Fitting hooked breech to tang

[Mad Professor]

I just picked up an old Charles Daly "hawken style" rifle (no barrel) as it has a really nice pice of wood (walnut). The gun appears to be an Investarms product is is very similar to my Lyman Plains rifle. Not a great plains, single barrel staple, double set triggers, brass hardware.

My Lyman (Investarms) barrels will fit the Daly tang but they are a VERY snug fit. My 15/16 GM barrels (which fit my Lyman) will not fit the tang and the hook seems to be just a bit tall on the upper flat. Both barrels work on the Lyman tang. The only other issue with getting the barrels to work is that I'll need to grind out the lock plate to clear the snails.

I would like to keep it so all my Lyman/GM barrels work well on both guns so I assume I'm better of filing the hook a bit on the GM barrel? Or would it be better to open up the square on the Daly tang a bit? Anyone have any tips on this?


P.S. Anyone have any experience with Charles Daly BP rifles? I'm assuming they are = to Lyman/Investarms/Cabela's as the internals are (nearly) identical.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

Since both barrels presently fit your Lyman and you want to keep that fit, I'd definitely work on the tang of the C. Daly. It could also be that the inlet of the wood is not allowing the hook to enter the tang properly. Try loosening the tang screws and see if the hook will then enter the tang. Better yet, pull the tang out of the wood so you can actually SEE how the hook fits the tang.

 

[Mad Professor]

Since both barrels presently fit your Lyman and you want to keep that fit, I'd definitely work on the tang of the C. Daly. It could also be that the inlet of the wood is not allowing the hook to enter the tang properly. Try loosening the tang screws and see if the hook will then enter the tang. Better yet, pull the tang out of the wood so you can actually SEE how the hook fits the tang.

Thanks CoyoteJoe.

I did pull off all the hardware for a good cleaning/inspection. It's the tang to be sure, not the wood giving me the problem. With the tang installed and the lock removed the Lyman barrels drop right in. I can't get the tang to close on the GM barrel when it's out of the stock. I will have to work the wood a bit for the GM barrel but only where the staple drops down to fit the wedge.

I guess I'll get the calipers out to see how much difference there is in the square holes on the two tangs and go from there with a file.