Trapdoor Rifles

Her is a link to a video on YouTube about the history of the 1865 Allin conversion.
How many statements can you find that are incorrect??
Hey Dick, your book is featured in this one
https://youtu.be/odla6E1UfnQ?si=Z0NCiceUDJhP5PJr

Kinda long-winded, but I didn't see anything REALLY bad - looking forward to the upcoming series. I sent him an email - we'll see what comes of it.

I did note that NO (at least no apparent) effort was taken when loading the 1865. Perhaps it has been reworked to center fire?

Had to wince a bit at "Homser" (he apparently has mild dyslexia) but I've heard worse . . . and, he DID compliment the books, which is what really counts after all.

I found it interesting. Even though I have bumped into a lot of the info through the years, he strung it together nicely. I was looking at my own 1865 as he talked (also a cadet) and was happy to find out that mine wasn't missing a latch spring after all--it just never had one. His comment on the over-thick CW lockplates touched on thoughts that had occurred to me years ago, but I assumed that the thickness was to provide more screw thread bearing in a device that used very heavy springs for reliable functioning.

I watched the first 35 minutes. For a novice, or someone of the black rifle persuasion who knows nothing about trapdoors and how we got there, it is a viewable presentation. There are some errors, minor or major, but the video deserves at least a C+ or B- for effort. It would be nicer if the images were higher quality and if he had examples of the guns he was talking about, instead of having to rely on reproductions, or in the case of the M1861 Springfield some other guy with scant information.

But, it is FREE, and he has invested a lot of time and effort in the script, props, and production of a long video. He has a large following of gun or history enthusiasts who are learning something to get started in appreciation of antique arms, so while I would not nominate it for any Academy Awards, I do applaud his initiative and hard work putting together an interesting historical narrative, covering a pretty long period of Ordnance Department history. Amateurs such as this contribute a lot to the history, living history and collecting communities, perhaps not perfection, but it will do more good than a perfect film which is never made or seen by anyone.

Perhaps people who watch that will become followers of Ian McCollum's Forgotten Weapons channel, or decide to buy some books to learn more. (I wold recommend Al Frasca's definitive two volumes, along with Dick Hosmer's two excellent smaller books. And, that they might learn from this forum, and the wealth of great info on the main Trapdoor Collectors site at https://www.armscollectors.com/trapdoor/

I will try to watch some of the rest of his series (I'm busy, and cannot fit 1.5 hour videos into my schedule) and maybe I will like those better.

So, thanks for telling us about these.

If you watch carefully on the first sequence loading the M1865 after he inserts the cartridge, he does twist it a bit with his thumb and you can see the .22 rimfire on the edge of the cartridge.

Dick Hosmer wrote: ↑Sun Feb 04, 2024 2:26 am Kinda long-winded, but I didn't see anything REALLY bad - looking forward to the upcoming series. I sent him an email - we'll see what comes of it.

I did note that NO (at least no apparent) effort was taken when loading the 1865. Perhaps it has been reworked to center fire?

Had to wince a bit at "Homser" (he apparently has mild dyslexia) but I've heard worse . . . and, he DID compliment the books, which is what really counts after all.

I believe they have shot their rifle quite a bit more than I Dick . I made around 40 cases, which took a while and have another box of 28 gauge brass on hand to make more. I noticed a red mark on some of the rounds they used which probably help line up the primer?? Rather than looking at the primer to load he was using the red mark to line the primer at 12 o’clock.
Also my firing pin is worn and I cannot change it. The retaining screw has broken off down inside the breech block so only half the screw comes out preventing me from removing the old firing pin.
I checked all the available parts dealers and nobody has one. Just like those two little screws that hold the ejector and ejector arm they have gone the way of the dinosaurs.
I purchased my 1st Allin from Al and have read all the information in his books and news letters. It has the square cut out on the breech block which makes it an early rifle along with no milling slot on the back of the lock. The hammer has the short nose which according to Al is the second type, the video states the opposite?
My rear sight is screwed on and just a hair out of line with the breech block strap. I believe at some point the sight had fallen off and then reattached with the sight screw?? I may have it soft soldered on in line as should be.
I watched the whole video and from what I was taught or read about there were a couple descriptions that didn’t seem correct to me, the hammer length for one.
The minie ball description seemed odd to me so I looked up the original minie ball and sure enough there it was, a picture of an original with the iron plug. Another fact that I was taught incorrectly or as it was taught to my teacher
I only use 30 grains of black powder in my loads along with some cream of wheat as filler, they however stated using 60 grains. I’m sure that the 22 blank adds more pressure than a standard large rifle primer so I’d be a little reluctant to use the full charge.
All in all a decent video, I would have enjoyed more shooting though

Just out of curiosity I filed a case with 60 grains of 2f swiss black powder. The powder just about fills the case and since there are no dies available to compress the powder or seat the soft lead bullets I have no idea how they used a full charge??
I compress the bullet slightly in my press using a 28 gauge shell holder that I milled out a slot so that the primer is not on the shell holder while compressing the bullet against the bottom of the turret.
I've contacted a couple specialty die manufacturers to possibly have a die made to just seat the bullet with a slight crimp but have had no luck.
I have altered an old flaring die to slightly crimp the bullet for now.
This is a case filed with 60 grains.