Milsurp After Hours

Kabul Arsenal Martini-Henry with a front band from a Russian Tula 1808 musket (?)
Offered for sale at €360 + €11 postage. I made a ridicules offer and he agreed. The cheques in the post!

That's a gem, Duncan.

I hope that you keep the Tula fitting on it, it's a piece of history; not a big piece but a piece none the less

It arrived today. It's in shit order but the breech works and it cocks and fires..................The brass forend is not a Tula original but a rough brass casting but it is solid!

Start stripping it tomorrow if I can drift the pins out!

OK, here are the pictures of the beastie in pieces..........Mainly for blackisler






















All the metal parts, except the barrel, are currently soaking in Ballistol. I am trying to get a descent photograph of the riffling so watch this space

Having just received my new USB Endoscope in the post I have tried it on the barrel of the Afghan M-H.......
The images speak for themselves including the last 2 which show that my barrel has also been extended Robert.







Better images to come I hope in the future when I have sussed this bit of kit out.

At least there were no polyps.

You can't kid me, Duncan.
That's the inside of a powerhouse chimney with specially laid bricks to make the smoke spiral out as it rises in the morning air.

Duncan

That's a fantastic rifle with a great history attached to it.
I wish I had the time to do things like that.
Until then I'll just read your posts.
Thanks for sharing the pictures.

Met vriendelijke groet,

Martin

Well, I had to start on it sometime and this afternoon in the workshop I was just finishing a repair to an old tripod (Viewing Scope / Chronie for the use of ) when I heard this little voice saying "What about me, when are you going to look at me"!

So I thought I would make a start................

I steam cleaned the crud off the action housing and then started on the rust. Ballistol + wire wool + fine emery cloth. Looks good now. I then unscrewed the barrel which was easy and looked at the action frame. It's distorted on one side and this makes the barrel sit at an angle. There are a lot of hammer marks on the metal so it was not an 'engineered' fit!

I will produce some pics once the parts are clean but it certainly won't shoot any live ammo again!

And here they are. You can probably see distortion in the action housing which makes the barrel cant to the left. It can be seen in the first page of pictures which I took at the initial strip down.