Building a 4 Bore English Rifle

[Bill Raby]

Here is Part 37

[Sand Watcher]

Thank you for making this video series, Bill! It’s probably the best-documented custom build I’ve ever seen.

I came across this a little while ago, and have been watching your posts out of order. So, maybe I’ve missed it, or haven’t gotten there yet, but what is the twist of the barrel, and where did you get it? ...or more specifically, where can I get one?

I once built a little 4-gauge smoothbore from Rayl that I plink around with quite a bit, but I’d love to make one with rifling.

[Bill Raby]

Its 104 inch twist. I got it from Oregon Barrel.

[Sand Watcher]

Thank you, Bill! I just placed an order, after talking with Suzy yesterday. They seem pretty good to work with. She did say to expect a 9-month turnaround due to production limitations.  I wound up asking for a 32 inch. It will be interesting to see whether those extra few inches affect practicality or performance.

[Daryl]

Sandwatcher - interesting you got the longer barrel. Forsyth noted the larger bored guns did quite
 well with 24" to 26" bls. but he was talking double rifles.

[Sand Watcher]

Was Forsyth saying that the shorter barrel was perfectly adequate for  his needs, or that a longer barrel would be a detriment?

In a pinch I could always shorten it, but I got the longer barrel for a couple of reasons. One is to eventually add more data points to the limited body of knowledge surrounding this class of guns. Another is to avoid issues I have with my 20” 4-gauge, which are twofold... For one, the barrel (at 6-7 lbs) is too light, meaning excessive recoil. Secondly, it’s too short to get high muzzle velocities (and maybe to some extent accuracy).

[Bill Raby]

   I got a 29 inch barrel. I think 32 inch would be fine. These barrels are pretty heavy. Mine is a bit over 12 pounds. My only complaint is that the gun has a lot of weight on the muzzle. I suppose there is not much way around that.  Barrel is 1 3/4 inch at breech tapering to 1 1/2 inch at muzzle. If I were to get another I think I would go for 1 7/8 inch at breech and 1 1/2 inch at muzzle. A little more weight on the breech end would be nice. But that would complicate things a bit more than they already are. I have gotten a few people offering me enormous amounts of money for the next one I build so I will probably do one more sometime and let them fight over it.

   This one is a bit of a challenge, but all is going well so far. There is a good amount of stuff that I had to figure out as I go. Good part is that all the videos will on You Tube by the time you get a barrel. Maybe there will be a few things in there to help you out.

[Sand Watcher]

Yes, I think your video series will be an important reference when I get around to doing my build. I’ve been wanting something like this for a while, but thought it would too hard/expensive to have a barrel made for it. What I will probably do when I get the barrel is drive it over to ToW (I live fairly close) and rummage through their locks to find one that fits easily. With the patent breech, I’m going to need to be a little more careful about where the vent lands.

If you are concerned about balance, maybe you could bed some lead slugs or a mercury filled tube into the stock (kind of like shotgunners do)? You’d have to find a way to do it without compromising the strength too much, or your sense of PC. That would also help absorb a little bit of recoil.

Fortunately, with a PRB, the heaviest projectile you’ll be shooting will probably be only 3.3 ounces. Maybe 3.2 ounces with a thick patch (plus the weight of the powder).

[Bill Raby]

Here is Part 38