TRS Officers Fusil Parts, 1996

[Bob Gerard]

I was cleaning up my shop yesterday and came across some stuff I had put away for a 'rainy day'. Last year, a friend and fellow luthier gave me his complete assemblage of The Rifle Shop parts that he had from 1996. (The original invoice is still in the old shipping box).  He said it is for a "British Officer's Fusil", and everything is there except the ramrod and front sight. It has two sets of pipes as well, for some reason; I think one is for a wooden ramrod and the other for a steel one. I will have to ask Ken.
The 37" barrel looks like .62 and is made by Ed Rayl and is round-bottom rifled. It is really pitted on the outside from being stored in a damp basement for these past 27 years. Luckily the "British Dragoon Carbine Lock" is in like-new condition.
He started to inlet the barrel channel but didn't get very far.
I am wondering how I am going to go about this. I want to build it but the stock needs work done that I can't do (ramrod hole for starters), and the barrel might be pitted so much that it would look really odd unless I made it to look old. (The inside looks good but I need to get abore light down there.
Anyway, just thought I would share this. I guess me friend was lucky he was able to get all the parts TRS in one order.
PS; these are not for sale or trade.

[HSmithTX]

I would guess that there is plenty of meat on the barrel to turn down the round and mill the flats to clean it up, the inlet isn't done so there's probably wood left to inlet it after clean up?. I'd probably put it in a box and send it to Bobby Hoyt if it was given to me.  If he can't 'fix' it he can make another.

[Scota4570]

I'd submerge the barrel in Evapo-rust.  Use a PVC pipe with a cap.  Put a string down the bore with a nut or something  to secure it at the bottom end.  You can use the string  to pull it out and check progress.  You will be surprised by how good the result is.  At that point the outside will require normal finishing.  The inside may or may not need to be lapped. 

[smart dog]

Hi Bob,
Scot is right.  Get that barrel in Evaporust for a couple of days, then check the bore to see if you need to lap it .  Valve grinding compound on steel wool or green Scotch Bright pads wrapped around a cleaning jag will do the trick but it takes some time. 

Your parts are not for an officer's fusil.  Remember, there was no pattern of officer's fusils.  They were purchased privately and the pattern was largely at the discretion of the buyer.  You lock is not from TRS.  It is a Chambers round-faced Colonial lock that someone engraved with British markings.  It is shorter and narrower than the true pattern 1756 carbine lock.  The butt plate, trigger guard, wrist plate, and side plate are from TRS's part set for the pattern 1760 light infantry carbine.  Again, nothing to do with an officer's fusil.   The ramrod pipes look to be from Brown Bess muskets.  The trigger plate, trigger, and cast nose cap are those sold by TRS for the pattern 1760 carbine but the actual gun used none of those. 

So what to do?  Well, the trigger guard, butt plate, and wrist plate were never used on any guns other than  the Lord Loudon carbine of 1745 and the pattern 1760 light infantry fusil.  The ramrod pipes are from muskets.  What to do?  I would be tempted to ditch the trigger guard and wrist plate, and make some sort of carbine using the the standard trigger guard for a Brown Bess.  Look at Bailey's books or assume American manufacture using surplused British parts.  This is an excellent opportunity for some research. Rifled fusils were rare but not unheard of.

dave

[Daryl]

I've not tried the green ScotchBrite, but have used the maroon and achieved very good results with about 80 passes. I changed the ScotchBrite after 40 strokes.
I also used WD40 to keep the "results" in a wet solution that is easily removed with patches.

[Bob Gerard]

Thanks Dave, Daryl, HSmith, Scota~
Dave, As always you are a font of education. Thanks.
I will do the thing with the barrel and see how it goes.
I dont know if the front sight was partially dovetailed and soldered or what (I saw you had done one that way). The rear sight looks like it gets dove-tailed in, so it can be drifted for sighting-in.
Interesting about the lock. On the invoice, TRS called it a "British Dragoon and Carbin Lock" (sic).
This being a partial Light Infantry Carbine set makes sense, as Ken was re-enacting in a British LI Unit.
Ken let me borrow his "British Ordnance Small Arms" book, by De Witt Bailey, an I will go though it.
I may go the "American Manufacture" route, since I have all these parts all assembled and given to me as a great gift.
(PS; I am attaching the invoice so you all can see those amazing prices!)

[Scota4570]

By lapping I mean lead lapping.  I just spent the day getting after a brand new Green Mountain barrel.  I was not awful but certainly was not great.  I could see drill marks on the lands before I started.  I think they used to ream the bores before rifling.   I could feel herkie jerkie tight and loose spots with the lap.   

I started with  Linotype and 320 grit but was not making much progress.  It was crazy smooth though.   I then used Linotype, 220 grit clover, that cut faster.   Linotype casts a better image of the bore than pure lead.  Pure lead is sticky feeling.  I have not observed that pure works better for me.  I believe that linotype will be less apt to round the corners of the lands.  I polished with jeweler's rouge and a patches. 

You do not need a fancy ball bearing rod.  I use a 3/8" solid rod.  The end of the rod has a taper to thread in the lap to expand it.  The swivel action happens on the threads of the jag.  The jag is a piece of all thread 2" long.  I use a handy rubber grommet to center the rod when casting the lap.  The breech end get a threaded bushing in the plug threads that centers the rod. 

After several hours  I had the tight and loose places mostly gone.  The annular rings in the bore were gone.  The enlargement of the bore I would estimate at a couple ten thousands.  I have no idea if it will shoot any better or worse.  I will bet that it cleans and loads easier.  I made a slight choke, that does help loading for sure. 

[smart dog]

Hi Bob,
I attached photos of a light infantry carbine I built including photos of the carbine lock.  I wonder if the previous owner had difficulty assembling the TRS lock and swapped it out for a Chambers lock.




























dave



image uploader

[Bob Gerard]

Dave- That’s about the most lovely musket I have seen. (No surprise there, though!)
I see it has a wooden ramrod- as you noted the pipes that came from TRS seem to be for a metal oneA.
I am not sure if Ken got the Edge lock from TRS; he said that he got all the parts, started the barrel channel and put it away. It was packed in with everything else inside the original box from the Rifle Shop.