General discussion > Gun Building
Second rifle from a blank: a progress thread
parve:
I started working on this rifle in August of 2023, but stuff like starting a new job and finishing a doctorate distracted me from making much progress in 2024. I've been making decent progress in the past few weeks, so hopefully I can keep the steam going in this thread. It started off with a Rice .45 7/8" straight octagon barrel, maple blank from Allen Martin, and a Kibler late Ketland lock. I was originally going to follow one of the rifles in Randall Pierce's book, but after inletting the barrel and drilling the ramrod hole I botched inletting a lollipop tang with gaps everywhere. I rebreeched the barrel with another long tang breech plug:
My ramrod hole drilling setup:
I use an old Yankee hand brace and advance the drill bit I bought from MBS about a half inch at a time.
New straight tang inlet over the old lollipop tang inlet:
Underlugs made and installed following Taylor's tutorial from this forum:
Lock plate (and later internals) inlet:
I made my own set triggers for this rifle out of 3/8" square stock for the plate and 3/16" flat bar for the triggers:
Trigger plate inlet:
Triggers inlet for free movement. I also got the rear spring inlet today:
Now I have to decide how I want to attach the tang and trigger plate. I'm working towards a longrifle from the Piedmont of North Carolina, and the originals I've been able to examine from the region all have wood screws for the tang and rely on the trigger guard to keep the triggers in place. Following the originals would make things pretty simple for me moving forward, but I'm waffling on drilling and tapping the trigger plate for a tang bolt instead.
JBulitz:
Fit and finish looks super so far for a 2nd build! Just to share my two cents on the tang bolt debate. The really nice save you made using wider the tang looks like an opportunity to add some strength to the wrist. In the last photo it looks like the grain us running nearly parallel to the barrel across the wrist. A tang bolt with a head made to match any additional wood screws could be done now that the tang width is uniform. In my mind, thay would brace that fine wrist nicely with the long trigger bar, better than wood screws. The threaded end could still be made to hide beneath the trigger guard. Either way, it's clear you're doing a thoughtful and careful job of it!
whetrock:
Congratulations on finishing your doctorate.
Your photos show good work. And you did a good job on the save with the new tang.
A few southern schools used that arrangement with the guard holding the trigger plate. Some of the antiques show failure there, with the guard bent down and the trigger plate coming out of its mortise. I've seen a few of those. There's a North Carolina rifle by one of the Whitsons that it looks to me like it has a repair based on that kind of problem. Looks like a tang bolt was added later, put through the trigger plate. But that doesn't mean they always had issues, either. That style was used by at least one old maker in the county where I grew up. I've seen antiques built that way that are still perfectly fine, with the trigger plates still tight.
It is something to be avoided? I don't know. I know several people who think it's a cool detail. I do think there are a few things from the old days that we want to avoid. Breach plugs with only three poorly fitted coarse threads, for example. But it seems to me that some other details, like this one, might just be part of the charm of a particular school.
So I guess what I'm saying is that it really depends on your philosophy. Some of the guys on here are functionalists. Others are traditionalists. Some like every detail perfected and perfectly machined. Other want to see stuff built like it was in the old days, true to design, even with scraper marks and tool marks everywhere the old ones had them. There's plenty of room for opinion, and opinions can differ widely. So I hope you get some good feedback, but don't be surprised if the opinions differ.
If you want to keep a balance between improving function and traditional design and appearance, then, like JBulitz said, it might be possible to use a bolt and hide it. Hiding it under the trigger guard, as he suggests, is an option. Another you might consider is adding a threaded lug to the hidden side of the trigger plate. The tang bolt would thread into the lug, rather than passing all the way through. The head could be made to look just like the wood screw(s) used on other parts of the tang. The lug could be silver soldered on, or dovetailed into the plate. That would give you strength without affecting the asthetics of that detail. (If I was gonna use a lug, I think I'd use the dovetail option, or maybe use a loose dovetail until it was all constructed and threaded, and then glue it together with silver solder. Anway, I can imagine doing that without having to have a bottoming tap. I really hate having to grind the tips off my taps.)
You could just drill the trigger plate and tap it, too. You might be right in line with Whitson if you do.
Hatchet-Jack:
Looking good! Following...
whetrock:
PS: I also wanted to compliment you on your attention to detail with the lobe at the top of the front trigger. Randal will be pleased!
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