Reducing the RR dia and tapering

[flehto]

When first starting to build LRs, bought a well known  parts set which had a sideplate w/ holes and was already inletted and after drilling the 2 holes , the front lock bolt interfered w/ the RR.....so had to make it fit by a reduced dia and a taper.

Thereafter made the sideplates and eliminated any front  lockbolt interference w/ the RR.

Having previously  stuck the sharp end of a broken RR into my hand and to avoid doing it again, all rough RRS were inspected for grain runout, but also did  a few other things  to retain a .375 dia RR  or close to it. None of my RRs have a tapered end that slides into the lower forestock

All the RR pipes are formed around a .375 rod that's 5" long and when the RR pipe is being inlet, the .375 rod insures that the pipe  ID runs parallel to the channel and when the rod first goes into  the pipe, the inletting ceases. If the pipe is too deep, this causes a need to reduce the RR dia.

The front lock bolt is  #6-32 and does 2 things......easier to make it NOT interfere w/ the RR and also seeing the web towards the breech end is only 1/16" thick, the filed groove in the bbl is shallower.  By the way....a #6-32 lockbolt is plenty big for it's use.

Because everything is not perfect asre the pipes and their inlets and the drilled hole in the forestock may have wandered a bit, some reduction of the RR is necessary.....but the RRs end up being no less than .365 dia. and  that's  for the length that slides into the hole which sometimes has to be selectively  enlarged because of drill runout. The dia for the exposed length is pretty close to .370.  Also....no problem w/ RR retention....it slides easily but is retained.

I might be paranoid on RR fits, but I still remember the bloody aftermath of pulling the RR out of my hand......Fred

[KC]

The lessons that cause pain and cause you to bleed are usually the lessons you remember the most. Good info to know.
K.C.

[Daryl]

I might be paranoid on RR fits, but I still remember the bloody aftermath of pulling the RR out of my hand......Fred

Been there, but mine was unbroken. The full, almost flat end penetrated my palm. I'd given it a final smack to seat the ball onto the powder.  "I said to Taylor &the other guys in the group, "look at this" when I pulled my hand up off the muzzle, the rod came with it. Felt a "might queersome"

[JLayne]

Working on my first pre-carve and have just run into the exact tapering problem you describe. Unfortunately, the lock plate has long since been drilled, tapped and installed, so it's too late to implement the fix you describe, but I will keep the above advice in mind for the future.  Actually, after the lock and pipes were installed, I did taper the tipped end of the ramrod down enough to get it to fit through the pipes and in its hole. However, I recently had to open up the front and rear lock bolt holes a bit to relieve stress on the lock bolts to correct my novice first attempt at drilling them. Add to that the fact that it has rained a lot over the past few weeks and it seems that things have shifted and/or swelled enough that the ramrod that was fitting originally has tightened up in its hole such that I recently had to remove the front lock bolt to withdraw it. The front bolt (8-32) appears to have shifted somewhat to where it made a dimple in the rod maybe 1/32" to 1/16" deep (just a visual guesstimate). I will see if I can taper the tipped end down a bit more to get it to fit correctly again, but if the steel tip won't allow for enough of a reduction via filing,  I was thinking that possibly I could flip it and taper the non-tipped end to fit the hole. If that fails, I will order a new rod with one of the pre-tapered tips from Kibler.  The one it came with had a straight (i.e., non-tapered) profile.

Thanks,
Jay

[FALout]

After having similar situation I always check fit with either wood rod or steel loading rod for depth and width fit.  If there’s an issue I will re-drill.  Only issue then is if I drill for lock bolt or pin in wrong spot.  I now have to make a new drill rod for 5/16 since I’m working on my first small bore.
Bob

[elkhorne]

For the rest of our education of what not to do, would you all that had a ramrod go through or into your hand, please share with the rest of us WHAT NOT TO DO! Most of us that shoot BP have a healthy respect for the elements of our sport that could hurt you or others. Anything new we can learn to add to our safety list would be invaluable. Thanks and always ready to learn!
elkhorne

[Sidelock]

I have not had a rod break on me but know it's a real possibility.  Personally - I use a metal range for whenever possible.  Re-loads in the field while hunting is about the only time I use the on-board wood rod. 

[Fyrstyk]

I have drilled a recessed hole in my short starter that fits the end of the ram rod.  I fit this over the end of the ram rod for the final push of the ball onto the powder.  Saves on the palm of the hand.

[EC121]

I did the same with my short starter.  That way I can be sure the ball gets past any fouling rings in the bore.  It also helps push a really tapered rod.