Durs Egg

[Hivernant1962]

Hi all, I was wondering what time frame/ region is a Durs Egg lock appropriate for? Going to use one in my .40 Lancaster(ish) build. I'm left handed and it was in stock with no backorder when I bought it.

[smart dog]

Hi,
Durs Egg lock represents a better quality English design from the late 1770s to about 1800.  It likely is only appropriate for long rifles well after the Rev War when English imports were available again.

dave

[blienemann]

The L&R lock in particular may date a bit later.  Regarding English locks in general and Egg's earlier work, the Christian's Spring gunshop records suggest someone knew that an embargo was coming.  May 1773 lists 27 locks, some English.  May 1774 had 82 locks - enough for quite a few years.  Several Oerter rifles dated 1774 and 75 carry English style locks.  Unfortunately one dated 1775 carries a lock from Egg - in Windsor Castle.

If the same was true in other areas of the colonies, English style locks may have continued in use through the war.  Were some smuggled in during that time?  Bob

[Acer Saccharum]

A Durs Egg would be appropriate on an American rifle that would have been confiscated/captured during the American Revolution. Then fixed up properly in an English workshop. 

[rich pierce]

It's pretty fancy. But I like its styling on a 1790s rifle.

[Hivernant1962]

It's going to be post revolution for sure. Saw a Gonter rifle in Johnstons book that had a similar looking lock. Just was wanting some feedback on the Egg. I've had an L&R Late English on my fullstock Hawken for almost 20 years and the only issue I had was a broken stirrup link about a year in. I'll post some pictures when I get going back to building, had a minor stroke that left me with a tremor in my left hand. A year and a half later it's subsided enough to try building again. Thanks for the input, great community here. Troy

[WadePatton]

While we're on the subject of the Durs Egg lock (without detracting too much from the OP):

I have a Durs Egg on hand for a TN build (right after I run out of Bob Roller locks.) 

As I recall it's the biggest lock I have on hand (all English), so I'll mate it with a B-weight bbl in 45.

If anyone thinks this is a bad idea, let me know so that I may reconsider and trade out of it.  Thanks,

[smart dog]

Hi Wade,
The L&R Durs Egg lock should be a very good choice for a "B" weight barrel.  The mainspring has a long tab that fits under the lock plate bolster. That long tab lowers the top leaf of the mainspring allowing better clearance for a larger barrel.

dave 

[Ryan McNabb]

A Durs Egg would be appropriate on an American rifle that would have been confiscated/captured during the American Revolution. Then fixed up properly in an English workshop. 

That's good Tom...I kept looking for the "like" button under your post...LOL.

[curly]

I have several Durrs Egg locks on my rifles and the one problem I've had with all of them is the frizzen will spring forward and strike the flint. I fixed the problem by covering the flint on top with a longer piece of elk hide leather. I've talked with Tim at L&R and tried different frizzen springs, weaker, stronger, nothing seemed to work, thats just the way they are. An excellent lock. Hope this piece of information helps.

[WadePatton]

I have several Durrs Egg locks on my rifles and the one problem I've had with all of them is the frizzen will spring forward and strike the flint. I fixed the problem by covering the flint on top with a longer piece of elk hide leather. I've talked with Tim at L&R and tried different frizzen springs, weaker, stronger, nothing seemed to work, thats just the way they are. An excellent lock. Hope this piece of information helps.

Wondering aloud how reshaping the "lobe" might work to fix this.  Or even moving the pivot location as an "extreme" measure (fill and drill-just like fixing all those other errant holes we make).  If spring tension alone won't fix it, these are the other two major ingredients as I unnerstand it at this moment.   

I will be very careful with the tuning of mine, now

WHERE is that box o' locks? 

[vladp]

Hi
I'm new to this forum.
Have built quite a few rifles using Durs Egg Locks standard L&R Locks and ones with Bob Roller internals. I have found that the lock is very hard on flints with the bevel facing down. I modify the cock increasing the radius of the throw by 1/16", allowing me to have the flint bevel up. The flint scrapes down the frizzen and the number of shots before sharpening (on a diamond plate) is dramatically increased.

[Turtle]

 I too had problems with short flint life on my durs egg and found bevel down really helped. I believe it is because it moves the flint edge out of the path of the touch hole fire jet. I didn't modify my lock.
                                                     Turtle

[jamesthomas]

Hi all, I was wondering what time frame/ region is a Durs Egg lock appropriate for? Going to use one in my .40 Lancaster(ish) build. I'm left handed and it was in stock with no backorder when I bought it.

 I put a left hand L&R Bailes lock on my .40 cal. Southern rifle, looks very nice.

[Curt Larsen]

In another vein regarding Durs Egg locks, there are reports of an 1803 Harpers Ferry rifle collected as a souvenir from the fighting top of a captured U.S. frigate during the War of 1812.  It was damaged and taken back to England where it ended up in some official collection with a new lock crafted by Durs Egg.  I remember seeing a photo of this rifle on the internet somewhere.
Curt

[BOB HILL]

Curt, another reference to Egg replacing a lock and trigger on an American rifle is the John Thomas rifle in R C A vol. II page 526,rifle #121.
Bob

[Dale Halterman]

I had extremely short flint life with an L&R Durs Egg until I ground down the lobe of the frizzen spring as Wade suggested above. Problem solved.

Dale H