Harpers Ferry Pistol

[Davethepainter]

Hi, I'm a new poster here, from the UK. I started building a Harpers Ferry Pistol after I retired (in fact I started building it 45 years ago, but that's another story). Can anyone give me some guidance on forming the rib under the barrel? I have access to a lathe and a pillar drill, but not a milling machine. I'm scratching my head about how to get the groove which fixes to the barrel.

cheers

Davethepainter

[Bob Gerard]

Track of the Wolf sells various types:

[Davethepainter]

Thanks Bob, but I was hoping to make one myself. That's the sort of profile I was talking about though.

[Habu]

It has been a long time since I looked at a Harper's Ferry pistol, but weren't the originals folded rather than forged or machined?   It might take a few iterations to work out the dimensions, but take a piece of sheet metal the length you need, put in two right angle bends a distance apart equal to the length of the arc of the semi-circular face, then bend the arc with a rod (sort of like making ramrod pipes from sheet). 

[Davethepainter]

Hi Habu, I've had a look at some photos and I think you're right. My plan doesn't show that, but the photos do look as if they might have been folded. Do you have any thoughts on making them out of a solid piece though? Just askin' for a friend.

[alacran]

Muzzle Loaders Builders Supply, sells a hollow under rib. I believe Ryan Roberts, mills the solid ribs to hollow them. You have to file the outside profile flat
to make them look flat like on the folded ones.

[Daryl]

I bought a hollow under rib at Dixon's, some (a lot of) years ago.

[Habu]

Hi Habu, I've had a look at some photos and I think you're right. My plan doesn't show that, but the photos do look as if they might have been folded. Do you have any thoughts on making them out of a solid piece though? Just askin' for a friend.

Not having a mill or shaper, for me making a solid rib would be a lot of file work.  I'd buy one if I could. 

If I couldn't (availability or whatever), I'd start with a piece of keystock as close as possible to finished dimensions, epoxy one side to a block of steel to hold in the vise, and file it to fit the barrel first.  Might need to make a "file plane": bend the file tang and tip at 90 degrees to the body of the file, then set in a block of wood to have something to hang on to.  Heat the rib to release the epoxy and turn it over, then epoxy the barrel-fitted side to the holding block.  File the groove for the ramrod, then do the sides. 

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

What length of rib do you need?  I have a collection from years of gunmaking, of pieces of under-rib, and I might have what you need.  I've used cut off pieces for a number of my own pistol projects.

[Davethepainter]

Thanks for all the offers and advice, it's all very generous and encouraging. I think I'm going to try bending it out of a bit of sheet. I'd prefer to have a go myself, and forming one out of a solid bar doesn't seem to be a go-er.