Started my Lancaster today, have a MORE question 5-27-09

[Captchee]

well depends on the lock , . normaly its just behind the  tang  and into the  pan bridle  just back of the  pan . this is the thick inside  brace that mates to you barrel.  folks call it by diffrent names but i call it the pan bridle

with some Breech plugs though you have to drill through the  part of the tang thats  on the back face of the breech ..
 if you do two bolts . the second goes through  and into the open area  of the lock plate , just forward of the bend in the main spring .
 its best to use a point jig in a drill press  to make sure all ligns up stait . once you have the points drilled  you can mark centers of the holes on the stock , large enough so as to align the lock  side plate . then drill the side plate . then tap the lock plate

 i believ steve has  this covered in his building totorial down in the gun building forum

[pintail_drake2004]

Ok guys, i have been a wood worker for many year, and my father is a master carpenter of many decades. and we both have seen better bolts in childs toys. The bolts included for the tang bolt and the lock bolts are of LOW QUALITY steel, i would have expected better steel bolts in this kit. heads twisted off and/or left with tool marks with little pressure.
Sending my bro to the hardware store tomorrow to get some better hardware for this gun.

[rollingb]

Ok guys, i have been a wood worker for many year, and my father is a master carpenter of many decades. and we both have seen better bolts in childs toys. The bolts included for the tang bolt and the lock bolts are of LOW QUALITY steel, i would have expected better steel bolts in this kit. heads twisted off and/or left with tool marks with little pressure.
Sending my bro to the hardware store tomorrow to get some better hardware for this gun.

That's interesting,... where did you get your Lancaster kit?

[pintail_drake2004]

the kit came from Pecatonica. I have heard nothing but good about them and they are awesome to work with. but this shocked me. I took a bolt after i decided to get some new ones, and the file just darn near cut right through it with ease. dont know if it was a bad batch or what. but i busted my butt over my spring break o get this done, and i get stopped short because of this. I will be gone for the next 3 days, so i guess this next weekend if im lucky. But im glad it happened now instead of when i start shooting it.

[pathfinder]

Did you get rid of that gap? I helped a student once who had the same problem and it turned out the lock wasn't strait up and down,the lower end of the lock was tipped in @ 5 degrees,so I had him file the bolster so the lock fit tight against the barrel. You don't want a gap there to collect gunk.

[Indiana]

The bolts which came with my TOTW kit seemed to mess up the slot pretty badly when you tried to tighten them as well.  I was using the right size driver, etc, but they still messed up.  I ended up having to reshape the head and file a new slot.  The last set of bolts I bought from a guy out at Friendship, however, look to be of a much higher quality steel.

[Captchee]

the reason for this is that you dont use those screws for the build, only for the finish .  any screw you put in and take out as many times as you  SHOULD be for as inletting a butt plate will get buggered up . so get you some cheep  scres to use for the build .
also Unless DicK has changes something , the screws are IRON not steal .
 if you have to torque them in so tight that you twist them , then you have not done something right . the part should fit correctly with the screw just being snugged down . if it doesnt then more inletting is needed .

 the iron screws also take a brown or blue much better.
 they also do not have a tappered slot but a square gun slot . so even though you  think you have the right driver . if its just an everyday one from the tool box , it will slip out very easy

[jtwodogs]

Capt. I am one to use any modern tool to help me do things better. I am just setting here wondering how they used to do that job without a drill press to make sure they get it staight?

[Captchee]

becouse they used drill presses  LOL .
at one time . when i had my original shop , i had a drill press that was dated to 1890. it was called a drill post as it would mount to any post or beam in a shop wall  . still worked great . In fact the press changed little  un tell the advent of electric motors .
  The thing was simple and it worked cleanly . . Basically it was just a large brace and bit , mounted to a  hand lever . You then had a hand wheel that you  cranked as you brought the brace down .
  no mater  what type of drill press you use , a  center jig for the drill bit is a must if you want a true hole .

i also have seen photos of 18 centery  wood presses . im sure if you do a google on the history of the drill press , you will find alot of info concerning them


 Also brace and bits work  , if you use an angle guide  to ensure you  stay true  and not rush ..
 The other thing to remember is that  folks built from planks  not pre carves . With a plank , the drilling is done before the stock is shaped . Thus its much easier to get a good 90 deg hole  when you can clamp the stock true. Over a pre carve that is already starting to be shaped   making it harder to clamp true

[pintail_drake2004]

Sorry for the lag in response gents, ive been in the hospital for the last 3 days.

The bolts that came with the kit are the ones i used to button the thing up. Book said nothing about having 2 sets of bolts (one for fitting, and one for final). I did not torque the heads off, it only took very little pressure to mar-up, twist, and damage the heads.  
Will steel bolts brown well? What other options are there? I have a snug fit with my lock, trigger, and barrel. Tapped the holes with the proper taps. I think i want something a lil stronger than what came with this.

thanks
pintail

[Captchee]

steel will blue and brown . just takes longer .
Iron screws are easly mared . thats why you use 2 finish .
again the slots are not tappered . they take a square blade " IE not a standard screw driver .
 that being said , i have never broken a screw from  dic . they are the very same screws that  you would get from tow  Jim chambers or any of the others . infact most times he sends more then needed .

[jbullard1]

Let me interject a thought here!
The iron screws will break with an improper size pilot hole, I know because I have done it.
Practice drilling several size holes in scrap wood and run a screw in them
You need to grind or buy screwdrivers that exactly fit the screws you are using. Its very easy to screw up a screw

[fm tim]

What do you use to remove the marker color from the lock plate, barrel, etc.?

[pintail_drake2004]

just wipes off easily with some rubbin alcohol

[Captchee]

Just take a rag to it  with alittle  409 , ajax , even soap and water  or  just wipe it off with  denature alcohol . degreaser also works well ..  which you will need to use to brown or blue the barrel any way