Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 Posted July 16 Posted July 16 A couple of months ago I did a little report on the Henry .327 rifle. After a tune-up and throwing away some parts I was, and continue to be, amazed at how well it works. I prefer tuned 73s with short strokes and remembered I had converted a Ubert 73 rifle to .32 about 20 years ago. It ran but not as well as I hoped so I dismantled it and used some of the parts in another project. I decided to dig out the barrel and some other parts and try again. Unfortunately I had cut off the chamber area so I would have to cut new threads on the barrel. I had sold my old lathe and only have an 80 year old 9" Logan right now. I immediately had a problem as the barrel was a little too big for the through hole in the headstock. I had to shorten the barrel to 16 1/2" to get it to fit into a four jaw chuck and a dead center mounted in the tailstock. It just barely fit. Lots of parts had to be modified or made new. Here is a photo showing some of the parts. Starting at the top. The dovetail for the fore end cap had to be recut 3" forward. The chamber section I had cut off the original experimental .32 barrel 20 years ago. (Why I did this I cannot remember.) An adapter to go from a Uberti mag tube down to an old Marlin mag tube. The bolt had to be modified. A new follower made. The shortened barrel with new threads. The rear sight dovetail had to be moved forward and the old one filled. The carrier had to have a piece of brass tube soldered in and machined to .32 size. It also had to be shortened. The Marlin mag tube and a piece of Uberti tube beneath it. The bolt had to be turned down and the extractor and bottom tab moved to fit the .32. .357 bolt on the left, .32 on the right. The 20 year old carrier shortened compared to a stock carrier. A piece of Uberti tube was green loctited to the Marlin tube to fit the barrel hanger. A spacer had to be machined to take up the space left by the shortened carrier. The finished rifle. It seems to cycle fine and the 16 1/2" barrel actually makes for a well balanced rifle. I am gathering parts to build a second 73 but using a carbine barrel to lighten it a bit. 25 4 Quote
Boggus Deal #64218 Posted July 16 Posted July 16 You can also take quite a bit of weight out of the barrel under the forearm. Quote
El Sobrante Kid Posted July 16 Posted July 16 Larsen, a technical question for you; when you cut the threads on the bbl, do you cut to specific depth spec., or do you cut until the receiver fits "just right"? Thx. Very Nice Work! Quote
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 Posted July 16 Author Posted July 16 15 minutes ago, El Sobrante Kid said: when you cut the threads on the bbl, do you cut to specific depth spec., or do you cut until the receiver fits "just right"? There are charts showing what the thread depth should be and there are gauges for measuring thread depth. In this case I just used the receiver as the thread gauge and made passes on the theads until the receiver fit "just right". 1 Quote
El Sobrante Kid Posted July 16 Posted July 16 9 minutes ago, Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 said: There are charts showing what the thread depth should be and there are gauges for measuring thread depth. In this case I just used the receiver as the thread gauge and made passes on the theads until the receiver fit "just right". LOL, yep, that is the distinct benefit of having both parts of a threaded connection, in your hand. Quote
Colorado Coffinmaker Posted July 16 Posted July 16 Larsen!! Most KOOL indeed!! I happen to be a card carrying poster kid for Trappers. Mine are all either 44s or 45s. I built my 44s out of spite. Just had to have a .44 Trapper (or two). My "other" trappers are .45s. A '73, a 16 inch Henry (Kings Patent Gate), another 16 Inch Henry, Kings Patent Gate and a Carrier for C45S and a lonesome 18-n-half Carbine. I DO like short rifles. I agree, they balance exceedingly well. 1 Quote
Kid Rich Posted July 17 Posted July 17 The only question I have for you Larsen. What did you do in the afternoon? kR 3 1 Quote
Silver Creek Jack Posted July 17 Posted July 17 That’s some impressive work there Larson! Well done! Quote
High Spade Mikey Wilson Posted July 17 Posted July 17 Quite impressive! You did a fantastic job..... Quote
Chancy Shot, SASS #67163 Posted July 19 Posted July 19 I work in wood and have built furniture that was much more expensive in time and money than what I could have bought in a good furniture store. However, I have exactly what I want for that spot in my house. You now have exactly the rifle you wanted. I'm a little curious as to the time and money went into your project. Chancy Quote
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 Posted July 21 Author Posted July 21 Tried it in two matches. Worked flawlessly and has one HUGE advantage over the Henry. The Henry throws all the brass out the windows of the props. On many stages I get zero back. The 73 ejects all the cases backwards so I get them all back. 3 Quote
Colorado Coffinmaker Posted July 22 Posted July 22 Aw Heck Larsen!! Just quit shooting THROUGH the windows. Simple, Yes!! Quote
DeaconKC Posted July 24 Posted July 24 Most impressive Sir! Are you able to fit 10 in the abbreviated tube or did I miss that? Quote
Larsen E. Pettifogger, SASS #32933 Posted July 24 Author Posted July 24 .32 H&R is shorter than .38 Special so 10 fit with no problem. 2 Quote
Texas Red Posted July 24 Posted July 24 Your ingenuity and workmanship never cease to amaze me.... Regards Texas Red Quote
Kid Rich Posted July 25 Posted July 25 Are these goin to be on the market in the near future Larsen? If they are put my name on the list. kR Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.