Chopping a smooth bore

[JonnyReb]

 I rec'd a very nice renegade hunter flint .62 smoothbore from "silly goose" here on gbo last week and its been entertaining me ever since even though I still have not shot it, nor have I sought out priming powder to even do so. Instead i've been learning and admiring the gun while deciding what about it i'll be wanting to change. Initially I wanted to have a fullstock semi inletted for me to complete but the length and weight of the 32" oct. barrel, plus the "too modern" excellent sights have made me reconsider. Instead i'm thinking of keeping the beautiful hunter halfstock, and take 10" off the GM barrel. Then take the excellent GM sights and swap them to a different factory renegade barrel. I'd like to have just a brass bead installed on the now 20-22" .62 barrel. The extra foot of barrel could be breeched for a future pistol perhaps. Sound like a plan? Any reason not to chop it? Thoughts on using a 22" .62 smoothie with patched rb's or shot? Thanks for your comments,. J

[bubba.50]

the barrel on my 56 smoothy has been shortened to 21 inches. it had a bead sight on it when i got it & it was much too low for use on a renegade stock. now has a set of t/c sights on it & is much better imho. luck to ya & have a good'en, bubba.

[JonnyReb]

Thats a good point Bubba. I've kinda gotten used to laying my head sideways across muzzleloaders as pretty much every cva or t/c stock i've had beats the crap outta my cheekbone. I had considered a simple post/thin buckhorn rear to get a bit more elevation if needed but think I can get by with a bead if I continue to hold these guns differently. I DO look forward to having a stock someday with enough drop in it. Thanks bubba. Did the short barrel work well enough in other regards? Thanks, jeff

[bubba.50]

haven't shot it yet but like you say-it's sure entertainin' to set around the house & play with. handles real good is about all i can tell ya right now.

[JonnyReb]

Yeah I wear em out by starin at them far more than by shooting them.:-)

[P.A. Myers]

Dear JR,
 
I looked long and hard at that one, glad to see it found a good home.
 
                                     P.A.

[JonnyReb]

Thanks P.A., It was all those other rifles you were buyin about then that probably held you off, you were on a roll:-).  I felt lucky to break into an american made flintgun for that price, SG did some darned nice inletting too, it still seems like a bargain. I appreciate the comment,. Jeff

[Lonegun1894]

I don't think you will see much difference with PRB, other than what you would expect with the shortened sight radius.  However, the performance with shot may change.  Based on having bought a beater modern shotgun years ago with a 32" 12ga barrel on it that had already had the choke cut off of it by a previous owner, I took it and porceeded to cut 2 inches off of it at a time and check patterns after each cut until I got to 18 1/4", then stopped cutting.  The patterns did open up somewhat, but I cant remember off the top of my head as to what the exact measurements were after each cut.  What i do remember is that it went from being a gun I would have used on small game at 35yds, to a gun I would limit to 20yds, but that was with walmart bulk pack ammo so you should be able to beat that performance with a little load work up.  I currently use a 28ga flinter with a 32" barrel for most of my shotgun hunting and it feels great to me as it is so maybe I'm just a bit odd, but I like the longish barrels.

[JonnyReb]

Thanks lonegun, good input on the subject and I appreciate it. Somehow I think the long barrel wouldn't bother me as much if I just had a bead stead of adjustable sights. Think i'll simply pull the rear sight and see if that barrel still bothers me as much. No doubt trying to swing smooth and follow through becomes impossible while "sighting in". That in itself would depress any wingshooter.  J

[Lonegun1894]

For what it's worth, my 28ga is a .54 GM smoothbore barrel fitted to a flint-lock Lyman GPR that I use mostly for deer and hogs on Corps of Engineers land since they allow shotguns only, so it's kind of my way of skirting the regulations that forbid use of a rifle.  It shoots PRB very well to about 60yds, and sometimes 80yds if I cross my eyes just right.  But you can see that this is just a rifle without the rifling in it, and not what most would consider a shotgun, as a 15/16" 32" barreled 8.5-9# gun isn't the best thing to swing on a dove.  And I do have both the front and rear sights on mine, which are a blessing when shooting PRB, and also a help when I attempt to chase turkeys with this gun (haven't connected yet, but maybe this spring), but didn't bother me the very few times I took this gun after dove.  In the end, this gun aims very well, but swings like a heavy rifle, and not like a proper shotgun.  I hope that helps you out some, and I'm curious as to what you end up with, as I'm always tinkering with mine trying for both better patterns and better accuracy.

[JonnyReb]

. I hope I figure it out to:-), i'm being awful wishy washy about whether to cut that barrel or not as they're no longer making them. And you are correct 100% that these are sorry doveguns but I can't help but to admit I had plans this next year of taking this gun to the dovefields. Undoubtably i'd be better served to leave it as it is, and apply the money torwards a designated upland BP shotgun. Plus I get to buy another gun:-).  I like the idea of the .54-.56 smoothbore myself and think you've got a good thing going there. 28ga does great on anything with feather..or fur. Will post as I get it all figured out.  J

[bubba.50]

the money you'd spend on havin' the barrel shortened & a bead installed would probably go a long way toward a renegade 56 smoothbore which is generally considered a 28ga. then ya could try it without the rear sight before ya go to the trouble of havin' a bead installed. 'cause i can tell ya right now, it's a deal gettin' yer cheek down to see a bead on a renegade stock. for what it's worth & luck to ya friend, bubba.

[JonnyReb]

 Yup, a whole different stock, with enough drop in it, definitely would work better than the renegade. You fellas have helped much in swaying me not to cut that barrel, think I want a designated shottie anyways. I appreciate ya'll hanging with me through this. J

[Lonegun1894]

I just hope we've actually helped, cause if all we accomplished in doing is getting you to buy another gun, then if your wife asks, I had nothing to do with this conversation, and my dog learned to type and was a bad influence on you.   

[JonnyReb]

Haha nope alls well on the "personal importation" front, I blitzkreiged her on UPS coming and going years ago and she finally numbed to it, now she carries in my boxes and leaves them on the kitchen table. Sometimes she'll mention one being heavy. I win/won:-).     On the shotty front, I just found a beretta over under 12ga made in 1980 for 775.00 on another muzzleloader classifieds. I'm not buying that one, but thats what i'm talking about. I think now,, with ya'll's imput considered, i'll shoot the .62 with some patched balls, see if I like flintlocks to begin with, then consider ordering a pretty maple fullstock semi-inletted fullstock if so. Last flintlock I shot was in 1988 I think.  Jeff

[bubba.50]

accordin' to my wife everything bad that's happened anywhere in the world for the last 28yrs is my fault so go ahead & blame me .


three spaces below that beretta you looked at is an unfired traditions 12ga single shot for $250.00 for what it's worth & have a good'en friend, bubba.

[JonnyReb]

I saw that one too bubba, kinda figured the guy already had email in his box but honestly I got 2 suspiciously gun looking boxes coming already this or next week and I don't want to mess up a good thing:-), don't want to go to overboard either all at once or I end up overwhelmed with new stuff, which I already am, and I don't properly appreciate what i've got. That shotgun will give me something to ponder on for awhile.  J

[P.A. Myers]

Don't forget the NewEnglander 12ga. Usually are quite reasonable.        P.A.

[JonnyReb]

 If I could find one at a reasonable price P.A., i'd buy it today. I've found plenty of New Englanders but the all have rifled barrels. My first BP shotgun experiences were with a case of New Englanders procured for a BSA summer camp by our range officer, Bill Smith. As his assistant I fired many hundreds of shots through them and I also cleaned all eight plus all the other range guns every night, 5 days a week all summer. I know them like the back of my hand, even 20 some years later and look forward to having one again eventually. Thanks for bringing them up.  J

[bubba.50]

there's 2 new englander 12ga on gunbroker right now. one is walnut stocked & includes the box. looks like new. up to $436.00 with a day & 1/2 to go.
 
the other is synthetic stocked with 12ga & 54cal bbls openin' bid $499.00 buy it now $549.00 12hrs to go & no bids.
 
for what it's worth, that's about as cheap as they get these days. luck to ya & have a good'en friend, bubba.

[JonnyReb]

 Well thank you Bubba! Gotta say they're outta my price range though, if I wait I know a deal will come:-).   Now one of the rifles coming is a white mountain carbine from ramblinman. He has a 2nd barrel, and I was kinda kicking around the idea of having it bored from its current .50 to a smooth 28/.54. I do need to verify first that the O to R barrel could safely be opened up to that diameter. Now that would be an easy handling gun. I think.  J

[P.A. Myers]

From the TML forum, a gent that bores barrels. They report [on the forum] reasonable & rapid. I have not contacted as yet.
I may have a bad 45 bored to a 50 smooth?
 
    Bobby Hoyt
700 Fairfield Station Road
Fairfield, Pennsylvania 17320
(717) 642-6696

[JonnyReb]

This turned out to be one heck of a useful thread, thanks P.A for another great bit of info, i'll call and see if its feasible. Since i'd already would have a designated rifle barrel I could see the smoothy worthy of jug choking. Hmmm:-). J