Rebuilding Bubba'ed Muzzleloader
I am working on a rifle for someone else.
He did not build this rifle , he bought it used and looks good from 10 feet away.
This whole rifle is Totally Bubbaed.
The major issue is the barrel.
Besides poorly filed in dovetails for the sights, they screwed the under rib to the barrel with 10/32 screws.
The only problem is.
They drilled and tapped the holes all the way thru into the bore.
The screws are short enough that they don't stick out into the rifling.
I was wondering if the barrel is still safe to fire ?
If it might be safe to fire with screws locktighted into the barrel it leaves a dent in the bore that could collect crud and may effect accuracy.
I was thinking about locking the screws in flush with the inside of the bore.
Then send it to Bob Hoyt and have him refresh the rifling so there is no voids.
The screws will be set in and filed flush with the outside of the barrel so they can never be removed.
The under rib can then be remounted by drilling and tapping new holes the right way , or solder the rib to the barrel.
Do you guys have any opinions on this kind of Fix.
The rifle is a home Built ( by Bubba) and the parts all kind of match up to a TOW Kit Carson Kit.
So there were good parts that he started with.
But his skills are the worst I have ever seen
Rebuilding a Bubba'ed Muzzleloader
Since I will be cutting about 8" off the barrel and that section has one of the holes.
I will play with running the screw into the barrel and Lock tite it in place in the cut off peice of the barrel.
This gives me a sample that I can play with to have the screw run all the way down to the rifling.
Then since it is right at the end of the barrel , I can see what has to be done to make it flush with the rifling .
That way I can play with the lapping tool that I will make.
Then see if I can eliminate any depression or prevent burs or screw protruding into the bore.
That is why I like these kind of projects.
They allow me to experiment with different types of repairs and not downgrade the finish build.
Sort of like trying different finishes on Junk Stocks that I do not intend on actually building into another gun.
The cut off barrel section with the Bubba'ed in front sight dovetail will also give me something to practice on before I have to do the repair on the other bubba'ed in dovetail for the rear sight.