So it's been a little bit since my last rifle build I'm starting to gather and looking for parts to match my budget . I've found a gentleman that has a 45 cal 7/8" barrel from a old markwell arms kit it's unfired and 33.5" long .Ive never heard of markwell arms but from a little googling I assume it's a spainish import barrel ? Price is decent at 40 bucks so is there any concerns or bad things they are known for ?
Thanks , Tim
markwell arms were`nt the greatest , but like cva the barrels were pretty decent , if the bore is in good shape $40 aint a bad price , I`d go for it !
Owner said it was never fired so bore should be ok waiting to hear back from him about if it has a regular drum or a snail type breach plug The only pic I seen is not real good I can only see a short tang on it . Have any idea what the twist may be ?
Tim
not sure , I believe they were one turn in 60 inches , good for round ball ! but not certain !
Ok I have one more question about percussion barrels not so much the barrel but the rightlock for this barrel . Now I've been looking at locks and most are with a half hole in different directions for a regular drum , so what lock is correct for one of these snail drums ? Can any lock be made to work or what should I be looking for in a new or used lock ?
A proper lockplate will be Case Hardened. It will not tool or file gracefully. You might be able to grind it SLOWLY and CAREFULLY, but your best bet would the proper lock that came with it. I see them on eBay fairly frequently. You might also give L&R Locks a call and see if one of their RPL Locks will work for you.
http://lr-rpl.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=36&Itemid=62
They aren't cheap, but they are a well made lock, far better than what came on the rifle from the factory.
Others may have more options.
Actually, not to be contrary, but locks such as those by L&R have mild steel plates and a number of models aren't cut for a drum or a snail, to allow custom fitting in cases like this. Not sure that fitting a $90-$100 lock to a $40 barrel will appeal to everyone, but it's relatively easy to do.
Markwell barrels are the same manufacturer and general quality as CVA. You can find the same basic barrel marked CVA, Traditions, Jukar, Dikar, Galef and Sons, Markwell, and doubtless several other "makers" who were actually just distributors who ordered the guns with their stampings on the barrels. They'll be the same 7/8" diameter as the CVA Kentucky barrels. All the barrels I've seen, of this general type, have 1-48" rifling, but this doesn't mean that you won't find one with 1-66" twist. CVA and Traditions have both offered some of their .50 caliber models with 1-66" twist, so though I doubt the early .45 barrels would be cut that way the possibility does exist.
You do have the option of replacing the breechplug, since IIRC the ones on the Markwell and similar barrels are an odd sort-of snail shape. Since the threads are metric, some finer or coarser variation of 16mm I believe (the actual thread pitch can vary by the original gun's distributor and model), you can't substitute a commercial 5/8-18 breechplug (the largest thread diameter available for a 7/8" barrel), but what you can do is hack off the threaded-hole portion of the barrel breech, and drill and tap for the new plug -- or have the work done by a gunsmith or machinist if you're not comfortable performing a process that can potentially maim or kill the person firing the rifle if something isn't done right. I recently bought a barrel similar to yours, marked "Galef and Son", same original manufacturer, probably the same breechplug, and modified it just as I've described. This allows the use of a conventional 1/2" drum-and-nipple setup and therefore the use of a plain, affordable, easily-found CVA percussion lock.