Pedersoli Brown Bess Project

[Steel Horse Rider]

Despite my best efforts not to complete this kit in less than a month I succumbed to temptation and worked in my garage most weeknights until 10PM and finished by Pedersoli Brown Bess kit in two weeks. I was not able to shoot it today but I did get some pictures..... BUT they appear to be too large to post so I will transfer them to another computer that has resizing software and try again. Stand by.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

Here are a couple of pictures.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

One more of the lock. The kit has a finished lock, although I would recommend a thorough clean and lube before installing it, but the brass pieces are all rough castings, the barrel had discoloration from the silver soldering of the mounting tabs, and the stock is rough cut. It takes a lot of filing and wood removal to get the stock to size and then a LOT of sanding. I started with 120 grit and worked my way up to 600 grit and then finished with 00 steel wool. I put six coats of Homer Formby's Tung Oil on the wood, polishing with the steel wool between each coat. I wiped the brass and the barrel down with oil for protection.

 

[StrawHat]

Looks good. The stock has nice grain to it. I have built several rifles and always enjoyed the challenge. I use a similar finish but after I get the pores filled, I always use a good wax to protect the wood and the metal. My favorite is Butchers Bowling Alley Wax but there are others. Make sure it is not a cleaner/wax product.

Kevin

 

[4v50 Gary]

Looks good. The butt has very nice figure to it.

 

[Acorn Mush]

Beautiful work! You really ought to work on that "get-it-done" character defect though.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

I took it out shooting today even though the range was muddy and there was a brisk wind from my starboard quarter. I took a 2 liter water filled juice bottle, a half gallon milk jug filled with water, and a 1/2 gallon juice can for targets. I started at about 30 yards and ploughed the ground around all three with regularity. It seems to shoot low when using the front bayonet lug as the sight, but considering the wind it seemed to be pretty centered. The delay between the flint striking the frizzen and the boom was more than my flint Hawken but was not too bad. I moved up to about 15 yards and was able to dispatch all three targets. That .740 diameter ball will really explode a water filled plastic jug! The fouling was not bad, I used a 5/8" diameter dowel as a ram rod and would use it to scrape the sides of the barrel after three or four shots. I used Bore Butter lubricated .30 caliber cleaning patches on the balls and they were easy to recover. They had a very even pattern on them. I used 90 grains of 2F Goex powder which I believe is a good load for this piece target shooting. If I was going to hunt I would probably use a little stouter load but the recoil was mild and the divots removed by the ball striking the frozen ground were significant......

 

[StrawHat]

...The delay between the flint striking the frizzen and the boom was more than my flint Hawken but was not too bad...

Your lock or technique can be refined to cause instantaneous combustion. It should be at least as fast as a percussion lock.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

What grits did you use to polish the rough castings of the brass to finished surfaces?

LD

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

Dave: I started on the castings with a couple of files. I used a medium double cut to take the casting sprues down and clean up the edges then I used an 8" smooth single cut file to smooth and finish the shaping. I jumped into 220 grit from the filing stage and then progressed to 400 and 600 grit before polishing with the steel wool. I have a small bench top B&D Workmate vise that I use to hold the larger pieces while I work them. The smaller pieces can be held between two sanding blocks to keep them even. I have a number of small round and triangular files I use to clean up the more intricate areas. I had to open up a number of the predrilled screw holes for the trigger guard and lock with a round file which is something I have not had to do on my other Pedersoli kits.

 

[sandy4570]

That is one pretty Brown Bess I am keen to learn how she shot at 40 and 50 yards this is the shortest distance allow at my range.

 

[Panzerschwein]

Very nice! I like it! Can't argue with that bore!

 

[Ohio Gun Guy]

very nice!

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Thanks for the info...I have a vintage Jap Bess kit that I'm done with the basic stock work, and now am moving to the brass, before combining both categories and doing the final finishing of the brass and the stock. Did you have to drill your barrel pin holes? This vintage kit came with holes for the brass parts, and trigger, but not for the barrel lugs.

LD

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

Dave: All the holes, including the stock pin holes were predrilled on the Pedersoli kit. Laying those holes out for proper positioning is going to be a bugger unless you can drill the tabs at the same time you drill the stock.

 

[Ephraim Kibbey]

I've found that drilling through both wood and metal in the same pass is deleterious to the wood. I have better success if I drill through the wood to the metal and then mark the metal with a punch. I remove the metal and drill it separately, return it and finish the wood drilling. Its more work but the hole in the wood looks a lot cleaner.

 

[StrawHat]

I've found that drilling through both wood and metal in the same pass is deleterious to the wood. I have better success if I drill through the wood to the metal and then mark the metal with a punch. I remove the metal and drill it separately, return it and finish the wood drilling. Its more work but the hole in the wood looks a lot cleaner.

When I was building rifles, I did it this way with one slight difference. For the barrel keys, I would drill the hole in the keys and then elongate them fore and aft so as the wood moved the barrel was not stressed.

Kevin

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Dave: All the holes, including the stock pin holes were predrilled on the Pedersoli kit. Laying those holes out for proper positioning is going to be a bugger unless you can drill the tabs at the same time you drill the stock.

I plan to cheat!

First, I noted that the holes in a similar, finished, Jap bess were in line with the holes for the brass bits...so I can establish a line on the stock were the holes should be along...

Then I have a hole drilling jig I bought 20 years ago from MSM... which clamps on the barrel while it's in the stock, and acts as an external reference point to help you aim far enough below the barrel to not hit the barrel itself as you drill, BUT allows you to hit the barrel wedge....

And finally, I will be using hand gimlets to drill the holes (from Garret Wade), which will allow me to be certain the hole is going in perpendicular to the wedge. I will stop when I hit metal, and will repeat the process for all of the pins. Then I will remove the barrel and finish the hole through to where the stock opens for the barrel wedge... then I will replace the barrel and insert a pin with some blackening agent on the tip to mark on the barrel wedge where the hole in the steel should be drilled... remove the barrel and drill the holes in the wedges, and remove any flash around the holes. Then replace the barrel and use the gimlet to slowly continue the hole as it will then have the outside hole, and the hole in the wedge to guide it through the other side of the stock to the outside.

Pretty straight forward, but time consuming.

OH and as Strawhat mentioned... I usually open the holes in the barrel wedges for the pins just a bit to allow for stock swelling not stressing the stock at the pin holes.

LD