Build time

Hello, how long from start to finish does it take to build a flintlock or percussion muzzleloader rifle/smoothie?
thanks for your input in advance

Umm....
Depends on the length of the string or scale of the build.
Can take a few hours to a few hundred hours.
A simple Traditions or Lyman kit or even a Kibler can be a weekend job.

The majority of other kits are 50 to 150 hours give or take on tools experience etcetera.
On top of that are embellishments which can take longer than the build.

That’s as good an answer that could be made.

All of my builds have been "scratch builds".

I start with a "board", a barrel and a box of parts. My first couple of builds were close to 200 hours (construction only - not the finish sanding, stain, oil etc).

Now that I kinda/sorta know what I'm doing it takes me 50 to 75 hours to produce an "in the white" rifle assuming I don't have a significant "oooops" which can add multiple hours to try and correct. That includes any inlays, patchbox, carving etc.

From there, depending on how fussy I am with the finish work that can add as little as 10 more hours or upwards of another 50 hours.

My last build, a .62 caliber smooth bore, from removing the kit from the box to finished, took me about 4 months. That was working on on maybe 3 nights a week for a couple hours each time. It was a pretty simple kit and was being built as a plain Jane hunting arm. I work on my guns when I feel like it, and I never set a deadine, as thats a surefire way to a rush job and big mistakes.

My current build, .32 cal squirrel rifle is probably going to miss it's second squirrel season because it's not going to be ready. I don't care because I have the above smoothie to take, plus my .22

If you have a deadline, then buy one of those weekends kits. If you want to build a beauty, then buy a more involved kit and DO NOT set a deadline, take your time and finish it when you finish it. You'll be glad you did it that way.

The reports you are getting are "chisel time" reports. Left out is research time. A really fast guy like Mike Brooks can knock out a gun start to finish in maybe 70 hours, and he doesn't have to pause between steps. The big time eater in a build (from the chisel time perspective) is in using finer cutting tools sooner than you need to. A guy that's knocked out a hundred guns might be comfortable using a band saw to get within 1/16" of his final dimensions, whereas, a guy on his first gun might leave 1/4", and figure on sanding from there. That guy (on his first gun or two) would or should spend time researching and reading in between steps before he picks up a chisel so he doesn't goof it up. I'm not saying it's wrong to do that, (the experienced guy probably did that too on his first few) but just that with experience comes confidence, and efficiency. Maybe another way to look at is this, assuming changing styles Lancaster, Bethlehem, Berks, Virginia etc.. Just the gun part. Assume a PB too. Not the inlays and embelishments

1st gun......150 hours.........6 months
2nd gun.....130 hours.........4 months
5th gun.......100 hours.........1 month
100th gun...70 hours..........2 weeks

You're mileage may vary, but this is a reasonable starting place, and assumes someone else is cutting in the barrel channel and RR hole for you. Sort of a standard "parts set", rather than a total scratch build, requiring you to make everything including the barrel, lock, and brass castings. Basically, parts you CAN buy from the usual suppliers, and then modify them to suit your build. Obviously the numbers will vary as well as you add tasks for yourself, which typically comes on subsequent gun builds as experience is gained. Making your own PB out of sheet brass rather than a pre-made bought one for instance.

My "pre carve" kit from Pecatonica took me way north of 100 hours. If you count research between steps and practicing on scrap wood, probably closer to 200+.

That’s like asking..... How much does a car cost?
we need more details.

I once followed a Don Getz build of a PA barn gun. Less than a week but not sur of the hours.

I figure it takes about 20-30 hours to do a good job if the gun kit is one of the ones sold by Traditions, Lyman or one of the other big companies.

For a pre-carved stock type kit from one of the suppliers like Track of the Wolf or Pecatonica River figure some place between 120 to 160 hours depending on how fancy it is.

I don't have any experience with the kit from several suppliers that have used specialized CNC machining to do the basics but I would figure on at least 80 hours.

The most critical thing to have right in a build (from a safety perspective) is the breaching. The most critical thing to get right from an aesthetics point of view is the web thickness. That sets the dimensions for the rest of the architecture. It's almost impossible to build a correctly proportioned gun if the web thickness is off. 1/8" off in web thickness is a LOT.

Hello All,
Thanks for the responses so far, build info is a 20 gauge Trade Gun flintlock of course with a 30 inch barrel from track of the wolf or something similar from another website

Donald Mohring said:

Hello All,
Thanks for the responses so far, build info is a 20 gauge Trade Gun flintlock of course with a 30 inch barrel from track of the wolf or something similar from another website

Click to expand...

I would have track install the breach, dovetail the front sight and underlugs

Donald Mohring said:

Hello All,
Thanks for the responses so far, build info is a 20 gauge Trade Gun flintlock of course with a 30 inch barrel from track of the wolf or something similar from another website

Click to expand...

I built their NWG from first step( disassembly of lock to my first coat of stain took 103 hours.... I kept careful time over eleven weeks.
Personally I would rather breech the gun myself. That way I know the fit is what I want, also it’s beyond my skill to inlet the tang and breech at the same time, so I have to unplug a breeches barrel right off.
I enjoy cutting dovetails... makes me feel like a real live gunsmith.

tenngun said:

Personally I would rather breech the gun myself. That way I know the fit is what I want,

Click to expand...

Have had ‘pre breeched’ barrel issues myself, though barrel maker stood behind product and replaced. Do my own dovetails and barrel inletting.

My last Rice barrel was pre-breached by them (with index marks), but came back from Dave Keck as 2 separate parts. That's reasonable, because he inlets barrels, not breaches. Try as I might, I could never get the marks to line up again, so I wound up taking a little off the plug face get alignment. They must have a shop full of gorillas with 6' turning wrenches to get them to line up as they do. Guess I have to start eating more bananas.

I bought an unbreached barrel from Rice. I already had a breech plug that I wanted to use. The barrel they sent me mustve had a plug on it as it had the witness marks on it. Needless to say, the plug I used did not line up with the marks and were opposite the plug which would have been visible, so I had to cut the plug down to get the marks to hide under the stock.

Looking back, I should've just bought the barrel with the plug already installed.