Update: Trio of 130+YO rifles

[epc308]

I'm putting 3 old single shots back to work with newly lined barrels. Last weekend I drilled 82" of barrel steel to prepare for the liners, then crowned them all Monday afternoon.
First and second pictures, top to bottom:
Marlin Ballard, 1889(?), Winchester LowWall, 1889, Remington #3, commonly known as the Hepburn, 1884(?)
The Ballard and Winchester looked like sewer pipes, the Hepburn wasn't correct to it's markings.
The Ballard was originally 32 Long, either CF or RF, with a reversible firing pin. It will be 32 S&W Long, a low pressure round suitable for it's cast frame.
The LowWall was 32 RF. I converted the breechblock to CF. It will be a 32-20WCF.
The Hepburn was originally 32-40Win, but had been rebored, rerifled, and rechambered sometime in the past to 33-40. No dies available based on the chamber cast and the odd bullet size(.338) made it a candidate for a liner so things match. It will be
32-40Win once again.
3rd picture, L-R, Hepburn, LowWall, Ballard
Next up, renting reamers.

 

[ronsatspokane]

Being a fan of Low and High Walls (and rolling blocks for that matter), love it. Keep updating the thread as you make progress.

 

[butchlambert]

Looks great! I have a Rolling Block in 32 20. It is a reline and shoots great.

 

[epc308]

Being a fan of Low and High Walls (and rolling blocks for that matter), love it. Keep updating the thread as you make progress.

I will definitely update as things progress. All 3 will stay in their current condition, warts and all. The Hepburn was pretty nice when I got it. It has new case colors, with an older rust blue on the barrel that's turning plum color in the right light. Not sure if the wood has been refinished or not. If so, it was in the past too.
I feel I am but the a temporary owner of these pieces of history. Anything short of full tilt restoration demeans the life they have had, and usually doesn't really help in the looks department. I have a full size RB that got a full on resto. That one taught me that even doing the work myself, I didn't save any $$. I have a #2 RB that got a liner and some love, but only enough to make it look better than when it came out of a cellar. This will bump me up to 2 LowWalls and one HighWall, along with my other miscellaneous single shots.

 

[epc308]

Looks great! I have a Rolling Block in 32 20. It is a reline and shoots great.

Done correctly, relined barrels will shoot as good as, and many times better than, when new. Certainly better than the corrugated driveway pipe 2 of them had. The liners I use from TJ's in Kentucky are hammer forged 4140CM steel that shine like new money inside.

 

[Catgunguy]

Thank you for the post and the pictures. It is good to see that they will have a good and long life.

 

[Alguapo]

Nice. What a great project.

 

[velocette]

I did the same with an 1885 (+/-) Whitney rolling block rifle originally chambered in .38 CFC.
Its bore was another sewer pipe. Had it relined in .32-20 WCF. Its a positive delight to shoot, almost no recoil or muzzle blast & 2" accuracy at 100 yds with decent ammo.

 

[epc308]

I did the same with an 1885 (+/-) Whitney rolling block rifle originally chambered in .38 CFC.
Its bore was another sewer pipe. Had it relined in .32-20 WCF. Its a positive delight to shoot, almost no recoil or muzzle blast & 2" accuracy at 100 yds with decent ammo.View attachment 1256026

What an outstanding firearm! I have a Marlin 1894CL in 32-20. It’s much lighter than your roller and still doesn’t have much recoil. I just had a new 32 caliber, 120g bullet mold from LBT delivered Friday for the Marlin, LowWall, and the Ballard. With any luck, it will work well for all 3. If that’s too much weight for the low power Ballard, I have an 98g that should do the trick. The Ballard and LowWall will both have tang sights, so I’m hoping for good accuracy, if my eyes do their part.

 

[velocette]

epc308, With my handloading, I have had great success using Accurate 1680 for lead and jacketed (pistol) bullets. 12.0 grains with Missouri 110 gr coated lead bullet.
I'd be interested in learning how your rifle likes the 120 gr bullets.

Roger

 

[snert]

Would love to see them when done

 

[epc308]

Would love to see them when done

I will post pictures as things progress. The current delay is waiting on reamers. I was told the 32-20 should be here today. The same folks said their 32-40 was buggered up, so they ordered a new one. No telling how long that might take. A friend has a 32 HR mag reamer I can use for the 32S&W Long. I’ll see him this coming Wednesday.

 

[epc308]

Update- the 32-20 and 32-40 reamers arrived Friday. I setup and chambered the LowWall that afternoon. Yesterday evening I cut the extractor slots in the liner and modified the extractor for the new cartridge. Finished assembly at 10PM last night.
132 year old Winchester Single Shot, 32-20WCF.
The sight is a Lyman 1A with a replacement m47 windage adjustable stem. Took it to the range today with some ancient WW white box ammo. That stuff shoots filthy, lots of unburned powder even with 26” of barrel.

 

[epc308]

The ammo is so old it has corrosion, but it wiped right off. Notice the lead has turned chalky. I’m hoping, based on the target, that things should definitely get better once is has the correct load.

 

[velocette]

epc308
Send me your mailing address via PM. I'll send you a sampling of the .32 bullets I had good success with and the load data.

Roger

 

[velocette]

Epc, go here for a lot of information on reloading the .32-20.
www.leverguns.com/articles/paco/3220wcf.htm
Bullet samples in the mail.

 

[epc308]

Epc, go here for a lot of information on reloading the .32-20.
www.leverguns.com/articles/paco/3220wcf.htm
Bullet samples in the mail.

Thanks for the link. After reading, I’m pretty sure I’ve seen it at some point. In addition to the LowWall, I have a Marlin 32-20CL I picked up in January. It came with some loaded ammo. 100g XTP on top of 13.4g of 4227. That one made a ragged hole an inch across for 10 shots at 25yds Sunday morning. My only regret is waiting so long to play with this caliber, as it has turned out to be a ton of fun.