Shed Building Plans

After attending a few living history events and watching primitive flint lock rifles and muskets in use I knew I had to get in on this action.  I read some forums and perused various catalogs and websites of rifle builders before I settled on a maker for my very first long gun commission.  

Choices are pretty slim for left handed factory produced rifles so ultimately I decided on a semi-custom by Matt Avance of Tennessee Valley Muzzleloading.  TVM has a great reputation among hunters and shooters of producing reliable accurate traditional long guns.  A couple of factors led me to go this route.  First and foremost I like buying American made firearms.  Secondly by purchasing from a small builder I would be able to specify some of the rifles features to fit my needs and tastes and lastly I knew I would be able to count on the rifles lock work to be set up and timed for perfect ignition.

Last October I made a deposit which got me on the waiting list and I went about other activities through the winter and tried to keep my mind off the flint lock. Finally I got an email about mid summer saying that Matt was ready to begin my rifle.  After confirming the particulars it would take about four weeks until the build was complete and ready to ship.

What first got my attention about the Iron Pennsylvania was the name itself. "Iron" means all of the guns furniture or metal parts are made of steel instead of brass which was common in colonial America.  Locks have always been made of steel and in the early days they were imported from England.  Other parts such as trigger guards, butt plates, nose caps and ramrod thimbles were fabricated from brass by colonial gunsmiths because it was easier to work with and readily available.  The brass fittings are fine and period correct but I like the more subdued look of all steel furniture on my guns.  Since Im not a history reenactor Im not concerned with the small details of historical correctness.  I just wanted a rifle that loosely resembles a long gun of the late 1700s.        

I chose American Walnut for the stock. Finished natural with only a clear oil shows off the true color and beauty of the wood.  Walnut has long been a favorite material for gun stocks and I think it just looks great so there was no question of my choice.  Traditionally maple was most often used because it was easily sourced locally.  Even in early America figured maple with tiger stripe grain patterns was highly prized and many original guns still exist proving the popularity.

The metal of modern firearms are commonly polished and "blued" or rendered black by a chemical process.  Before bluing was the standard primitive rust-browning techniques were used to seal and finish off the surface of metal parts and barrels. This browning is the look I chose for all the furniture.

  

The barrel is 42 inches long and the bore is .45 caliber.  I chose .45 because it is a middle of the road size small enough for accurate target shooting and big enough for whitetail deer if I ever get the urge to put some meat on the table.  The barrel is 13/16" across the flats.  .45 is the largest caliber made from this size blank so while it looks cumbersome and heavy the rifle is surprisingly light and shoulders like a dream.

Another feature of the barrel Ive come to appreciate greatly is round bottom rifling.  This type of rifling is another throwback to older times.  It works perfect for muzzle loaders by making it easier to clean the grooves of dirty carbon and powder residue after a shooting session using authentic black powder.  All modern guns have sharp cornered grooves but this is not that big of problem with cleaner burning smokeless propellants in use today.

   

The first Saturday after I received the rifle I headed to the range with great expectations.  The only thing I had do in preparation besides a quick swab of the bore was open up the groove slightly in the rear sight.

Did I mention the Iron Pennsylvania is long gun? Overall length is 57-1/2" or nearly 5 feet long!  The 13-1/2" length of pull puts the trigger in perfect reach when shouldered and with my off hand support arm locked against my torso the barrel holds rock steady and the long sight radius is amazing. 

Heres a good side profile shot captured by the Road Queen that shows how long the gun really is:

What a blast!  Firing the flint lock is unlike any shooting Ive ever done. It also is some of the most fun Ive ever had playing with guns and Ive played with a few.  The biggest thing to get used to is the bright flash and smoke that erupts from the pan when the hammer falls.  My first few shots I was blinking my eyes instinctively but soon I was keeping my eye riveted on the front sight blade and began to see the yellow flash.  

The above target I shot from a sandbag rest at a target posted 50 yards out.  The middle black region of the target (8-ring, 9-ring and bulls eye) forms a six inch circle.

This target I shot standing offhand with the target also posted at 50 yards.  At least for me the accuracy is similar between offhand and bench rest.  While Id like to claim this is due to my excellent marksmanship skills I think the credit really belongs to the rifle and the huge sight radius afforded by that long barrel. 

Patches for round ball shooting come in various thicknesses.  To check performance of a chosen patch and load inspecting shot patches is a good idea.  The patches can be found about 20 feet out from the muzzle laying on the ground.  A patch that is too thin may have burn holes or blown to bits altogether.  The job of the patch is to create a gas seal between the ball and the lands and grooves of the rifles bore.  The patch also has to grip the rifling securely so as to induce a spin to the projectile as it travels down the bore.  If a patch is too thin it could tear out and not follow the riflings grooves resulting in poor accuracy.  

I tried patches of several different thicknesses and indeed the thinner ones did have holes and burnout even though accuracy was good.  Ultimately I settled on .018" thick pillow ticking patch material which are shown above.  They show just a slight charring in the shape of the bore. 

I got into the reloading hobby around 1991 when I bought a revolver from a fellow service member who was set to ship out on an overseas assignment.  As a package deal the gun came with a set of reloading dies and several hundred rounds of empty brass cartridge cases.  I had seen a reloading bench before as a kid visiting a friends house but I never saw the actual process of assembling the individual components into complete ammunition.

At the time I was stationed in eastern Washington state so there was a well stocked sportsmans supply not far from base so I headed downtown one day and picked up a reloading starter kit that got me off and running.  Im still using that single stage press and most of the other stuff that came in the kit.  Over the years Ive added a few more die sets for other calibers and other odds and ends to make the reloading process easier or more accurate.

Because Im fascinated by mechanical things and working with my hands I quickly found reloading a great activity to exercise the attention to detail I learned in the military and the satisfaction that comes from setting up a small manufacturing process and making it work.  It is a hobby within a hobby and I can honestly say that I enjoy the reloading part almost as much as taking the rounds out to the range and firing them off.

     

Recently Ive taken an interest in center fire semi-auto pistols in particular the .45 caliber 1911 pistol.  After shooting just a couple boxes of  ammo I fell in love with the cartridge and John Brownings venerable service pistol design.  I knew Id have to try my hand at reloading the stubby yet powerful round.  The opening picture above shows the first 100 reloads of .45 Auto that the Roadqueen and I assembled earlier this winter.

Here is the recipe:

Case:  Once fired Blazer
Powder:  Bullseye  5 grains
Bullet:  Hornady Jacketed Round Nose 230 grains
Primer:  CCI 350 Large Pistol
Seated:  1.260"

It was still chilly this weekend but not too cold for a shooting session so we took off to the range and gave them a try.

Like many shooters I know she has been around firearms all her life.  This cool little .22 semi-automatic rifle her dad bought for her when she was a young girl just old enough to learn to shoot.  Made for the Sears, Roebuck and Co. by High Standard the rifle was manufactured in November of 1963.  High Standard is most famous for a line of .22 target pistols they began manufacturing in 1932 and have been producing ever since. 

I had an old "Made In USA" Weaver rim fire scope that I wasnt using for anything so we mounted it up for her to try.  Scopes make .22s even more fun and I thought the Weaver would be a perfect match for the old classic American rifle.  Here are some groups she shot as we adjusted the elevation and windage of the scope bringing the point of impact in line with the cross hairs.