Information please

I am considering building a kit rifle and after pouring over the Track Of The Wolf catalog, I decided that I like the looks and specification of the Isaac Haines Lancaster County product. However, I have a few questions that I though I would surface here and chew on for a while before contacting the catalog folks. Some, maybe all, of these are basic, but I need some clairification and guidance. First, what in the world is a "swamped" barrel? Does anyone have any recommendation on the Colerian or Green Mountain Barrels? Both are offered in a variety of calibers and styles in this kit and what I am primairly looking for is accuracy in a .54 caliber. I noticed that the rate of twist for the Colerian barrels in .54 is shown as 1-56 but nothing for the Green Mountian offerings. Is the 1-56 ROT for a .54 suitable for acurate shooting round and conical bullets? And lastly, does anyone have any experience with this particular kit or can perhaps recommend a good book focused on building one of these critters?

Chet: A swamped barrel is a tapered octagon barrel.
It is not like modern tapered barrels though. At the breech it is large, it tapers down to an area about a foot behind the muzzle, and then starts to get larger as it approaches the muzzle. The term "swamped" IMO compares the shape of the barrel to a swamp with a moderatly high bank which goes down to the waters edge, across the water and then back up the other bank.
This was a very popular barrel shape in the 1700s. It removes a lot of weight from the barrel but is still strong enough to do the job.
Swamped barrels usually cost $60- $100 more than a straight barrel but if you are "into" having a historically accurate rifle, or you don't want to carry a really heavy gun around, the swamped barrel is IMO, worth the extra money.
Inletting a swamped barrel is a real chore. If the supplier will do it for you, it's worth the money. I don't know what TOTW charges for this, but Dick Greensides who owns Pecatonica River Long Rifle Co charges an extra $25.

Colerain and Green Mountain are both very good barrels. Getz and Rice also make very good barrels.
The 1:54 to the 1:70 twist you will find in a .54 caliber is made primarily for shoothing round balls.
I haven't shot any slugs in my .54s so I don't know how accurate they are when fired in slow twist barrels.

IMO A .530 dia roundball for a .54 cal rifle weighs 224 grains and is more than enough to bring down anything from a Moose to a squirrel and costs a lot less than any of the slugs on the market.

A good book for building a BP rifle is
THE ART OF BUILDING THE PENNSYLVANIA LONGRIFLE By Ehrig, Miller and Dixon

:imo: Track of the Wolf has been having problems supplying full kits lately. A few of our members have recieved barrels without stocks, Stocks without Locks and Barrels etc.
If you deal with them be sure to talk to them on the phone and get a sworn promise that they have all of the parts on hand and will deliver them at the same time.

Another option is to contact Dick Greensides at Pecatonica River (check our Links section) or one of the other suppliers like Chambers.
The biggest problem lately is a shortage of locks.
Jim Chambers not only makes fine "kits" but makes some of the best Flintlocks in the country.

Have fun!!

If you place an order with Track, ask if each item is in stock, as they neglect to tell you if it is not. :: My fusil parts came in, lock 3 mo., barrel, 6 mo., stock 9 mo., etc. :boohoo: OK if they say so up front.

If I could afford it I would go with a Chambers kit. If I were thinking on a TOW kit, then I'd go to Pecatonica. After all they make many of TOW's pre-carves. TOW tacks a little more price on it and passes it on to you. :m2c:

Rice's barrels are very close to Colerain's dimensions and are a better barrel. With a little filing, the Rice barrel will fit a Colerain inlet. But, you may have to wait for your barrel to be made, wheras, TOW stocks barrels. Check out Muzzleloader Builder's Supply in Ozone Arkansas. They carry pretty much the same stuff as TOW, with good prices. Nice people, too. :m2c: