homebrew blackpowder to cartridge conversion

[thunderchicken]

Hello All.

I am looking forward to being a member of this forum.

I am a welder by trade and an amateur home gunsmith , my main interest is single action pistols, lever action rifles and double barrel shotguns.

I recently bought 2 1851 navy copies very cheap both need a lot of cosmetic work and small parts replaced, I have researched conversions online and only find the commercial offered kits. I found one item while doing a pattern search but no real tech to try my own.


I have an Idea and would like input to see if it is possible and to let me know if I'm missing any steps.

Here is what I have 2, 36 cal BP revolvers, a 22lr barrel from an old Stevens single shot rifle, a metal shop and a friend with a milling machine.

I am thinking if I drill out the BP barrel and cylinder to say .380 (cylinder is at current .376) then have the old 22 barrel milled to fit as an insert into the BP barrel and cylinder. Weld them in place, then do the finishing touches such as modding the hammer to rimfire, etc etc. After all is said and done I am thinking I would have a nice 22 lr 1851 pistol.

Would I have to remove the barrelling from the sections of barrel I would be using in the cylinder, if yes would it just be easier to use round stock and millet to fit ?

I hope this is worded right, I know in my cluttered little mind what I'm thinking and wanting to do and hope I have given enough info for commenting back on.

Thanks and I look forward to being here on The Forum

[crazywhiteguy]

As long as you have a lathe available, that throws all your problems with alignment out the window. To change the cylinder size, you would need to drill or machine a piece of round stock to .03" smaller than the cartridge then use a reamer to give it the appropriate size and needed taper. Then you cut the piece about 2mm longer than the cylinder, face it off to be 1mm longer but make sure its not less. Im not sure the diameter you'll need for a tight fit but I assume you can measure and sand until its near perfect. the 1mm extra on length is to make the welding easier Which you may not need since your a welder by trade. I suck at welding, so I use every trick In the book to make it look better than it really is.

I cant really help much with the barrel. I could never afford (or legally purchase) anything other than hydraulic tube for barrels.:(

I think you mean rifling instead of barreling. You could simple turn down the 22 barrel to .01 less than the diameter of the barrel ID. This would give let you just drop the 22 barrel in and melt solder in the cracks to seal it.

How I helped!

[sbovisjb1]

drill, ream, rifle. I believe there was a video on here at one point, showing you how to do it at home using simple equipment.

[thunderchicken]

Thanks for the info, I am hoping to try this project during my vacation. In December. So all the info I can get between now and then should make this a smooth project .

Again Thank You.

[festergrump]

drill, ream, rifle. I believe there was a video on here at one point, showing you how to do it at home using simple equipment.

Why even open your mouth? :rolleyes:

Thanks for the info , I am hoping to try this project during my vacation . in december . So all the info I can get between now and then should make this a smooth project .

I hope the info you have now is really enough to get you started, as if your grammar does not improve greatly, I suspect you will not be a member here at RS for that long.

Giving you the generous benefit of the doubt that you will attempt this conversion, maybe I can help in some way.

First off, if you are not choosey as to what caliber your converted revolvers will be, the existing barrel of the .36 navies you have would suffice for the .38 special round, providing you never shoot any jacketed bullet. 100% soft lead only. That may help alot towards your conversion endevours.

I don't have an 1851 Colt example right in front of me, so I cannot mic the chambers of the cylinder to see how a .38 spl casing would fit if you simply drilled out the back, reamed, and added a dot of weld to the hammer to strike the centerfire primer. Besides, different makers means differences in the measurements (Pedersoli, F. Pietta, Uberti, Palmetto, etc).

In the chance this will not work (Drilling out the cylinder for a sleeve of this caliber seems like it may not leave enough "meat" between chambers to work well), so long as you have the existing BP cylinder handy as a model and access to a lathe, milling machine, and rotary indexing vise for your drillpress, making a new cylinder is not as difficult as you might imagine after some trial and error. You'll want to use a steel high in carbon content to be able to harden it after completed.

If a .22LR is your ultimate goal as you suggest, the process will be a bit more involved with the barrel but MUCH less so with the cylinder. The barrel you should either ream out the rifling and pressfit a new barrel liner in with a shop press or leave the rifling and use a very powerful compound glue like JB Weld to hold it into place. A weld at the crown and where the sleeve almost engages the cylinder that could be turned to perfection would be very good for longevity.

A good source for barrel sleeves HERE (http://www.trackofthewolf.com/(S(gb45le55x0hqgbrgf1c2ev45))/categories/tableList.aspx?catID=14&subID=142&styleID=483). Don't forget to chamfer the rearmost into some sort of forcing cone.

As for the cylinder, drill out the ass end (bit centered from the front), ream, and press fit your newly lathe turned "chamber sleeves" into each one then rework your hammer to strike the rim of an indexed round.

My disclaimer here is that I have never done this. This is all speculation on my part as I have no 1851 model here to look at, which would be very helpful. I do have an exploded view of this model, though it shows no measurements. I'll post it here anyway for anyone who may like to see it.

Personally, I favor the 1858 Remington due to the topstrap support of the frame and the ability to swap cylinders with relative ease and speed. That and I really hate the Colt's wedge holding the damn thing together. Seems weak in design to me. But, I suppose I'd work with what's on hand, like you.

Good luck.