a Chambers.  If you want a Southern gun, buy a Kibler.
Measure twice, cut once.
BTW, barrel channels are already done.

[PPatch]

Welcome to ALR Lentuk.

So far some good suggestions have been offered about kits.

Bedding the barrel on a kit gun (the very first task) goes from very little to do to a bit more, but all are fairly easy since the barrel channel is mostly done. Generally it is a matter of further fitting (bedding) the barrel by some careful scraping inside the barrel channel being careful to not create gaps between the barrel flats and the wood.

In some cases a pre-carve kit will require that the barrel be moved backward about an eighth of an inch so that you have the proper relationship touch hole to lock pan, that relationship is something you will have to check into early in the build. Doing this, moving a barrel backward,  is a matter of careful work with a very sharp 1/4 inch flat chisel. I had to do that with my first, a Chambers lancaster style kit. As long as you go slow and deliberate you will do fine. The goal in every case is to end up with a sold wood to metal fit at the rear of the barrel with the touch hole lined up vertically at center pan.

The big plus is that ALR is a great resource for obtaining help and getting questions answered during any aspect of a build. Don't hesitate to ask questions of you feel stumped on something.

dave

[moleeyes36]

........IMO you are better off saving money for the gun you want to build than the gun you can afford to build today.

That's good advice.  There usually isn't a huge difference in price between the really nice kits and the low end kits.  However, the quality of the kits and the finished guns can be world's apart.  Save a little more and get good stuff the first time.

Mole Eyes

[bob in the woods]

Get a Chambers or similar quality kit, along with their video, which is specifically oriented to assembling a kit.  

[Kevin Houlihan]

lentuk,
 Also to add - i replaced a Dixie rifle lock with an L&R replacement lock.  The lock needed quite a bit of polishing and oher work to make it function acceptably.  Look at the kits that others have mentioned before going the Lyman route.
Good Luck,
Kevin

[lentuk]

Thank you gentlemen, I have already started posting some of my Great Eastern Cutlery slipjoints on the knife forums to get more cash for a Chambers kit.
My next question would be which of the Chambers kits would be the best for a beginner, are any of these kits "easier" than the others?
 I would really like a .54 rifle so I can take it Elk hunting but I am not apposed to a .50, I'm sure this rifle would see a lot of range time.

Once again, thank you for the help.

[Jim Chambers]

For my latest hunting rifle I built one of our Isaac Haines rifles in 54 cal.  I chose that one just in case I ever get a chance to take an elk because it is a little lighter than some of the others.  You carry a hunting rifle a lot and shoot it very little.  That little less weight to carry around is meaningful, especially out west where most elk live.  The Haines kit is also one of the easiest ones we offer to assemble.

[lentuk]

Well thank you Jim, I will be calling the shop tomorrow to order one.
Thank you all,
Len

[smallpatch]

lent,

A Chambers Isaac Haines in .54, is by far the nicest handling rifle I've owned.   

[Kermit]

The two Jims. Jim K if you want a skwerrel rifle, Jim C if you are big gaming or fowling. Those would be my suggestions for a first kit,

[elkhorne]

Lentil,
Welcome to the world of building Muzzleloaders and all that goes with it (mostly good)! I ditto the advice of others regarding the selection of a kit from either of the 2 Jim's. The have impeccable quality and are both great guys to work with. I have bought 2 kit guns from other suppliers in the hobby and was somewhat disappointed in both. One I had to go through the hassle of sending the first precarved stock back because they cut the lock mortise out the bottom of the stock and did not really want to take it back. Additionally, I purchased a kit to build for my son and it was suppose to have a Getz barrel with it. well, I got it and it was a Getz barrel with it but it was a used one with the touch hole liner already drilled and staples in the barrel. I never have been able to get the breech plug out. I am still wrestling that rifle as it is much more difficult to inlet a barrel with the plug in and staples already on the underside. I may eventually just file off the staples and install my own barrel lugs. Anyway, just a couple of examples of problems you will not run into with a Chambers or Kibler kit. Good luck and you have the best building source available fight here on the forum.
elkhorne

[lentuk]

Ordered my Isaac Haines rifle from Jim Chambers this morning, I guess it will take a while to get here, time to start reading....

[moleeyes36]

Ordered my Isaac Haines rifle from Jim Chambers this morning, I guess it will take a while to get here, time to start reading....

Len,

That was a good move.  It would probably be worth while to give them a call and order the DVD that covers building one of their kits specifically.  It isn't expensive and this being your first gun it would let you know how to tackle the building project before you start.

Mole Eyes

[sleddman]

Ordered my Isaac Haines rifle from Jim Chambers this morning, I guess it will take a while to get here, time to start reading....

A great choice for sure.   I built the Chambers Isaac Haines in 54 cal. about five years ago.  It is my #1 go to rifle and have taken several deer with it .   Do yourself a great favor and get the "Ron Ehlert/ American Pioneer Video / DVD"  .  It is by far the best of his how to tapes.   Ron was a great Gunsmith.   You said you where an iron worker.  You will have no problems working this wood.  Most of the work requires a sharp file.