Building a TRS Scottish Pistol (?)

[dd832]

Bought the parts set for The Rifle Shoppe's Scottish pistol. Now as to building the darn thing, that's another question.

Here's a photo of the parts as received, the usual rough castings:


After messing with the lockplate I decided to make it from scratch. The lockplate looked too small especially along the top & bottom:


The photo doesn't show it but the bottom area has as much metal showing as the top. So I started making a 1/4" thick steel plate. These are photos of the plate in progress:



Here's a photo of the barrel tang & mounting screw:


A photo of the interior of the pistol frame:


A shot of the plate mounted on the frame:


And finally a photo of machining the plate thickness, it's no longer a 1/4" thick.


I cut the plate with a fly cutter that is mounted on my lock jig that someone posted on another site years ago & I copied it, it's very handy to have.

later, Mike

 

[dave_person]

Hi Mike,
Looks nice. I have the same castings but have not had any time to make the gun. The engraving will take as long as the building. I urge you to get a copy of Martin Kelvin's book "The Scottish Pistol: its history, manufacture, and design"

dave

 

[dd832]

I think that The Rifle Shoppe copied the parts from the English company The Couch Harness Company. Here's a photo of the set they used to make:


Much nicer quality than the TRS set for sure. Here's a photo of the instructions that came with the set:


I've looked online for further instructions but have never found any.

Mike

 

[dd832]

Hi Mike,
Looks nice. I have the same castings but have not had any time to make the gun. The engraving will take as long as the building. I urge you to get a copy of Martin Kelvin's book "The Scottish Pistol: its history, manufacture, and design"

dave

I have have that book Dave, but I don't think it has really helped me that much. I have copied hundreds of antique photos from the net and Runar's build of his copy of the Scottish pistol on another site.

I found photos of an antique Murdoch pistol with photos of the interior of the lock which was very helpful.







Mike

 

[dd832]

Making the flash pan and bolster for the lockplate. Here's a photo of what I've done so far:


Here's a couple of photos of the pan & bolster:




That's all for today. It's too darn hot to do anything else (106 at 1:30 pm).

Mike

 

[dd832]

Worked on inletting the flashpan into the lockplate today. Here's a couple of photos of the mess so far:



It's close but no cigar yet.



Well just like yesterday, that's all folks. It's 2:20 pm and 113.5 outside!

Mike

 

[dd832]

Been working on inletting the flashpan into the lockplate for the last few days. Here's what I have so far:


Another shot of the lockplate:


Last one showing an area that I have to infill under the top front of the lockplate:


After I infill the lockplate I'll start refining the flashpan.

Mike

 

[dd832]

I welded a bead on the back of the lockplate and milled & filed it to fill in the taper. So it looks like this now:



Have a good Sunday.

Mike

 

[dd832]

I worked on refining the flashpan some more today. This is what it looks like so far:



Doesn't look like much, but compared to the photos above I see progress! More tomorrow in Machining 101.

Mike

 

[dd832]

So yesterday I epoxied the frizzen to the flashpan and I let it sit overnight. This morning I mounted the lockplate on my drilling jig and drilled the frizzen and cut threads for the frizzen pivot screw to mount the frizzen. Then I spent most of the rest of the day filing & filing the flashpan to make it round on the underside and to match the frizzen.

So this is what we have so far:



Still a lot of filing to do yet, but that's what Filing 101 is all about.

I put a several bids on a pair of Murdoch Pitcairn pistols yesterday but stopped bidding when somebody put in a bid for $1900 plus 28% (which equals $2432 plus tax & shipping for the case they sat in!). Oh well, maybe another time. Here's photos of the pistols:


These are very cool pistols.

Mike

 

[dd832]

I've been filing most of the day on the flashpan. It looks better than yesterday, I'll probably do more filing again. Here's todays progress:



There's a drop of epoxy in the pan! You a see a small black mark on the lockplate, I'm trying to mark where the hammer goes (the sear hole), but I have to trim the lockplate down some more.

Later, Mike

 

[wiscoaster]

Nice "build" log. Keep up the good work. Eagerly awaiting to see the finished result.

 

[Colonial Boy]

Nice "build" log. Keep up the good work. Eagerly awaiting to see the finished result.

I’ll second that.

 

[BillinOregon]

I'll third that. You guys that have the skill and equipment to shape metal with precision have my utmost respect.

 

[dd832]

Well folks, "wiscoaster", "Colonial Boy", and "BillinOregon", thanks for your interest & vote of confidence (misplaced as it is), but I'm strictly an amateur machinist.

I took 3 semesters at a JC in 2003 and have a old, used short bed 9 inch South Bend lathe that apparently was used at the College of Blacksmithing & Farriers and a chinese bench mill (it weighs about 350 lbs.) that is about 20 years old now. I took the machining course so I wouldn't lose any fingers and what do you know but our instructor had an industrial accident years ago where he wore a sleeved jumpsuite to work & got caught in the lathe. He lost his entire right arm & shoulder! If you take a string from the base of your neck & pull it down to under your armpit & removed everything, that is what he looked like. But he could do just about anything with his left hand that most people can't do with 2 hands.

I have more perseverance than skills, but thanks just the same guys.

Mike

 

[GREENSWLDE]

A Dental mechanics Flexible shaft kit is the most useful tool in my Shed. Tungsten and Diamond burrs can shift a lot of mtal very quickly. O.D.

 

[dd832]

So I started making a new tumbler for the lock. The tumbler sent had a pivot diameter of .303 to .305 and I don't have a drill bit that will fit or a reamer to make that size hole. So I drilled the lockplate and reamed it .3125 (5/16") diameter and started machining a piece of 7/8" dia. steel. So this is what we have:

There's a lot of shadows so I have lightened the photo somewhat:

The tumbler is interesting because it doesn't have notches, it has a tapered incline instead. Here's a photo of a actual Murdoch antique lock so you can see what I'm taking about.


And here's a photo of the lock from the outside:


I filed & polished the pan yesterday some more. If you look at today's first photo you'll see that the square hole in the hammer isn't square either, another reason to make another tumbler to match the square hole better after squaring it up.

Tomorrow I'll cut the tumbler shaft for the squared up hole in the hammer, then I can remove excess material from the tumbler and start the incline portion.

Mike

 

[Rudyard]

A Dental mechanics Flexible shaft kit is the most useful tool in my Shed. Tungsten and Diamond burrs can shift a lot of mtal very quickly. O.D.

Dear Old Dog . Me & my old chum Elmer Johnston knocked up an issue steel pistol no paint by numbers for us .But I did have my drawings of two issue pistols one by Petcairn the other by Corbett, Scots Not Birmingham. The originals I drew from the Glenbow Museum examples when I worked there years ago . I could send the drawings to Dave Person he might send me a copy of the book ! .The issue pistols are plain tools not that heavy as these kits seem to be , they didnt fanny around with castings it was all smithing & brazeing .Ones marked.' RHR 2nd Bat' .There was only a Second bat in the F&I period as , by the disgusting revolt war they dropped the pistol one per man an axe being more usefull perhaps I had a friend worked at a Colliery made All steel Rams horns & Steel Heart butts I supplied him locks I got made in Cawnpore Lefts & Rights .But his output was small & he.s long dead but they where thin steel & Brazed I have Whitlaws book but the best refference to Scots arms is a Booklet put out by Museum restoration Services Jim Gooding , written by Claude Blair & Robert Woosnam.Savage it was about 6$ worth double in my books & I don't have shares in it but did get on with Bob Savage he's retired now from the RA I've made a number of Scots longarms guided by that booklet only castings being my own for the yellow brass plates .As warranted or required handed fishtails & Lemon butts all doable low teck And Heart Butts can be wood. not used the famous' Brazzil' wood much too heavy stay with' Wanit tre' .I know ime cocky with it but I've been there done that and still learning .
Rudyard nearly 80

 

[Sam squanch]

Does that work like a wheellock sear?

 

[GREENSWLDE]

Dear Old Dog . Me & my old chum Elmer Johnston knocked up an issue steel pistol no paint by numbers for us .But I did have my drawings of two issue pistols one by Petcairn the other by Corbett, Scots Not Birmingham. The originals I drew from the Glenbow Museum examples when I worked there years ago . I could send the drawings to Dave Person he might send me a copy of the book ! .The issue pistols are plain tools not that heavy as these kits seem to be , they didnt fanny around with castings it was all smithing & brazeing .Ones marked.' RHR 2nd Bat' .There was only a Second bat in the F&I period as , by the disgusting revolt war they dropped the pistol one per man an axe being more usefull perhaps I had a friend worked at a Colliery made All steel Rams horns & Steel Heart butts I supplied him locks I got made in Cawnpore Lefts & Rights .But his output was small & he.s long dead but they where thin steel & Brazed I have Whitlaws book but the best refference to Scots arms is a Booklet put out by Museum restoration Services Jim Gooding , written by Claude Blair & Robert Woosnam.Savage it was about 6$ worth double in my books & I don't have shares in it but did get on with Bob Savage he's retired now from the RA I've made a number of Scots longarms guided by that booklet only castings being my own for the yellow brass plates .As warranted or required handed fishtails & Lemon butts all doable low teck And Heart Butts can be wood. not used the famous' Brazzil' wood much too heavy stay with' Wanit tre' .I know ime cocky with it but I've been there done that and still learning .
Rudyard nearly 80

Hi Rudyard, Sorry I havn't been in touch recently. I will get back on line and come clean.. now 90+6months.O.D.