Conversion of Small Siler to English Lock Completed

[smart dog]

Thank you James and everyone!!

Bob Roller, I will post photos of the inside after finishing heat treating parts and reworking the mainspring.  I did not change any internal parts so it is a Chamber's small Siler lock on the inside. I just am polishing the bearing surfaces and grinding the mainspring, which is too heavy. Fortunately, it has the newer tumbler so flints easily clear the frizzen at half cock.  The sear also always returns to the same position regardless if the lock is at rest, half cocked, or full cocked. That made it easy to fit a simple trigger such that it always has pressure on it from the sear. No rattling trigger on this gun.

dave   

[Kevin Houlihan]

Dave,
 Awesome job!  Where exactly did you add weld?
Thanks
Kevin

[smart dog]

Hi Kevin,
Thank you for looking and taking interest in my project.  I added a photo of the original small Siler so my explanation is more understandable.


I added weld on the bottom of the pan bridle under the frizzen screw.  I needed more metal to give the bridle the proper round end with the screw in the middle.  I also filled in the depression on the top of the frizzen pan cover to make it convex rather than concave.  That also allowed me to give the toe a proper shaping. For those folks who are interested I made a list of what I did below.  Keep in mind that this could be done to a large Siler lock as well.  One limitation, however, is that pan fence is too close to the well so a proper gutter cannot be formed between the fence and the well and the pan given a proper oval shape.
1.   Annealed the frizzen and frizzen spring
2.   Added weld to the pan bridle and shaped it like a comet with round nose
3.   Filed the pan round and made the lower molding round and concave
4.   Puddled weld on top of the pan cover portion of the frizzen and filed it into a convex shape
5.   Reshaped the toe of the frizzen and gave the curl a more elegant shape
6.   Filed off the blocky shoulder of the flint cock
7.   Filed the flintcock surrounding the tumbler screw smaller
8.   Bent the back of the flintcock behind the top jaw screw so it was closer to the screw
9.   Thinned the forward part of the lock plate
10.   Reshaped the rear of the plate and recut the decorative concave molding to the correct angle
11.   Reshaped the frizzen spring by compressing the bend and reshaping the upper leaf. Filed the frizzen spring finial into a correct shape
12.   Cut moldings around the lock plate and flintcock
13.    Peened and stoned away the screw end holding the pan and bolster in place 
14.   Engraved the lock
15.    Rehardened and tempered the frizzen spring
16.   Hardened and tempered the flintcock, top jaw, and frizzen         
17.   Polished the lock

[smart dog]

Hi,
I attached some photos of the inside of the lock. as Bob Roller requested.  It is just a standard small Siler but I polished the bearing surfaces and reshaped the mainspring. It works very nicely.  One problem with some small Silers is the nose of the tumbler often is right on the bottom edge of the lock plate when the lock is at rest.  It makes me nervous, so I grind the toe shorter, which is easy and there is plenty of excess length that can be removed.

dave

[Chowmi]

Dave,
Thanks for posting those pictures. I am deep into filing and polishing a siler lock right now and it is nice to have pictures to gauge my progress and to aspire to. I think I am finally learning how to do it properly and moderately efficiently.

It's nice to see some excellent work that I can reference to see if I am doing it right.

I always enjoy seeing your work and think of my visit to your shop often,

Cheers,
Norm.

[WadePatton]

I like small to moderate challenges Dave.

Seems you like the BIG ones!

Mighty fine sir, mighty fine.