Touch hole question

This may have been discussed elsewhere but could not find it. I have a barrel but the touch hole is 3/8" after the breech plug, does anybody see a problem with ignition being that far away from back of barrel?

It will build up fouling on the face of the breechplug. It could possibly block the hole during an extended shooting session. I suppose it would be usable but wouldn't be my first choice. It will also cause the lock to be inlet a little farther forward of the breech end of the barrel than I would want.

And if you ever loaded a ball with no powder behind it, the ball would block the touch hole. There would be no way to get powder behind the ball to shoot it out nor would a CO2 discharger work. The only options would be a ball puller or unbreeching the gun and driving the ball out.

leverfred said:

This may have been discussed elsewhere but could not find it. I have a barrel but the touch hole is 3/8" after the breech plug, does anybody see a problem with ignition being that far away from back of barrel?

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Presumably you have taken the breech plug out or some other method to get this measurement?

leverfred said:

This may have been discussed elsewhere but could not find it. I have a barrel but the touch hole is 3/8" after the breech plug, does anybody see a problem with ignition being that far away from back of barrel?

Click to expand...

Fine replies so far, but if it is a good barrel I would use it. Not a desirable condition although this is how I would compensate: Make sure my gear had a fouling scraper, and a good ball puller. If there is worry about the lock being too far forward I would off center the touch hole, and grind open the pan width.
Flintlocklar

sawyer04 said:

Presumably you have taken the breech plug out or some other method to get this measurement?

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Yes I did. Thank you all for the replies but I have a solution, will post later if it works!

Not ideal as others have stated, but I would just use it, if it was a good barrel. I've dry balled enough times that I'm pretty good with a ball puller and only had one instance when the puller screw pulled out of the ball. In that instance I was lucky enough to have a larger screw and it was able to hold the ball and pull it out.

I'm anxious to read your solution.

I got home and put it on the layout table. I cut my under lugs 1/4" out further and reset the barrel, touch hole should be right on now. I cut kiln dried walnut and shaped them to go behind the barrel and tang support, so far so good.

leverfred said:

I got home and put it on the layout table. I cut my under lugs 1/4" out further and reset the barrel, touch hole should be right on now. I cut kiln dried walnut and shaped them to go behind the barrel and tang support, so far so good.

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I am either out in the woods pickin daisies or we are not talking about the same issue. Please tell me why moving the underlugs has anything to do with the touch hole being too far forward (3/8" of the breech plug? If you are not lined up with the pan, now that is a different issue.
Flintlocklar

leverfred said:

I got home and put it on the layout table. I cut my under lugs 1/4" out further and reset the barrel, touch hole should be right on now. I cut kiln dried walnut and shaped them to go behind the barrel and tang support, so far so good.

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????????????????

Was the touch hole drilled? Is this a finished rifle or one in progress?

Larry (Omaha) said:

I am either out in the woods pickin daisies or we are not talking about the same issue. Please tell me why moving the underlugs has anything to do with the touch hole being too far forward (3/8" of the breech plug? If you are not lined up with the pan, now that is a different issue.
Flintlocklar

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I recut the barrel channel underlugs and moved the barrel forward.

54ball said:

????????????????

Was the touch hole drilled? Is this a finished rifle or one in progress?

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No, touch hole was not drilled. This is an old project getting done. Where the barrel was fit in the stock, the touch hole would have been too far forward, just trying to save it by moving whole barrel forward.

leverfred said:

No, touch hole was not drilled. This is an old project getting done. Where the barrel was fit in the stock, the touch hole would have been too far forward, just trying to save it by moving whole barrel forward.

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I'll be honest....
I would probably start over with a new stock. What are they...$200-$250 at the absolute most? It's just a lot of work to start out with one that has such a problem.

I have got to scrap a stock ($250 for the blank)...one that I hand inlet a 46" swamped barrel and inlet a lock. The butt split in three places.
Sometimes you're the hammer, other times the nail.

I saved it so far.

You did check the location of the face of the breech plug relative to the position of the pan didn't you?
Moving the barrel that far forward could easily put the face of the breech plug in front of the center of the pan. If that happens, your vent hole will be drilled into the side of the breech plug rather than into the breech in front of the breech plug face.

Zonie said:

You did check the location of the face of the breech plug relative to the position of the pan didn't you?
Moving the barrel that far forward could easily put the face of the breech plug in front of the center of the pan. If that happens, your vent hole will be drilled into the side of the breech plug rather than into the breech in front of the breech plug face.

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This condition can be rectified, provided the touch hole isn't too far into the side of the breech plug. If it is on the very edge, or just into the side, a V shaped notch can be filed into the breech plug where the touch hole intersects. Not the optimal situation to be in but the gun will fire this way. And its been noted that some rifles from the past were actually drilled this way on purpose.

Do yourself a favor..... don't move so far forward that your liner is in the breechplug. It will cause you multiple problems in the future.
Your patch is definitely going to show. If that's ok with you, then go for it.
First of all, it's better for your touch hole to be forward of the breechplug, than IN the breechplug.

Flintandsteel said:

Do yourself a favor..... don't move so far forward that your liner is in the breechplug. It will cause you multiple problems in the future.
Your patch is definitely going to show. If that's ok with you, then go for it.
First of all, it's better for your touch hole to be forward of the breechplug, than IN the breechplug.

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His touch hole would have to be really far forward for the patch to interfere. And again, a touch hole that is drilled just touching the flat of the breech plug is not an issue if the plug is V notched at that intersection point. If too far back then yes its probably a lost cause and the hole would have to be plugged and a new one drilled.

For me, it would be enlightening to place the lock in the mortise and take a picture so that we could see the pan relation to the barrel. The barrel sure looks too far forward from where I'm sitting.

I will post pics when I get home. I have the pan lined up now where the touch hole will be. I am 1/32" in front of breech plug.