Trapdoor Rifles

Thank you Dick. It can be a tough call on whether to clean or not. But if you are stretching a cutoff stock or cleaning a black and filthy one, it's an easier choice. The method above does do minimal damage to the underlying wood. Here's a shot of my current project. A most unusual Robbins & Law...

The small M/W at the back end of the trigger guard is probably a stock inspector mark. Usually it's 2 or 3 letters, but 1 is not unknown. So it most likely is an armory replacement stock.

My experience is that it's first quality. I have a bunch in 45 and 50 cal. and use it to make oddball stuff, such as 45-60 as well as 56-56 and 56-50 Spencer. Starline 45-90 can be loaded as 45-80-500 Long Range.

Forgot to mention. This will make a big mess. I do it outside on the deck and then hose down the deck. It's good to clean stocks when your significant other will be out for a couple hours.

This is kind of late, but.... To clean stocks, if the wood is otherwise sound, use a solution of 4 or 5 parts water to 1 part Windex (or 409 or similar product) and OO or OOO steel wool. Dip the wool in the cleaning solution and rub down the stock. When the steel wool starts to dry, or gets gunked u...

On bullet lube, if you are shooting black powder, SPG is excellent. If you want to make your own, 4-5 parts bees wax (real bees wax not craft store substitute) and 1 part olive oil melted together. The ratio isn't real critical. Unless you are shooting long range, that works very well.

Try 23 grains of AA 5744 with the Lyman 50-70 bullet (515141), or an equivalent bullet. That runs just under 1200 fps out of my M-1870 Trapdoor and no signs of excess pressure. Quickload guesses just under 11K psi. and nails the velocity prediction. I have fired this load in Sharps 50-70 carbine con...

I suspect it is an inspector's stamp from when the breechblock strap was soldered on. My short rifle has a 4 in the same spot. My other 66 isn't in good enough shape to be sure, there may be a B under the pitting.

Here are a couple pictures that might help. I don't have a rifle with a filled spring slot, but these pictures show an M1864 musket above an M-1866 short rifle so you can see where the musket middle band spring was before it was filled. I pulled the middle band back to better show the spring end.

The pin hole between the lock and lower band is for the musket ramrod retainer spoon. If the stock was converted from an M-1864 musket stock there should also be a hole on the left side of the forestock between the bands. That is for the middle band spring that's no longer there. Springfield convers...