Swamped barrels - round inside the stock?

[ChrisPer]

I see on quite a few half-octagon half-round barrels in my books the edges are flat near where the barrel goes into the inletting. Should I read that as indicating the swamped look is actually just four edges on the visible part, like a knox form on a Martini-Henry?

 

[tg]

Not likely from what the pics of surviving oct/rd. barrels shows.

 

[rich pierce]

All I've seen are octagonal all the way. Finishing is often better on the top flats. The barrels were probably forged octagonal and then cleaned up, not filed or milled from round shapes.

 

[dlemaster]

Rich is right. The originals I have seen were for the most part left in the rough draw filed stage on the bottom 3 flats. I have seen stocks where the barrel channel was just hogged out to a half round channel, but the two originals I own both have the octagon shaped barrel channels.

Regards, Dave