Gunsmithing 10/22 brown bess

[jacq220]

ok, so here is the project for us to discuss and hopefully i can pull some knowlege or tips and tricks on how to get this done.

i have a british brown bess stock blank coming. will only have a 3/4 barrel channel drill to partial dept just to help save some time.

i will be putting a 10/22 into this thing.

to get the right barrel length i am going to thread the end of a 28 inch green mountain .920 barrel, and add a 9 inch barrel shroud. this will be epoxied on since i am going to put tech sights on this rifle and i dont want the shroud working its way loose. the 5 inch reciever 28 inch barrel and 9 inch shroud will get me pretty close to the brown bess's 42 inch barrel.

the stock (from what i am told) is 2 3/4 wide at the wrist the reciever is 1.250 at the widest, so i SHOULD be able to get this thing inletted in.

few concerns will be if there is enough wood for strength at the front part of the reciever. and if i will be able to bring the reciever back far enough to allow the reach to the trigger to not be unbearable but still have enough depth of wood to hold all the pins in, and not come back so far that the bottom of the trigger pack is sticking out. only time will tell if this will be the case once i have the stock in my hands to take some measurements.

i am going to float the reciever and full length bed the barrel for strength. this should make inletting significantly easier as i will not have to worry about tolernaces only inletting it so i dont have bit gaps. the reciever part should be easiy, but the triggerpack/magwell part may prove to be difficult.

i am also planning on putting a pillar partially into where the single action screw goes and by filing this down i can controll the dept of the reciever and triggerpack. this area will also be bedded along w/ the entire barrel channel.

now, what problems do you guys forsee, and what will be the best method to the madness to get the inletting close. doesnt have to be perfect just close enough. i have access to a mill, but am a rookie at running it, i am a master at a rasp and dremel.

patiently waiting for some input.

 

[bohem]

Re: 10/22 brown bess

The 10-22 footprint isn't particularly difficult. I would suggest you take a look at getting a factory take-off stock to check as a receiver inlet pattern.

Use carbide cutters and spin them as fast as your milling machine can handle. Don't push the feed rate too fast when you get to corners so you minimize chipping.

The file and rasp will be close friends before you're totally done.

A straight contour rifle barrel is very easy to inlet for with sandpaper glued to a wooden dowel, I wouldn't even try to cut the barrel inlet with the milling machine if it's already been roughed in there by the blank supplier.

To get the receiver inlet straight into the blank I would stick a piece of steel rod or dowel into the stock and use an indicator at each end to "get close" on the stock alignment in the milling machine.

Before you make any cuts I would take a trip to the lumber yard and get yourself a length of 4x4 and make a few practice inlets on the cheap lumber the first couple times.

When you are doing the Brown-Bess'ish look, are you going to blue the steel or brown it?

 

[jacq220]

Re: 10/22 brown bess

black moly resin, cas its what i have and what i am good at.

the barrel channel will be cut by hand with a barrel channel cutter. i think you are right w/ practicing w/ a 2x4 first, but thats just time. probably should if i want to get it right. still need some measurements of the stock to see if it will work..... if it wont then ill be putting a savage mk2 into the stock. but now we are talking a whole different animal w/ barrels.

 

[bohem]

Re: 10/22 brown bess

Looking forward to seeing what happens, it will be unique for sure, and I'm a sucker for a gorgeous piece of wood on a rifle.

 

[msahlm]

Re: 10/22 brown bess

I hope you plan on posting pics of your process here- I plan a similar 10/22 stock-from-scratch- retrofit here pretty soon, and would LOVE to see how your project progresses. I'm following.

 

[671RTO9513]

Re: 10/22 brown bess

You ought to have plenty of room, if the stock maker has copied an 18th century gun, not one of the skinny repros. The original Brown Bess barrels were about 1 3/8" to 1 1/2" at the breech. If you've ever handled one you'll know they're a BIG gun.

You'll probably have to slide the action back into the tang area to get the trigger in the right place.

I'd use as short of a barrel with a long thin walled bloop tube to keep the weight down and concentrate it in the middle of the gun (better balance). What you're talking about doing will be a muzzle heavy beast.