The Mighty 2 Bore Boxlock M/Ler

[CowboyCS]

I spent 4 hours today getting all of the build pics and description uploaded onto my website, so I really don't want to be this way but I can't really afford the time to fight with my computer to copy all of the same information and pictures onto several other websites. MY COMPUTER HATES ME AND THE FEELING IS MUTUAL!

So here is the link to the build on my website if you would like to start from the beginning: Stolzer & Son's Gunsmithing - Current Projects 2 Bore for the rest of you who don't feel like reading a few pages to start from the beginning, I'm just going to post the original drawing and the pictures of were I am at in the build currently and then I will update from this point as the build progresses.

Here's were I am at currently in the build:

If you have any questions probably most of the answers are in the link I provided but if not feel free to ask and I will try to answer.

Thanks for understanding.

Colin

 

[Speckmisser]

That's just nuts! 2 bore!?!

Can't wait to see how this comes out.

 

[CowboyCS]

I just really like this picture and thought everybody should see it.

That's an 8 Bore ball inside the muzzle of the 2 Bore.

Colin

 

[myfriendis410]

I got the 2 bore part. But.......

Thirty pounds?

THIRTY POUNDS?

THIRTY POUNDS!!!

 

[CowboyCS]

Recoil is exponential, the last 4 bore I shot weighed 20 pounds and the recoil was brutal, I mean literally bone jarring shoulder bruising brutal. Now double the quantity of lead you have to push, and at least half again the powder charge and tell me if you think it would be a good idea to shoot it in a 20 pound gun. I've read pretty much everything I can find on 2 bores and the original accounts of the DG hunters of the 1880's through the early 1900's all speak of the 2 bore with remorse. Sir Samuel Baker commented that is was one of his worst mistakes having ever commissioned the 2 Bore he named "Baby" it gave him a permanent flinch. And later in life it is suspected that the massive amounts of recoil sustained repeatably caused permanent nerve damage. To quote Ross Siegfried after shooting a 2 bore "It's like presiding over your own personal earthquake" at least I think that's how he put it, and I think that sums it up pretty well. So yeah I think 30 pounds if I can get it there is going to be a good idea, I'm just not sure I can get it that heavy.

Colin

 

[myfriendis410]

Oh, I'm a big believer in weight to tame recoil; I sat at the wizard's knee many many years ago on that subject. I'm just thinking that it weighs more than the Barrett .50 my buddy lugged around in Iraq! I'm trying to imagine putting that to my shoulder and actually AIMING it at something.

Yeah, I'm thinking major flinch. I'd twitch while walking down the street three days later.........

Let us know how it shoots.

 

[BelchFire]

What I'm concerned about is CowboyCS shooting is and US getting a flinch!

 

[myfriendis410]

Amen!

 

[myfriendis410]

I mean, come on! That's a 1/2 POUND BALL! What's the powder charge? Like 1/2 pound too? Criminy! He's gonna pull the trigger and there'll be a mushroom cloud over Kansas or something.

Hey Cowboy! Give us a countdown before you pull the trigger, okay?

(cool project)

 

[CowboyCS]

400-500 grains of FFg is what I can find in all my reading, they really weren't loaded that much heavier than a 4 bore. I'm pretty sure the reason they didn't actually double the charge of a 4 Bore was because the recoil would be lethal, I mean literally shoulder bone/collar bone, neck snapping lethal if it was loaded up much higher than 500 grains. I was discussing this with another gunsmith the other day, and a small field cannon has a 1.5" bore and they only use 500 grains of powder in it, it weighs 300+ pounds on it's carriage, and the recoil will shove it back 2 to 3 feet. So this is only slightly smaller than that, takes the same charge and weighs 1/10th the weight. The rest is up to your body to absord. Kinda puts it in perspective when you compare it to artillary.

Colin

 

[BelchFire]

I may have to road-trip to Kansas for this. With a video camera in hand, I might be rich and you might be famous. Albeit posthumously. I'll do my best to talk up your memory.

I thought of one way to hit the 30 mound mark pretty easily. Make it a double barrel!

 

[Speckmisser]

Hmmm... a 2-bore Express rifle! :skeered:

 

[inchr48]

The only 2 bore I've ever seen in articles were bow-mounted on the boats the meat hunters used in our area on the Kankakee River around the turn of the century. They were loaded with shot, and as the boat turned a bend in the river and the ducks lifted off the water, the gun was fired. Hundreds would be killed at once, and taken into Chicago to the markets. I can't imagine shoulder firing anything of this guage size. Good luck with the build Cowboy. You have my utmost respect for your abilities to work in both metal and wood. Maybe someday I can afford to have you make me a BP shotgun (in a more reasonable guage).

 

[CowboyCS]

The only 2 bore I've ever seen in articles were bow-mounted on the boats the meat hunters used in our area on the Kankakee River around the turn of the century. They were loaded with shot, and as the boat turned a bend in the river and the ducks lifted off the water, the gun was fired. Hundreds would be killed at once, and taken into Chicago to the markets.

If you read up on the exploits of Sir Samuel Baker or Taylor or for that matter most of the Ivory Hunters, you find more than a few vivid descriptions of shooting 4 & 2 Bore rifles and frighteningly close yardage to very angry animals.

I can't imagine shoulder firing anything of this guage size. Good luck with the build Cowboy. You have my utmost respect for your abilities to work in both metal and wood.

Thank You, but most of the credit goes to my teacher, the rest has just been practice.

Colin

 

[myfriendis410]

I was more of a Major Jim Corbett fan myself, but still, a different era and real tough pioneers.

 

[CowboyCS]

On to the forearm, I’ve been working on this off and on for several days now. I started by attaching the ebony tip, then I used my mill to hog out the majority of the wood. I then had to custom turn a scraper on my lathe that was big enough to work the barrel channel. One of the problems to overcome when building such large calibers, is the fact that there are no commercially available tools to buy, so I make all my own as the need arises.

Then it was just a matter of using Prussian blue to check the fit and scrape it in, lots of repetitious work, but doing it fast is asking for a bad inletting job.

Then the last thing I did was something I don’t normally do, I bedded the forearm. I don’t usually glass bed the forearm on muzzleloaders, there isn’t a need in most cases. But since I plan to remove a lot of wood from this forearms and replace it with steel inlays to add weight, I figured it would be a good idea to stabilize the wood by bedding it.

That’s it for now, just waiting for bedding compound to dry.

Colin

 

[CowboyCS]

Forearm Key and Stock Shaping. Yesterday I pulled the forearm off and cleaned up most of the release agent and excess bits of bedding compound left on the forearm. Then I trimmed off some excess wood from the sides and bottom with my bandsaw. The next step was to machine a slot for the key in the underrib and then open up the wood on both sides and fit a temporary key. I like to use a temporary key so I can file over the top of it as I shape the forearm. I’ll make a permanent key towards the end of the build. With the key in place I then drilled for the Ramrod hole with a long shank drill bit.

I then used a plane and files to roughly round over the corners on the forearm. With the forearm roughed out I then turned my attention to shaping the Buttstock. This was all done with hand planes, rasps, and files to bring it down to the rough shape.

With the rough shaping done the last thing I did yesterday was to drill and tap the steel buttplate spacer for the screws and install the recoil pad.

It’s still pretty rough looking but at least it is starting to look and feel like a rifle.

Colin

 

[myfriendis410]

More like a mobile field piece! Keep it coming when you can; we all love it.

 

[CowboyCS]

In an effort to add more weight to this rifle I am adding a comb plate and a toe plate to the buttstock. The comb plate started out as a piece of schedule 80 pipe. I laid out the shape then used my metal bandsaw to part it off. Then I rough shaped it with a grinder, and finished out with files. I beveled the edges in so that when it was inlet it would draw down into the wood leaving a clean edge. The comb plate actually serves another purpose besides adding weight, it also is slotted into the steel butt spacer and prevents it from rotating out of alignment with the stock. As I was inletting I noticed that one side were it fits up to the butt spacer has a slight gap, this isn’t a problem though, especially with metal to metal fits, as I will just take a flat faced punch and flow the steel together until it closes in the gap. I left it a little proud so that I can file it smooth after the gap is closed up. As always the screws are just temporary and will get replaced with slotted screws that are filed to fit later.

I will be adding a toe plate to the bottom of the stock that ties in to the butt spacer the same way and has a complimentary shape to the comb plate. Between the two plates it will add almost 1 ½ pounds to the butt of the rifle. The extra weight is going to help not only with the recoil but because of all the extra weight I put on the barrel with the ribs, having the extra weight at the butt will also help with the balance of the rifle.

Colin

 

[BelchFire]

Now that was a very interesting, well executed touch. Impressive all the way around. Can't wait to see it finished. You gonna video the carnage first shot?