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Paying Attention To Greener

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Voyageur

40 Cal.
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At present I am assisting a friend (by email & attachment) in the construction of his first flintlock. One of the technical schematics I sent showed a modification of the breech for ignition.

I explained to him that when addressing the breech face, I use a special drill, which I ground myself, that has a rounded boring end rather than the traditional point. I don't cup the breech face a lot but it does go in about 1/8 inch. I had to make plain the importance of not violating the integrity of the internal and external mating of the breechplug surfaces (and the threads) when the touchhole is installed and I believe he understands.

I wonder how many shooters bother with this detail?

Voyageur
 
TC's fouling scraper has a rounded, rather than flat, end. I was told (not by a TC rep) that this was to match the surface of the breech plug. Could this be what you're referring to?
 
I'm not sure about T/C flintlocks as I have never pulled a breech on one of those but the percussions almost always use a rounded breech face. Perhaps T/C uses them on their flintlocks as well.

Voyageur
 
quote:Originally posted by Voyageur:
Perhaps T/C uses them on their flintlocks as well.A good way to find out is to take a flat scraper and mark the bottom of the scraping edge with black magic marker...

Then scrape the bottom of your barrel, (PUT A LITTLE OOOMPH INTO IT) remove the scrapper and look at the black mark from the magic marker...

If the breech face is flat, then the mark on the scraper will be scratched accross it's surface...

If the breech face is rounded, then the mark on the scraper will be scratched only on the outer edges...
 
I think the original post was refering to altering the face of the plug to allow all of the hole to be available to the charge? some file a notch in the plug some drill as mentioned above, I think whatever is done a highly polished surface and the use of a worm for cleaning or a small ball of patching under the cleaning patch to give a convex effect to the cleaning patch will aid in cleaning.
 
quote:Originally posted by tg:
I think the original post was refering to altering the face of the plug to allow all of the hole to be available to the charge? Greener designed special breech plugs to get the igniting flame to the base of the charge. He felt the powder should always be 'forward burning'.

In addition he, and others, felt that the rounded breech face aided in combustion, giving slightly higher pressure and velocities.

In his book: The Gun he chronicles his experiments and designs.

I like the idea and I do it to my own firearms even though no one can see it.

Voyageur
 
What time period did Greener build guns? it sounds like a reasonable theory, but would take extra considerations when cleaning as I mentioned above.
 
The first edition was printed in 1881, and I have the 1910 edition tg. The book is just fun to read and the pictures (plates) are neat line drawings. I imagine it could be found through the local interlibrary loan program. It might be just the thing for a winter's read.

Voyageur
 
Interesting, was this the Greener of double barreled shotgun fame? I wonder if this was done on any 18th century guns..... just the PC part of me thinking when I consider this technique being used on a 1770 Lancaster gun.
 
Ooooops...sorry tg, my post was a little misleading. The book was published first in 1881.

Here, I'll post the first paragraph out of the introduction:

"Mr. W. W. Greener, successful before the choke bore, became noted by his introduction of it. The history of the firm commences when the late William Greener (father of W.W. Greener) returned from London, where he had been working for John Manton, and established himself in 1829 at his native town of Newcastle"

William Greener published his first book The Gun in 1835.

My point is that it will never be seen (hopefully) and, if it improves ignition or powder burning, I'm all for it. Kind of like the items hidden in the lodge at rendezvous (like a Quadrofil sleeping bag). On the other hand, I would never use a lock with a coil spring. I can always explain the slight concavity of the breechplug face as an 'imperfection' occurring during the sand casting.
wink.gif


I think I apologize for this double standard, but that won't keep me from putting thinsulate in my moccasins. There is no sense in traveling tough just for the sake of traveling tough.

Voyageur
 
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