Question for Rich Pierce?

[R.J.Bruce]

Mr. Pierce,
                   Are you offering your barrel re-freshing service to the general muzzleloading public? If so, are there any restrictions on the types of barrels that you will fresh out? I ask because several members of Modern Muzzleloading have Thompson/Center & Investarms sidelock barrels off of rifles that they have purchased used that have pitting in the barrel from prior neglect.

A lot of these guys are getting into sidelocks for the first time, or returning to them after a long period of time spent with inlines.

If you do work on such barrels, I will steer them in your direction. Just need contact information, if that's the case.

Other than Bobby Hoyt, I couldn't remember anyone else but you that freshed out barrels.

Thanks

Bruce

[rich pierce]

Hi Bruce,
I don’t do button rifled barrels, only cut rifling. I’ve tried a few and found the button rifled barrels common on faster twist mass produced barrels often are working hardened to a degree that inhibits my low tech setup. Those folks with TC or Investarms guns are better off going to Bobby Hoyt for a re-bore.

The only reasons to have a barrel recut the old fashioned way are to preserve the original rifling configuration and not bump up the caliber a whole step (.45 to .50, .50 to .54, .54 to .58) which is common with a rebore.

I like doing originals that are not too far gone. If the powder chamber has serious erosion it’s going to take at least 0.020” to correct and that is 3 days work. I now see why so many originals were shortened at both breech and muzzle!

For general discussion and clarificationI’ve heard that Bobby Hoyt re-freshes  barrels but I think that is lumping approaches. I do not know that he re-cuts original rifling by cutting existing grooves and lands down using the existing rifling as a guide. Strictly speaking that is the only process designated as freshing a barrel. Drilling out existing rifling and cutting brand new is re-boring and re-rifling in my view, and drilling and putting in a liner is also not freshing the rifling.

[Top Jaw]

For a gun in this price range, $200 -$400, They would be better served to have someone lead lap the barrel.  There are threads on here for doing that. 

Or for starters, run a few hundred strokes with lubricated maroon scotch brite pads cut into patches to polish (remove) rust pits from at least the lands.  Will need a jag the next size smaller to do this (.45 for a 50 cal).  I would certainly try this or both before I had a re-bore done.

[rich pierce]

For a gun in this price range, $200 -$400, They would be better served to have someone lead lap the barrel.  Or for starters, run a few hundred strokes with lubricated maroon scotch brite pads cut into patches to polish (remove) rust pits from at least the lands.  Will need a jag the next size smaller to do this (.45 for a 50 cal).  I would certainly try this before I had a re-bore done.

Always the right first attempt at a fix.

A top shooter in our club buys old TC rifles with trashed bores, and mounts Green Mountain or Rice barrels up to 48” long on them. Watch out cause Tom is gonna cut cloverleaf groups off the bench with those rigs. It makes a high performance percussion bench gun at a very affordable price. For hunting purposes a good lapping often restores load-ability and will allow 2-3” groups at 50 yards.

[Daryl]

For a gun in this price range, $200 -$400, They would be better served to have someone lead lap the barrel.  There are threads on here for doing that. 

Or for starters, run a few hundred strokes with lubricated maroon scotch brite pads cut into patches to polish (remove) rust pits from at least the lands.  Will need a jag the next size smaller to do this (.45 for a 50 cal).  I would certainly try this or both before I had a re-bore done.

Last time at Hefley Creek rendezvous - 2019 I guess, friend Len & I "saved" the barrel of a lady's .58 cal. rifle that had been cleaned for years with boiling hot water and the bore's condition
from breech to muzzle was finely pitted from the rusting that occurred each time it was cleaned. It had gotten to the point where she had to wipe between shots due to the roughness.  Her husband had it up for sale.  After the maroon Scotch Brite 'lapping', she was able again to shoot a 22 shot trail as before, with zero wiping. She was so happy, she was practically in tears & hugged us both for 'saving' her rifle.
Len had a 4" bench vice on a hitch post that fitted a trailer hitch attachment on his front bumper of his truck, which make holding the barrel easier than by hand & allowed a very snug patch of the pad on a jag. We used WD40 as a lubricant/solvent.

[R.J.Bruce]

Thanks guys,

Most of the guys purchasing the old T/C, Investarms, and Ardessa rifles with pitted barrels are already using the Scotch Brite pad method of scrubbing the bore to try and restore it. I was just trying to give them another option besides a rebore/rerifle/reline from Bobby Hoyt.