Reconditioned ML barrels

[LAGS]

Yesterday I went to the range and fired three rifles that had reconditioned barrels.
The first one was a .54 TC Renegade that when I bought it , the barrel was good.
But did have some minor pitting or stains in the bore.
I had the barrel Refreshed by Bobby Hoyt.
It cleaned up the rifling grooves and made them just a little deeper.
The second rifle is a .54 T C Renegade that when I bought it.
The barrel was pitted really bad , and worse than poor.
I had Hoyt Re Line the barrel to .54.
But I had him cut the new rifling to a 1:60 twist for shooting round balls.
The third rifle is a .50 TC Renegade barrel that when I bought it , the barrel was rusted very bad.
It was so bad that the breech plug stripped when I took it out.
I replaced the breech plug with a flintlock style non hook breech plug and tang.
I sent the barrel to Hoyt and had it Re Bored from .50 to .54 with a standard 1:48 twist.
All three barrels shot great And loading was very easy with a .535 ball and a .015 patch.
The Homemade powder didn't foul up the barrels too much.
I could do more than 5 shots and still didn't have to swab out the bore for easier loading.
The fouling is mostly related to the powder you are using, but I have found that a pitted up barrel makes to fouling build up faster.
Right now I have two more barrels I am going to have Hoyt redo them.
I haven't decided how I want them redone yet.
But I think Reboring them from .50 to .54 will be my option because of there condition.
I might have one rifled to a super fast twist like 1:28 for shooting slugs and use it for Elk hunting.
IMO.
Having a barrel re conditioned is cheaper the buying a New Barrel.
The cost of what is done to the barrel isn't that expensive.
It is the shipping costs that send the price up the ladder.
But , don't forget.
You have to pay shipping on buying a new barrel also .
That is IF you can find a New Barrel that matches your stock.

[waksupi]

"The third rifle is a .50 TC Renegade barrel that when I bought it , the barrel was rusted very bad.
It was so bad that the breech plug stripped when I took it out."

I'll bet someone was using the mix with hydrogen peroxide in the barrel. The only gun I ever unbreeched with destroyed threads was from that stuff.

[indian joe]

"The third rifle is a .50 TC Renegade barrel that when I bought it , the barrel was rusted very bad.
It was so bad that the breech plug stripped when I took it out."

I'll bet someone was using the mix with hydrogen peroxide in the barrel. The only gun I ever unbreeched with destroyed threads was from that stuff.


H2O!!!! -----NOT H2O2

I do not understand why shooters go to so much drama cleaning blackpowder guns with all sorts of crazy and often corrosive concoctions, when plain water will do the job - it dont even need to be hot ! plain old room temperture tap water will do the job (better than many magic proprietary gunshop mixes)

Ditto for patch lubes - there is nothing on this earth superior to machinists cutting oil and water for patch lube at the range - get that mix right and you can shoot forever with out swabbing between shots

Hunting ? needs a different combo

[LAGS]

When I was shooting yesterday.
I was going to use Bore Butter.
But our heat last summer made it very hard and it wouldn't come out of the tube.
So I used my normal back up lube.
Crisco.
I can always depend on that stuff for working and not leaving a big mess in the barrel

[LAGS]

I forgot to mention.
That third barrel that had rust and the breech plug stripped out.
When I bought that barrel, it came with a old load still in the barrel.
The powder looked like Pyrodex.
So if that barrel had a load stuck in the barrel for years , that could be why the barrel was rusted and the breech plug was rusted to the barrel.
I don't think that Hydrogen Peroxide was the cause for rusting.
The ball that was in the barrel did look like someone had tried to pull out the ball.
But they probably couldn't do, so they just replaced the barrel.

[Adam Helmer]

LAGS,

Thank you for the excellent report on redoing a barrel. What is the cost involved "refreshing/reboring?" In the Ronnee Voo days, circa 1825, the old trappers routinely had their bores "refreshed" in St. Louis.

The Old Army Manual specified hot, soapy water to flush out a bore, then dry patches and oil patches. Windex, alcohol, peroxide and stuff like that work BECAUSE ALL are Water Based! Use water to begin with and be done with it.

I have shot BP muskets since 1966 and all have been water cleaned.
Be well.
Adam

[LAGS]

To find out what your barrel will cost you , you should call Bobby Hoyt.
He is a little hard to get on the phone since he is so busy.
But he does call back if you leave a message.
I have had maybe 10 barrels done by him since 2020.
But calling him will get you the current prices , and an idea how long the work will take.
So far , he got my barrels back to me in two to three weeks.

[Adam Helmer]

To find out what your barrel will cost you , you should call Bobby Hoyt.
He is a little hard to get on the phone since he is so busy.
But he does call back if you leave a message.
I have had maybe 10 barrels done by him since 2020.
But calling him will get you the current prices , and an idea how long the work will take.
So far , he got my barrels back to me in two to three weeks.

LAGS,
Please understand I merely wanted a "ball park" price since you said in your first post, "having a barrel reconditioned is cheaper than buying a new barrel." Ok, so HOW cheap was it? This is not a quote, merely a ball park number. Just provide "the rest of the story", please. What did you pay versus a new barrel? I have no clue what either costs. Please enlighten me.
Be well.
Adam

[LAGS]

Ok.
That is understandable.
I see used barrels with good bores on the net for $200 to 300.
New barrels if you can find anyone who has them in stock runs around $280 on up.
TOW has TC barrels listed for $359 but are not in stock
Now the stuff that Hoyt does varies depending on what you need done and sometimes the type of barrel.
To Refresh those two barrels cost me $70 per barrel.
The one I had Re Bored from .50 to .54 cost me$125
The barrels that got Re Lined and bored to the rifling I wanted cost me $200 each.
That covers five of the barrels he did for me.
I can't locate the receipts for the other five or the costs on the shipping.
But this could give you an idea on if it might be better to have the barrels Re Worked over replacing them.
Especially if it is a barrel with history to you or one that you will never find a drop in replacement for it.
Buying a barrel blank and having a gunsmith totally refit it to your gun is even more expensive like for fitting the sights or breechplug and things.

[Adam Helmer]

LAGS,
Thank you for the information. I agree with you that refurbishing a barrel is cheaper than a new one, if it can be found.

Be well.

Adam

[LAGS]

Especially if you live in Pa.
And are close enough to take the barrel to Hoyt's and not have to pay for shipping.

[armoredman]

All I can say is I have fired Hoyt reworked barrels and they certainly tend to be quite nice!

[lead chucker]

Hoyt did a couple for me. Good price and fast service. I have a renegade 50 cal i'm trying to decide what i want him to do with. I have two 50s and two 54's. I'm thinking 58 1/48 or maybe a 58 smooth bore. Decisions decisions.

[LAGS]

I too am thinking of having one of my next Renegade barrels bored to .58 by Hoyt since I have three in the .54 already.
I also have several in .50.
I think the Renegade 1" barrel is too heavy to reline it to .45 or .36.
But that one Renegade .56 SB that I had him bore it to a slow twist .61 cal is great.
.62 smooth bore is another option I have thought about.
That will be a 20 ga.

[stubshaft]

I've had Bobby rebore a couple of barrels for me and have always been impressed with the quality of his work. The last barrel he did was for an 8-bore smoothbore damascus.