Pirate Cutlass

[Rob.Wilson]

If I can get my projects to cooperate.

~Wes~

  Wes  i know how that one goes 

This is a truly madmodder project ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 


Rob

[Stilldrillin]

If I can get my projects to cooperate.

~Wes~

  Wes  i know how that one goes 

This is a truly madmodder project ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 


Rob

It certainly is! 

Quietly enjoying.......

David D

[Powder Keg]

I'm glad people are enjoying this. Today I managed to get the handle mounted onto my pistol. I also managed to bust off one of the brass screws I was using to mount it with. I had to mill it out bigger and turn a wood dowel to fill the hole and glue it in. I'll try and finish shaping the handle tomorrow.

~Wes~

[Powder Keg]

Before starting the shaping I put a piece of electrical tape on the receiver. This was my gauge to stop filing/sanding. It worked out great!!!



I filed/sanded the wood down where the hand guard is inletted also.



I then shaped and blended everything together. First I filed it close then I sanded it the rest of the way down. I'm using emery cloth glued to a board with great results.



After I got it sanded down where I wanted it I mopped on some denatured alcohol. This raised the grain and cleaned out the pores. I then sanded it down again. I did this several times until the little feathers quit coming back. The wood is almost shiny now.

Later,

~Wes~

 

[Rob.Wilson]

Hi Wes


Whats sort of finish will you be going for on the steel parts ?


Rob

Oh  ,,,, daft question ,, can you walk down the street with it  ? 

[Bernd]

Oh  ,,,, daft question ,, can you walk down the street with it  ? 

Rob,

Yes he could, BUT, and there is always a BUT, I think those guys with the badges and guns that have those funny cars with lights on them would have something to say.           

[Powder Keg]

I am going to heat blue the hammer and the rest of the metal will just be polished. I was going to blue it, but have changed my mind. I don't want the metalwork to be hid by anything.

This will mainly be a "wall hanger". But I could carry it if I wanted to. It is a black powder weapon and considered antique ordinance. There aren't many laws on them. But you can "open carry" any modern weapon down the street. As long as it's not concealed with out much trouble. Stay out of schools, banks, and government buildings. Then, if you have a permit, you can "conceal carry" which is carrying a hidden weapon.

Later,

~Wes~

 

[DaveH]

Wes,

Looks very nice. You have a lot of patience

 
DaveH

[Powder Keg]

Thanks DaveH! I'm loosing patience again with this one. But I need to finish it up. It's been in the works for several years now and deserves a place on the wall.

There has been a ton of sanding and smoothing done and I only have a little left. I've been using hand tools for nearly all of it. Power tools would really speed things up but I'm going to stick with the hand tools till it's finished.

Thanks for watching

~Wes~

[Rob.Wilson]

  Cheers Bernd ,,, just though i would ask     



Wes ,,,,,,,,,,, have you ever done any Rust bluing ? 



Rob

[Powder Keg]

The only coloring I have done Rob is browning and cold bluing. I liked the way the browning looks, but I don't like applying it. The cold bluing I've used is a piece of cake as long as the part is clean.

 ~Wes~

[Powder Keg]

I've got a question on this build. There are a couple little eyes that hold the ram rod. They are supposed to fit into a couple of dovetails in the barrel. Are these supposed to be a press fit? Or make them snug and silver solder them into place?

Thanks,

~Wes~

[rleete]

The directions I had said to stake them in place with a punch.  That's didn't hold very well, so I soft soldered mine in.

[75Plus]

I've got a question on this build. There are a couple little eyes that hold the ram rod. They are supposed to fit into a couple of dovetails in the barrel. Are these supposed to be a press fit? Or make them snug and silver solder them into place?

Thanks,

~Wes~

Wes, The old guns had handmade dovetails, cut with a three cornered file with one side ground smooth. The rings were made first and the dovetails were fitted to them.

As to the finish, bluing had not been invented during the period your weapon represents. Brown, as in controlled rust, would be the proper finish. I once had a browning recipe that called for burying a gun barrel in the dirt floor of a smokehouse for a week to get a good start. 

Joe

[Powder Keg]

Sorry for the delay in responding. My home computer died on my. But a friend managed to revive it\o/ I think I'm going to try and stake them first.

I'll try and get a few pictures uploaded soon. I've done quite a bit since I was here before. I cut 3 very shallow rings near the muzzle then brazed over them. I then turned it back down. The affect is very nice. I've also hand sanded all the nicks and dings out of the hand guard, hammer, and trigger guard. I still have the blade to do. It's getting closer\o/

Later,

~Wes~

 

[Powder Keg]

I put everything back together so I could show my Dad this weekend. It took 5 or six hours to get the blade filed down and cleaned up. What a job!!! But it sure turned out nice!!!!!



Here is a better picture of the hand guard.



I turned three shallow rings and filled them in with brass. Even though there are a couple bug holes in the brass I'm very happy with the results.



Getting closer\o/

~Wes~

[Bernd]

That's one nice piece of looking pirate cutlass you have there Wes.   

Bernd

[Stilldrillin]

It's all blending together nicely Wes! 

Hope your Dad was impressed....... 

David D

[sbwhart]

That turned out very nice Wes:------- good job 

Stew

[Powder Keg]

Thanks guys!!! It's still not done yet. I'm thinking about making some brass  panels to fill in the sides. then I'm planing on doing a little simple engraving. And I still have to shape and install the ramrod eyes. Oh, The horn on the hammer needs a little bit of grip added. It's smooth now.

Later,

~Wes~

 

[DaveH]

Wes,

Mighty fine, looks terrific.

 
DaveH

[spuddevans]

Very nice looking work there, Wes 


Tim

[jgroom]

Wow!    Looking good Wes!! 

Cheers

Jeff

[Rob.Wilson]

  looking mighty fine Wes 


Nice one ,,Rob 

[Powder Keg]

Thanks again for the compliments.

Earlier I found some pictures of guns that had the barrels "coned" after the coning the muzzle was decorated with a little file work. I thought it was pretty neat and wanted to try it out. I first layed out my design with a black sharpie.



I then cut out the nicks with a triangle file. Then I cut out the half circles with a round smooth file.



I had to cut off the smooth ends of the files. This worked out pretty good and I am happy with the result.

Now I didn't cone the barrel on this one. I just filed the decorations into the muzzle. Coning involves using a tappered mandrel that you wrap emery paper around. This is twisted around making the bore, ever so slightly bigger, near the end. This allows the ball and patch to be started easier while loading.

Later,

~Wes~