Started My Retirement Flintlock Rifle Build This Morning

[Ohio Joe]

This morning I cut out my curly maple stock blank from a slab of maple I've been storing for probably close to 12 years - maybe more? This slab has always been earmarked for the purpose of when I retired - I planned to build myself a curly maple full stock flintlock, of no one particular school of thought.

It will have a 7/8 x 36 inch Green Mtn Brl x .45 caliber / with flared tang, and I'll use the L&R Classic Flintlock. I like that lock. The butt plate I'm still not sure on with what I'll go with, although I do like the looks of some of those York County butt plates.

It's not a build I'm going to rush. It's just a relaxing pass time I enjoy, so I'll see where it leads me once I get deeper into this build. There's lots of curl in this maple! I don't know if the pictures below does the "curly Maple" justice - but there's a lot!

I'll make periodical posts as this build progresses. I'll say up front, I'm in no big hurry to get it done. 
 

[rollingb]

The middle picture shows some mighty nice curl. 

Sounds like a fun project. 

[Ohio Joe]

It's pretty much like that through and through Rondo. It's kinda tough to see with my picture taking - but it's there. Ought to make it fun drilling for a ramrod when the time comes, but it's doable. 

[Hank in WV]

Beaucoup curl in there. Should be stunning.

[Ohio Joe]

Beaucoup curl in there. Should be stunning.

I hope I can do it justice.

I haven't chiseled out a barrel channel for some time - but I got it started, and man is there curl in that hunk of maple.

I've allowed enough in the blank to get upwards of 4+ inch of drop, but I think I'll bring 'er in at around 3-5/8,,, maybe 3-7/8 inches. But I'm a ways from that.   

[Hank in WV]

I'd put the drop the same as my mostest favorite rifle.

[ridjrunr]

Awesome Joe! Not only alot of curl but it looks tight as well.
Looking forward to your updates.

[Ohio Joe]

I'd put the drop the same as my mostest favorite rifle.

That would be the smart thing to do for sure, Hank... However, my .54 half stock Plains rifle I built 10 years or so ago has a 4 inch drop and it's the most accurate 25 and 50 yard rifle I ever built...

It comes right up to the shoulder and at 25 yards and you'll hit 10's and X's all day long (or at least 'till you get worn out lifting that 10-1/2 pounds...) Then at 50 yards you just aim what you perceive to be center X, and just minutely shade ever so little high and you can live in the 10 Ring all day long,,, I kid you not!

The other thing is that the front sight is 5/32nds off the top flat - while the rear sight is 1/4 inch off the top flat, so it don't take long to get heat mirage with those 90 grain loads of 2fg. But it's truly the most accurate muzzle loading rifle I ever built, but I have to think 5 shot matches before this Plains Rifle gets about a 10 minute break to cool down on a summer day.

Now ol' Candle Snuffer comes in with a 3 inch drop and 1/4" tall sights - but being a .45 and shooting 55 grains of 3fg - I have never found heat mirage to be an issue with ol' Snuffer...

So I'm a thinking since from the top of my shoulder to the center of my eye measures 7-1/8th inches, perhaps a 3-9/16" drop (make it 3-5/8" drop) should play in about right.

I'm going to have to wrestle with this a'while. 

Oh as a side note; measuring from the top of the shoulder to the center of one's eye as they stand straight - I have found puts them on a better "shoulder" sight plane... You just divide that measurement by 2 as I did above.  It actually does work; top of shoulder to center of eye measures 7-1/8th inches = 3-9/16 drop.

 

[Ohio Joe]

Awesome Joe! Not only alot of curl but it looks tight as well.
Looking forward to your updates.

Thanks ridjrunr, that curl be tight!  I'll post updates on the build - heck, you guys might see something I'm a missing as its been a'while since I built a muzzle loading rifle. 

[Ohio Joe]

Here's a helpful tip;



Note: Be sure your stock blank is squared...

Notice on the front of the stock blank the pencil mark for where the bottom of the barrel will set in once that area is removed / now notice the cuts (made by my circular saw) running up the channel. Those cuts are only as deep as the top 5 Flats of the octagons...

Doing this will aid you in chiseling out the channel to the top of the 3 lower barrel flats... Once those "saw blade" cuts disappear as you work your way up the barrel channel taking out wood, and you will know you are deep enough in this area... Then you can move onto shaping the bottom of the barrel channel where those 3 octagon flats set into the stock.

I hope this tip makes sense to all who see it. Study the two pictures and you'll get the idea. 
 

[Hank in WV]

Joe, it would make it easier yet if before you make those cuts, draw lines representing the bottom flat and cut them before cutting the sides. Then remove the wood as you normally would. I hope I'm making sense also.

[Ohio Joe]

Ok, the barrel channel is in, with the next step to fit the barrel to the channel, and then fit the breech plug to the barrel. After that - fit barrel with breech plug to the stock.

Joe, it would make it easier yet if before you make those cuts, draw lines representing the bottom flat and cut them before cutting the sides. Then remove the wood as you normally would. I hope I'm making sense also.

Not a bad idea Hank. I guess I'm just so use to doing it with the chisels, I've never thought about it.   

[Ohio Joe]

No pictures today - Just an update.

I have the barrel channel completed and am now working on in-letting the breech plug tang. Once I have this done I'll post another picture along with my projected drop (which early measurements are showing I could go 3-3/4" if I chose to.  I'll have to decide on that or 3-5/8"... Trigger pull will be 13-5/8 inches (though I am wrestling with maybe 13-1/2" if I go with the 3-3/4" drop... 

[Hank in WV]

I never like to go too long on my LOP so that I can shoot comfortably in the winter. I think it's easier to adapt to a sort LOP than a long one.

[Ohio Joe]

I never like to go too long on my LOP so that I can shoot comfortably in the winter. I think it's easier to adapt to a sort LOP than a long one.

That is exactly right Hank. My normal pull is 14-1/4 inches, so with every ML I've built I've shorten that LOP to 13-5/8 inches, which leaves me plenty of room for hunting clothes.

Overall I think a person is better off with a shorter pull, and not because of the late hunting seasons, but I've always felt most of us shoot more targets with our ML's then the shots we take hunting - so just might as well go with the shorter trigger pull, and get use to your rifle with it as you target shoot during good weather, then you're always ready for the hunt.

However, I leave that up to a person's personal choice of what they want. Twice I've built a ML for a friend of mine and his trigger pull was real close to 16 inches,,, so we went 15-1/2 inches to allow for hunting clothes... He actually told me he feels that pull is more comfortable for him. Also I might mention, his drop was 4-1/2 inches. Ol' Stan is a very tall person.