Swapping barrels

[Cowboy2]

Has anyone had much luck with going back and forth between two barrels on the same TC Hawken stock?

Here's the scenario. I have a GM percussion drop-in, and had the old barrel rebored up to .54. Accuracy went to hell for the first dozen or so shots whenever I swapped one out. Once it settled in, great. I picked up another TC recently, and the same thing happens when I try swapping the TC barrels on that one, too. All three barrels are very accurate once they get settled back in. And yes, the wedge pins all have a snug fit.

It isn't really a big deal if that's just the way things are, but I'm curious as to whether this is normal, or if I'm just having bad luck (or doing something wrong).

 

[necchi]

It's not surprising, as most of the drop-in's need a little fitting in/with the hook-tang issues. And all of the TC's benefit from bedding in the tang area and the few inches of the barrel.
But you can't really bed a barrel if you keep on swapping.

I'm guessing it's just the way each barrel is fitting in each rifles tang. The only way to beat it will be to have dedicated stocks for each barrel, :idunno:

 

[galamb]

Agree, it is almost certainly the fit at the hooked breech/tang which is in need of "settling in".

With a bit of file work (very careful file work) you may be able to mostly eliminate the problem or at least improve it somewhat.

While a hooked tang is nice for cleaning the barrel (many would say) if you ask many "points" shooters they will tell you, for accuracy, a fixed breech is far superior - it just doesn't move compared to the hooked.

I build my own rifles with fixed breeches - figure I need all the help I can get :rotf:

 

[Cowboy2]

I figured the tang/barrels were having to re-mate each time, its just that given how often swapping barrels out seems to get mentioned around here (well, often enough that I've noticed it), I was starting to wonder if this was the normal way of things.

 

[galamb]

Do "both" barrels shoot a little funky after you swap or is it just one of them?

 

[George T.]

I have a 50 and 54 barrel for my Lyman GPR and I really don't have much of a problem. I tuned the pin openings on the barrel so that they are both snugged down when the cross pins are inserted. I was ready to bed the rifle if needed but I dodged that bullet.

Geo. T.

 

[Cowboy2]

Both in each. Which is to say, whenever one of the three is swapped out for the .54 (be it in either of the stocks), accuracy is awful until its had a chance to settle in. Ditto for when the .50 is swapped back in.

The gpr issue is part of the reason I ask. I'd thought about picking up a .54 barrel for that rifle, too, but if this problem is common, I'll just save myself the headache.

 

[galamb]

Do they seem either "super tight" or a little sloppy when you hook them in?

It kinda sounds like after a few shots the recoil is finally seating the barrel where it should be and it settles down.

I've never been a fan of swapping barrels or flint/percussion locks because anytime you try and make a "multi-purpose" anything it's almost always mediocre at best.

 

[mooman76]

I have a Cabelas Hawkin that came with two barrels, 50/58 and have not had any problems or at least not enough to notice.

 

[Cowboy2]

Loose enough that hooking it in isn't a problem, but not so much that they're rattling about.

 

[shguns]

For what its worth:
I have a TC Hawken with a factory .54 barrel, and I picked up a 1" GM drop in fast twist barrel in .50 caliber. the GM barrel in the TC stock sits in there snug. However the wedge pin was quite loose, enough so that it was easily dislodged with a bit of thumb pressure. So I cut a piece of brass plate probably .020 thick (I should measure it for sure) for a shim. It is a bit shorter that the wedge and the same width. I dog eared the corners so it wouldn't have sharp points to cut hands or fingers. This keeps the wedge pin nice and tight. My barrels both seem to shoot the same when switching back and forth.

 

[galamb]

Since your second barrel was an add-on, I might be inclined to remove the tang and check the fit with both barrels with them out of the rifle just to really see if something isn't mating correctly and check to see if the slot in the tang where the hook goes looks worn/twisted out of whack in any way (a new tang goes for about 15 bucks so it would be a no-brainer to replace if it's showing signs of wear or deformation).

Here's the instructions from Lyman for their kit but it absolutely applies to all hooked tang breeches.

 

[shguns]

Graham,
thanks for the nice diagram.
If you know where to get 1" TC tangs for about $15 let me know because I think I'm going to need one.

As mentioned above my GM barrel shoots great so I'm seriously considering putting it into its own stock. Probably Pecatonica precarve curly maple stock with steel furniture, I'm not fond of the brass look.

 

[galamb]

Check out the link, about 2/3's down the page.

$12.50...

(The Gun Works)

 

[nkbj]

Way back (has it been twenty years?) GM said pretty much the same things in the instructions with their drop-in barrels.


That said, I learned something about changing barrels on TC's...
When you put a different barrel into a TC it can exert pressure on the tang and stock that make the nefarious TC stock split happen. So, when I'm seating a barrel I learned to pay attention to whether or not there's some camming action back there with that last bit of travel, the barrel lowering and settling down into the trough.

 

[mtmshieldshotmail.com]

The only way to beat it will be to have dedicated stocks for each barrel, :idunno:

I was once bit by the "swap-able barrels" bug, too. Then I wised up and realized a good barrel deserved its own stock (and I deserved more guns).
Regards,
Mike

 

[cynthialee]

The only way to beat it will be to have dedicated stocks for each barrel, :idunno:

I was once bit by the "swap-able barrels" bug, too. Then I wised up and realized a good barrel deserved its own stock (and I deserved more guns).
Regards,
Mike

I just figured this out myself recently. I need another stock for the rifle barrel I am not using.

 

[Cowboy2]

I really appreciate all the input, especially the illustrations. I'm not sure how much I'm going to mess with it at this time. My inclination is to "retire" one of the barrels for the time being, and maybe just pick up another stock assembly down the road.