Author Topic: Made a lead plug for my 45-120  (Read 1123 times)

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Offline AtlLaw

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Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« on: April 11, 2010, 05:25:16 PM »
I finally broke out the 7/8 inch drill bit and bored a hole in a piece of 2x2, 7 inches deep.  Filled it full of lead and then split the wood off after it cooled.  With some minor tweaking it fit in the stock bolt recess perfectly!   ;D

I also mounted the BC front sight while I was at it.

Now I just need to get to the range and shoot it some.  Two goals:  500 gr. hard cast RNFPGC at 2150 fps and a 350 gr. hornady at 2500.  I'll leave the heavy loads to Tyler.   ::)
Richard
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Offline quickdtoo

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #1 on: April 11, 2010, 06:02:05 PM »
 ;D Waiting anxiously for the range report.... I hope the paramedics can stop the bleeding quickly!!

Tim
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Offline necchi

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #2 on: April 11, 2010, 07:37:07 PM »
Uhmm, ya coulda just filled it with shot, shook it down a bit an plugged the hole with silicon, ::)
But it is good to know the American made stock isn't using a meteric bit for the bolt hole.

Quote
 With some minor tweaking it fit in the stock bolt recess perfectly  ;D

How big a hammer ya need fer the "minor tweeking"   :P
found elsewhere

Offline Smokin Joe

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #3 on: April 11, 2010, 07:48:29 PM »
Quote
500 gr. hard cast RNFPGC at 2150 fps

That ought to set ya back about a hat and a half.


 ;D
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Offline AtlLaw

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #4 on: April 12, 2010, 07:28:56 AM »
ya coulda just filled it with shot, shook it down a bit an plugged the hole with silicon, ::)

That was the way I have been doing it, minus the silicon, but I'm always pulling the stock off for this, that or the other thing.  This is quicker and easier.  Costs less then a mercury recoil reducer also!   ;D

Quote
How big a hammer ya need fer the "minor tweeking"   :P

Well, actually it was a rubber mallet!   :D
Richard
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Offline AtlLaw

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #5 on: April 12, 2010, 07:35:47 AM »
That ought to set ya back about a hat and a half.

I imagine so...  :-\  But, there's only one way to find out!   ;D

Also, after seeing what Tyler's jacketed 405 load did to deer last season, I wanna try hard cast 500's this year.  Them light bullets are too explosive when driven fast!  'sides, these south Jawja whitetails been known to charge when wounded!   ::)
Richard
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Offline gstewart44

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #6 on: April 12, 2010, 08:24:48 AM »
Durn Richard, sounds like a shoulder-jolter load. :-\   How much did the lead plug end up weighing?      ???     
I'm just tryin' to keep everything in balance, Woodrow. You do more work than you got to, so it's my obligation to do less. (Gus McCrae)

Offline S.E.Ak

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #7 on: April 12, 2010, 09:37:49 AM »
Remember that lead will expand as dampness gets to it. Seen many an old single shot gun with a cracked stock at the butt and most had lead plugs. A easy fix is buy a two dollar cigar that comes in a metal tube and fill it with the lead and then put in the stock

Offline gcrank1

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #8 on: April 12, 2010, 10:06:18 AM »
Maybe wax it up good with any paste wax and keep that 'growth' at bay. Of course, since you say you are getting in there fairly regular it may not take you by surprise.
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Offline AtlLaw

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #9 on: April 12, 2010, 10:24:31 AM »
I never did weigh the thing.   I thought about it, just outa curiousity, but didn't.  :-\

I also never thought about lead swelling, thanks for the heads up!   ;D
Richard
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Offline Smokin Joe

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #10 on: April 12, 2010, 01:47:07 PM »
Quote
Remember that lead will expand as dampness gets to it



Lead sucking up moisture? Does the stock expand against the lead plug?


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Offline gcrank1

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #11 on: April 12, 2010, 02:04:34 PM »
What I referred to as 'growth' is the corrosion that takes place at the surface of lead and effectively causes an increase in diameter. We've all seen it at one time or another and the last place we want it is in a buttstock with only a little clearance and the woodgrain wanting to hold against it. If the dia. of the lead is small enough you could probably wax it and wrap it with black plastic electrical tape which should let the slug slip out nicely when needed.
"Halt while I adjust my accoutrements!"
      ><   ->
We are only temporary caretakers of the past heading toward an uncertain future
22Mag UV / 22LR  Sportster
357Mag Schuetzen Special
45-70  SS Ultra Hunter with UV cin.lam. wood
12ga. 'Ol' Ugly OverKill', Buck barrel c/w  SpeedStock  and swap 28" x Full bird barrel, 1974

Offline AtlLaw

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #12 on: April 12, 2010, 03:43:24 PM »
Okay, I got a solution...  I'll only use it on days with low humidity!   ;D  If my wife caught me waxing lead she'd have me committed...  :-[
Richard
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Offline miyata

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #13 on: April 12, 2010, 04:20:39 PM »
Lead will oxidise and the surface will swell, it can do a lot of damage.  A good solution is to paint the surface with an epoxy paint.

I'm thinking of adding lead to my .45-120 ultra hunter.  Because it has a thumbhole stock there is no bolt hole in the end.  I'm considering routing or drilling some holes and then mixing lead shot with epoxy and filling teh holes.  It would be permanent, but I don't think that matters.

Offline silver surfer

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #14 on: April 12, 2010, 05:44:41 PM »
Gents,
  May I tell you a cautionary tale?  A few years back I was given an inline .50 cal ML as a Christmas present.  I had never even shot an inline and all of it was a new experience over my sidelocks that I had hunted with for years.  (To be honest; my wife got sick of me griping about mis-fires and bought it to shut me up ::).)  The new plastic stock was noisy as the devil and it recoiled much differently than my trusty straight walnut stocks I had grown accustomed to.  Not to mention this baby could hold 150 grains of velocity producing mayhem!  Well the recoil was a tad on the jumpy side for my taste so I load the butt stock with a heavy dose of saw dust and #8 bird shot.  This definitely deadened the noise...  See where this is going :-[
  The next weekend a buddy and I went hunting.  It was a nice weekend to be hunting, good weather, good food, and good company.  Saturday morning passed uneventful and we met at a designated area to walk back to the truck when two deer ambled out in front of us.  Both deer were legal to shoot so we crept up and were going to drop them both at about 100 yards.  We counted to three and pulled triggers, the next thing I know is he was looking down at me and laughing as I felt blood running out of my freshly squashed nose! :-[
  I hadn't shot the rifle since i had weighted the stock and it changed the balance and recoil characteristics of the gun so much it caught me totally by surprise and the scope smashed my snoot!  Luckily I hit mine and my buddy missed when he saw my face cave in.
  The moral of the story is, be aware that weighting may change the way your rifle recoils considerably.  Shoot it several times before that moment of truth, it may save you some pain and embarrassment in the future.
"Blamin a gun for shootin people is like blamin your pencil for misspellin a word!"
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Offline v8r

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #15 on: April 13, 2010, 03:42:24 AM »
Ouch :o
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Offline AtlLaw

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #16 on: April 13, 2010, 07:07:58 AM »
weighting may change the way your rifle recoils considerably.  Shoot it several times before that moment of truth, it may save you some pain and embarrassment

Good point!  When I first rechambered it I shot mine some without any weight in the stock.  Come to think about it, no recoil pad either.  :-\  Being that I'm pretty fast on the uptake when something gets my attention ::), I soon put a Limbsaver pad on it.  Then I filled the bolt recess with birdshot.

I haven't noticed any change in the recoil pulse, but I did notice that the Leupold 2x7 scope I have mounted on it gets a llittle to close for comfort if my shooting form from the bench isn't what it should be!   :D
Richard
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Nemo me impune lacessit

                      
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Offline Daman

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #17 on: April 13, 2010, 07:30:22 AM »
weighting may change the way your rifle recoils considerably.  Shoot it several times before that moment of truth, it may save you some pain and embarrassment

Good point!  When I first rechambered it I shot mine some without any weight in the stock.  Come to think about it, no recoil pad either.  :-\  Being that I'm pretty fast on the uptake when something gets my attention ::), I soon put a Limbsaver pad on it.  Then I filled the bolt recess with birdshot.

I haven't noticed any change in the recoil pulse, but I did notice that the Leupold 2x7 scope I have mounted on it gets a llittle to close for comfort if my shooting form from the bench isn't what it should be!   :D

With bad form a 243 will bite you much less a 45-120!

Daman
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Offline NickSS

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Re: Made a lead plug for my 45-120
« Reply #18 on: April 13, 2010, 11:00:19 AM »
I have first hand knowledge of damage to a stock by a lead plug.  I bought a 30-06 model 70 custom match rifle off an old shooter who was retiring from competition.  He had added lead plugs to the butt stock to balance the rifle for off hand shooting.  I shot that rifle for 10 years in competion and had it re-barreled three times while at it.  Then I put it away when I quit high power shooting.  A couple years later I took it out to have some fun and found the butt stock completely splintered from the lead swelling.  It cost me $500 for a new stock for it.