I am an avid hunter with rifle and Bow and have been hunting for more than 50 years. I have taken big game such as whitetail deer, red deer, elk, moose, buffalo, Russian boar and African Plains game
such as Kudu, Gemsbok, Springbok, Blesbok, and Impala and wrote an ebook entitled African Safari -Rifle and Bow and Arrow on how to prepare for a first safari. Ed is a serious cartridge reloader and ballistics student. He has earned two degrees in science and has written hundreds of outdoor article on hunting with both bow and rifle. He lives in New Hampshire with his wife Susan. He is a Patriot Life Member of the NRA.
My finished Lancaster 50 Caliber Flintlock Rifle Custom Build in a Jacob Dickert Method. Shot extremely well in a recent outing, see the last article with video.
The rifle build took over 100 hours of fitting, filing, carving motif’s, mortise and tenon, inlay of the Patchbox and Star using Tiger Maple and is still under way for details. Look back at my recent articles and you can see the plain maple look hiding the Tiger stripes within. I even performed controlled rusting of the barrel.
The Brass Cricket has been hanging around my fireplace for some time. It took great interest in my work so I kept him in the picture. I just may name the rifle “Cricket” it does chirp louder.
I have enlisted a master engraver to do some additional work.
Below are the first 4 shots ever taken by this brand new Custom 50 Caliber Pennsylvania Lancaster Flintlock Rifle (CIRCA 1775) that I have invested around 100 hours to build based on a Jim Chamber’s Flintlocks Custom package of top end parts.
CHECK IT OUT!!!
The wood is Tiger Maple and was roughed in as I received it. The barrel is a 50 caliber Swamp Barrel (with rifling) where it it thicker on each end and slender in the middle. And the leather sheath I crafted for it.
A steel custom lock has a very well made mechanism and hammer below.
My first attempt is at this is highly successful with lots of fits and starts along this journey back in time during the Revolutionary war where Jacob Dickert a German Immigrant Gun-maker built them for the Continental Army.
My rifle has no stain on the Tiger Maple wood to grace it at this time but I asked myself, CAN IT SHOOT? It sports a 44 inch barrel and stands almost 5 feet tall.
I tested it using FFG black Powder at 80 grains at 25 yards to see if it will even hit paper at the first shot. So here goes…Click on the video.
Honestly, this is my first ever Flintlock Rifle build and you can read my other articles this past June on this Rifle.
Below some of the scroll work I carved just as Jacob Dickert did in 1775. Wait till I stain it!
And the brass patchbox…that needs to be set a bit deeper and has yet to be engraved by me as well. More to see on this patchbox in coming weeks.
I am very pleased with Jim’s Flintlock Product but even more pleased with my success in building an accurate and most beautiful Rifle indeed. In the coming weeks I will stain it and add some additional brass inlay. My 6th great grandfather and many of my Hale Cousins were soldiers in the American Revolution as I and my two sons are society members of The Sons of the American Revolution.
You know, more and more families are reading the Declaration of Independence on this day in honor of our Independence from tyranny and subjugation by a British King in 1776. I am very proud of the changes made by President Donald Trump thus far.
As I read the reasons for the Declaration aloud it became clear to me that America, “We the People” voted in 2016 to stop the oppression and subjugation by the likes of Barrack Obama and those of a would be Hillary Clinton who wanted to force an all powerful government down our throats as if they knew best.
This is the third article I have penned. I do have a few photos to share today on the stock end of this rifle. I have carved one side with a Lancaster school Jacob Dickert C Scroll) and inlaid a pre-cut brass Dickert patchbox on the other side. The barrel and lock should be ready to go on soon as I am having some work done on the lock to make it fit correctly. It is all coming together at about 90 hours of work.
One of the things that I learned of the German Pennsylvania gunsmiths is that they made their own steel screws from scratch. Hence the steel screws used here on this Jacob Dickert Patchbox I inlaid into the tiger maple. If you recall, just the basic custom kit cost me around $1200. Add 120 hours labor to it and you have an heirloom rifle you can hunt with and show off.
Below is the complete build, stain and engrave below. It shot a 6 inch groups at 150 yards with patch and round ball and 90g FFG on its first try. Click on the words below.
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What a shooting machine! We are very excited! Jason will shoot a July Match with it and the Leupold VX-6 7-42 55mm scope. Wow! Pictures soon! We hope to shoot Nosler RDF’s.
Years back I needed a versatile reloadable cartridge for all game, at all distances and all conditions for that someday hunt for brown bear, or a cape buffalo or bison yet can hunt deer too. If you are not and have not dreamed of a brown bear hunt then this article is not for you.
If you have, then I would consider the .375 Ruger to be such a reloadable cartridge in a Ruger M77 Hawkeye rifle made here in New Hampshire. The new African model comes with a removable muzzle brake. Check it out.
It is a hunters gun with a soft less reflective finish that will not spook game. I have killed moose and bison as well as red stag with this cartridge and the African model rifle.
It shoots 1/2 inch groups at full power and 1 inch groups with most all other bullets down to 220 grain and loading’s for deer. With a Pachmayr Recoil pad I can shoot it in my t-shirt while standing as it cuts felt recoil in half. A full power load with 260 grain Nosler AccuBond bullets out of the barrel at 2615 fps produces almost 4000 ft-lbs at the Muzzle and 2500 ft-lbs for Moose at 275 yards at a velocity of 2100 fps for perfect mushrooming. For an elk it can reach 450 yards with 1800 ft-lbs at the bullets mushroom design speed. It is a CXP4 cartridge with CXP2 and 3 capability if handloaded.
If you are traveling far, check that the local shop’s where you hunt have 375 Ruger rounds in case you loose your baggage. It is the main reason for years that hunters used the 375 H&H because it was like dirt, it was everywhere. But the 375 Ruger has made some dents in that theory.
If I was hunting a really large Wild Boar up close, I would use the .375 Ruger as they have been known to charge when wounded and it is very difficult to take away its credit card with those 5 inch tusks sticking out of its mouth.
The Savage® M10 Ashbury Precision Rifle in 6.5 Creedmoor is said to be a great starter long range Competition Rifle with low recoil. It is part of Savages Law Enforcement series. We will put it through its paces. What is clear hear at the get-go is that the Magpul CTR® stock appears too low when a scope is mounted. We recommend adding a cheek rest and we are seeking a Magpul PRS 25 M110 or similar cheek rest stock to add to it ($240.00) or the simple Magpul CTR® MOE® Riser for 20 dollars on line. The Ashbury is also offered in .308 Winchester. Below is a Savage Video on the Accutrigger™
In my previous article, I explained my intent with regards to load testing I wanted to complete in my current economy match rig, which is a Savage 10 repeater action, re-barreled with a Criterion 28” Stainless Select Match bull barrel chambered in .308 Winchester
Nosler supplied us with some brand spanking new .308 caliber 175 grain RDF bullets to review. Nosler intends to make this bullet a premier Competition bullet.
Quote from Nosler website
RDF Bullet – ( Reduced Drag Factor )
Flattest Shooting Match Bullet On The Market
For those wanting to squeeze the most performance from their competition rifle, Nosler’s new RDF (Reduced Drag Factor) match bullet line is the ideal choice.
Nosler’s RDF line was designed from the ground up to provide exceptionally high BCs, which create the flattest trajectory and least wind drift possible. The keys to the RDF’s outstanding performance are Nosler’s meticulously optimized compound ogive and long, drag reducing boattail, which make handloading a snap and create an incredibly sleek form factor. RDF bullets also have the smallest, most consistent meplats of any hollow point match bullet line, so there is no need to point or trim tips.
Highest B.C.’s, smallest meplat, tighter groups – Nosler RDF.
Unquote
I was excited to see if the bullet would fit seamlessly into my current loading diet of Varget powder. The accuracy results were pretty good, but at velocities that were a bit on the slow side unsurprisingly; great bullet, but as the data demonstrates, the bullet/powder combination choice may not be as accurate in my barrel. I’m pretty sure that if I continue to experiment with powders that I would find one that would be extremely accurate with the Nosler RDF with my barrel.
175 Nosler RDF with Hodgdon’s Varget
Charge Weight
Group Size
Velocity
40.0
0.784”
2445
41.0
0.435”
2491
41.5
0.756”
2546
42.0
0.943”
2591
42.5
0.851”
2629
Bullet distance to rifling: 0.015”
Following this first test I decided to back off further from the rifling and at 0.045” off and way off loaded at mag length, and repeat some of the testing.
There was no discernible increase in accuracy. But what was missing here was speed! I needed a faster bullet to buck the wind. I an searching for a combination in my rifle to deliver a faster bullet too.
Testing with other powders is needed to fine tune the bullet and barrel combination and that is getting under way. Case in point, I had a bullet from another top manufacturer and was having a tough time getting sub-moa or better groups when I tried a certain powder it was like magic and the bullets grouped extremely well.
To date I have 60 hours into the build of this so called Custom Kit Rifle and I have made my share of minor headaches but each time I get through a given situation I come out with a smile. The rifle is coming out very well so far but haven’t got a photo for you yet. My appreciation for the German Master Craftsmen of the Pennsylvania Rifle in the 1700’s has grown substantially. I can only imagine the tools they used and I have a large portion of the work done already for me and a video to aid me. So why does it take so long? First, get rid of time. Moving the project faster increases risk of a major mistake. One major mistake can cost me this expensive project. Patience is a virtue I must master here along with creating and learning things that help improve your work. If you are skilled at working in a wood shop or metal shop then this project will be much easier. Things I have learned include inlay of brass to wood. I have not mastered it just learned it. Fitting and pinning down a barrel to 44 inches of wood when the barrel is thicker on each end and thinner in the middle was a huge undertaking as I could have easily destroyed the wood by scraping too much off or a slip of the chisel. But I didn’t. Getting the barrel in the right position for the lock assembly and where the touchhole should be was a learning process for sure. Shortly I will be adding the lock and its thru bolts and then inlaying the patchbox and release mechanism. Then I can show pictures of progress. Still a long way to go…
