Pecatonica Fusil; Novice Build

[Kywitetalehntr]

Hello Group,

I am about to order my first parts kit and take a stab at building a rifle. I have read in old threads about the quality of Pecatonica kits and have found some valuable information. Could you please advise on some of the smithing services you would reccomend I a complete novice, should allow Pecatonica to complete?
I plan to have them do the breech plug, and
I have no way to do the ramrod hole, and would like them to cut the barrel channel. Anything else that I should avoid diy as a novice?

Also, would it be more historically accurate to get walnut stock with iron furniture?

Thanks

 

[64Springer]

Being a novice should not dissuade you from doing the work yourself.

With careful planning and execution, you can cut the barrel channel and drill the ramrod hole yourself.

Just invest in a few tools and few chisels and get creative on making an extended drill bit to drill the RR channel.

My vote is for walnut or cherry with iron furniture.

 

[Kywitetalehntr]

Being a novice should not dissuade you from doing the work yourself.

With careful planning and execution, you can cut the barrel channel and drill the ramrod hole yourself.

Just invest in a few tools and few chisels and get creative on making an extended drill bit to drill the RR channel.

Thank You for the advise. This is a new adventure for me and I have a lot of fear. I hope to eventually build both my loving wife and soon to be daughter a good family heirloom

 

[Dale Allen Raby]

Well, kinda depends I guess. I would say to have them do anything that is required that you do not feel comfortable doing yourself. I am a hobby blacksmith and quite capable of making my own rifle even to the point of smelting the ore to make the steel... if I have to. Fortunately, I don't have to. I've never made a rifle, though I have repaired a few.

If you want a project to teach yourself all the skills and techniques that go into building a rifle from scratch, then do the whole thing! Whatcha got to lose but a little time and money?

I vote walnut. Cherry can be a difficult wood to work with... and iron furniture absolutely!

 

[64Springer]

Thank You for the advise. This is a new adventure for me and I have a lot of fear. I hope to eventually build both my loving wife and soon to be daughter a good family heirloom

A few months back my fear was ladden with fear.

It worked out in the end.

Don't sell yourself short as a novice. Everyone is a novice the first time they take on a new challenge.

Your family will like the outcome regardless of whether your rifle is perfect or not.

 

[Kywitetalehntr]

A few months back my fear was ladden with fear.

It worked out in the end.

Don't sell yourself short as a novice. Everyone is a novice the first time they take on a new challenge.

Your family will like the outcome regardless of whether your rifle is perfect or not.

If you don’t mind me asking about your fear, where you having health issues? Not to derail

 

[64Springer]

If you don’t mind me asking about your fear, where you having health issues? Not to derail

No, Sir. But thank you for asking.

My fear was taking a 200 year old shotgun barrel and building a brand new shotgun around it.

I stared at it for a week before I screwed up the courage to get to work.

I think the official forum term for the delay is Pondered.

 

[Larry (Omaha)]

Hello Group,

I am about to order my first parts kit and take a stab at building a rifle. I have read in old threads about the quality of Pecatonica kits and have found some valuable information. Could you please advise on some of the smithing services you would reccomend I a complete novice, should allow Pecatonica to complete?
I plan to have them do the breech plug, and
I have no way to do the ramrod hole, and would like them to cut the barrel channel. Anything else that I should avoid diy as a novice?

Also, would it be more historically accurate to get walnut stock with iron furniture?

Thanks

Most quality barrels come with the breech plug installed. My advice, is not to ask someone else what you can't do. Before you order anything, research what you want in a finished product. Make a list of all the parts and mentally decide which parts/build process, you can or can not do. Don't sell yourself short, unless you do not have desire to make a rifle. Desire will help you immensely.
Larry

 

[Kywitetalehntr]

I am overwhelmed with the support and encouragement. Thank you


**please see my new thread in regards to self filing income taxes

 

[Kywitetalehntr]

No, Sir. But thank you for asking.

My fear was taking a 200 year old shotgun barrel and building a brand new shotgun around it.

I stared at it for a week before I screwed up the courage to get to work.

I think the official forum term for the delay is Pondered.

Did you by chance chronicle your build on the forum?

 

[WyomingWhitetail]

If I'm reading it right and your expecting a baby soon... I would probably farm out the barrel channel and ramrod hole just to save time. A new builder could spend a lot of time doing those two things. I got three boys and I don't get a darn thing done.

 

[Kywitetalehntr]

If I'm reading it right and your expecting a baby soon... I would probably farm out the barrel channel and ramrod hole just to save time. A new builder could spend a lot of time doing those two things. I got three boys and I don't get a darn thing done.

She’s about to pop lol

 

[64Springer]

Did you by chance chronicle your build on the forum?

Welp. Here goes. Another novice at work.

Forums:

Builder's Bench - Nov14th - Extreme Tinkerers and Scratch Builders Check Out My Cherry Wood thread.

What Muzzle Loading Stuff Did You Do Today thread - page 205 to 211.

General Muzzle Loading - Dec 18th - Antique 20ga Fowler Completed thread.

 

[PathfinderNC]

You mentioned a Pecatonica Fusil kit. The stock comes with the ramrod hole drilled, breech plug installed, barrel channel milled butt somewhat shaped fo receive the butt plate, trigger area routed and the lock mortise routed out. There is still a lot to do with the stock work as the milling is not precise but not bad, in my own experiences.
I asked them to solder on the front sight and forward barrel lug to save me some work and they did a good job.
I think I have a Pecatonica River Fusil de Chasse build tutorial in this forum. (I built two of them, one I gladly kept for myself!).
I also built their “Lehigh” twice, after busting the wrist on my first one which was my very first Pecatonica rifle build. Also their “Verner” rifle was a nice build as well, and I used their “Fowler” stock blank to rebuild my Brown Bess into something else. And another rifle I built with their stuff was their Early American (?) stock and component parts which was my second build, back in the early 1990’s. It proudly hangs in my shop.
I would say their “kits” are more like their stocks with various components, most of which can be found in Track of the Wolf or Muzzleloaders Builders Supply.
Good luck and just take it slow, one step at a time. Folks here will help you out no doubt.
- Bob

 

[TDM]

As @PathfinderNC said. Good advice. Definitely have them solder the barrel lugs.

 

[billraby]

Why would you have someone else do the work? There is nothing hard about any of it. You will never learn how to do it until you give it a try.

I will never understand why so many people are afraid of building guns. Your head is not going to fall off if you screw something up. Pretty much everyone screws up building guns. But just about every mistake can be fixed. At worst it costs a few dollars for a replacement part. You do a lot of learning on the first one. After that it gets easier. The secret is to take your time and pay attention to what you are doing.

 

[Mule333]

Hello Group,

I am about to order my first parts kit and take a stab at building a rifle. I have read in old threads about the quality of Pecatonica kits and have found some valuable information. Could you please advise on some of the smithing services you would reccomend I a complete novice, should allow Pecatonica to complete?
I plan to have them do the breech plug, and
I have no way to do the ramrod hole, and would like them to cut the barrel channel. Anything else that I should avoid diy as a novice?

Also, would it be more historically accurate to get walnut stock with iron furniture?

Thanks

Do you have an area or shop to build a rifle? And, what tools do you have? You will definitely need quality chisels. Also, It would be easier to build if you have a drill press and a 14” band saw.

 

[Mule333]

Well maybe you won’t need a 14” band saw if you get a “pre carve”. But a drill press would help on a couple critical holes at the lock area.

 

[Kentuckyjed]

I built the Northwest TG from Pecatonica, had them do the inletting for barrel, ramrod, lock and trigger along with soldering the front sight and underlugs, not that I couldn't do it myself, it just saved me some time and it really wasn't that much more money wise. I don't have a drill press but I have chisels and various other hand tools. I just thought I would basically finish up carving and cleaning up the stock. The only head scratching that I did was drilling the stock for barrel and thimble pins, it can get tricky but I made a jig to help with a hand drill. Lots of information on the web and a great support team on this forum. Iron for sure for the hardware, stock- I used maple on mine because I have so many walnut stocks on guns and like the maple look, plus the persona I was going for was a German immigrant building a barn gun poor boy out of NTG pieces and maple was and is plentiful. Good luck.

 

[dave_person]

Hi,
Some suggestions. First, do some research beyond the internet. Look at copies of books by Rene Chartrand and Russell Bouchard about French trade guns and fusils in North America. You will find a lot of historical details in those. Second, draw up plans of the gun even if you are using a pre-carved stock. That will save you tears later on when in the absence of drawings, you find the parts just don't fit the way you thought they would. Walnut and iron hardware is the most historically correct for fusil de chasses, or le fusil ordinaire; however, finer guns like fusil fin de chasse et de service often had brass or silver mounts.

dave