I love my trapdoor so much....

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Doc Hoy

New member
...I am going to build another one from junk.

Some time ago, I came up with a spare breachblock for a trapdoor at a real good price. So I figured, why not buy the rest of the parts and then I'll have two.

So I am starting with a barrel which I bought off of ebay for 55.00. The ad listing said the barrel was badly pitted but I think it cleaned up okay. This is a standard length barrel with the rod bayonet fitting.

Barrel001_zpsc1fa49b5.jpg


Barrel003_zpscebe6c75.jpg


So I started out with a hack saw

Barrel007_zps4aa0be6d.jpg
 
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Doc Hoy

New member
Chucked the barrel

into the lathe to true up the muzzle and put a decent crown on it.

Barrel009_zpsadf012e8.jpg


New length is 22 1/2 which is cavalry and officer's model length.

Barrel011_zps20205b05.jpg
 
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Doc Hoy

New member
Here is

The muzzle, before

Barrel006_zps9f83a90f.jpg


and after

Barrel010_zps12d4457c.jpg


I have a receiver ordered for it.

Also have my eye on a stock.

I figure with another thousand bucks worth of parts and about a hundred manhours, I should have a rifle that is worth about 350.00 dollars.

Pretty good huh?
 
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Doc Hoy

New member
Now all I need is...

....the stock, the firing pin and spring, the extractor and spring, The breachblock cam and hardware, the trigger assembly, the lock assembly, the butt plate and screws, a barrel band, front and rear sight and some assorted hardware and I am in business.

Yeah....About nuther thousand bucks.
 
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Doc Hoy

New member
Hawg....

I am prolly going to make the front sight and so I will likely be able to use a rear sight just building the front sight to match it.

I think my main concern is getting the barrel band to clear the sight if the Buffington is a good bit longer than the original design sight. I have a line on a Buffington but they are a good bit larger.

I also am a bit concerned about the condition of the barrel. It cleaned up pretty well but not perfectly.

I am told that the trapdoor shoots well even when the bore is not in great shape. The bore on my other rifle is a bit better, but we shall see.

I can say this: On my other trapdoor, the worst portion of the bore is at the muzzle. That was true of this barrel too. I think this comes from long period is inaction and inattention with the rifle standing on its butt plate.

When I cut the last ten inches off the barrel, a lot of the problems went away.
 
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Hellgate

New member
"I figure with another thousand bucks worth of parts and about a hundred manhours, I should have a rifle that is worth about 350.00 dollars."

One's pride of workmanship is priceless. It's your "baby" and you'll be a proud papa.

I found a lot of parts for my TDs at www.ssfirearms.com/

I love my TD carbine for Plainsman shoots. I had the rusted, pitted, bulged barrel relined and it shoots great.
 
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Doc Hoy

New member
Two responses....

Gary,

It is a piece of a plastic coke bottle. It protects the barrel all the way around and it seemed to pad the barrel more than the aluminum can.

I chucked the barrel in very tightly with no mark whatever on the surface of the barrel.

Hellgate,

Loud and clear. In point of fact, this one probably will never be for sale. (Unless it is sold by my widow.)
 
L

LeadZinger

New member
Spend....

over a $1000 to made $350?? What are you? The Federal Government?:D

Envy your ability and machining talents to produce something useful out of a handful of parts. Look forward to seeing the finished product, and of course, and early range report.
 
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Doc Hoy

New member
LeadZinger

I was in the Navy for 26 years and I can tell you if the federal government thought they could get 350.00 in value from a thousand dollar investment, they would be doing cartwheels.
 
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Hawg

New member
Doc, the C & R sights are incremented differently. The C is set up for a carbine length barrel and the R a rifle length barrel.
 
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