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Traditions Blunderbuss barrel question

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Got an email that a web site had the Traditions flintlock blunderbuss kit on sale. One question before I decide on getting one. From certain angle in pictures, there appears to be a seam where the flared bell starts.

¿Could someone with one of these Traditions blunderbuss confirm or deny that the flared bell is integrel or a swaged add-on? Or is that seam just where the flared section was swaged open to create that flared bell?
 
I have the percussion version. No visible seam on the exterior, but you can clearly see the seam on the interior of the barrel.
 

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  • blunderbuss 3.jpg
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Got an email that a web site had the Traditions flintlock blunderbuss kit on sale. One question before I decide on getting one. From certain angle in pictures, there appears to be a seam where the flared bell starts.

¿Could someone with one of these Traditions blunderbuss confirm or deny that the flared bell is integrel or a swaged add-on? Or is that seam just where the flared section was swaged open to create that flared bell?
 
I have put together 3 of them both flint and percussion. They do have a visible seem inside but not the outside. They are fun to shoot but don't expect too much in long range shot patterns or rd ball accuracy.
 
I have the percussion version. No visible seam on the exterior, but you can clearly see the seam on the interior of the barrel.
Took scott's "blunderbuss 3.jpg" pix and extracted part. This has me really confuzzled at this point. My lying eyes tell me that there are 2 different colored metals there. When magnified 300%, there are visible saw marks across the top of what appears to be a brass sleeve. I believe that the silver colored metal is ferrous due to multiple pictures of these kits being finished either blued or browned. Don't think that those processes produce the same result on brass.

Reason that I'm curious about all this is that I've got the wild hared idea of first completing one of these flintlock kits and leave it in the white. Once it is proven functional, then start reducing it in size a la' canoe gun by first trimming the barrel from its original 16 3/4" down to where it just starts to flare to ease reloading which I'm guesstimating to be about 13". Then use Track of the Wolf brass turtle front sight as the front sight.

Then go after the buttstock to reduce its size but keep it scaled the same as RusticBob's "nice, short and handy flintlock smoothbore" albeit with a much more abbreviated barrel. Hence, my post #14 in that For Sale thread. Narrow down the forearm so that a DGW 2nd Model Brown Bess repro sling swivel fits on the front and a ToW Plain Button Sling Stud on the rear for a sling. Thought of adding on each side, 4 tacks on the forearm and 3 at the wrist, to improve the grip and not really for any decorative reason.

The reason is that I'm not too keen on blunderbuss's since there is just so much stupid associated with them and such a project will have multiple different wood & metal working parts to see what I can do without totally trashing out the piece. If all else fails, I've got a Spanish lock, plus trigger & trigger for a future project.

Bkunderbuss_barrel_internal______Untitled.png
 
Wganz
I've been contemplating a similar endeavor....I hope it proves worth the effort
 
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