11 August 2020

A White Elephant

Marv gave me an old caplock rifle his sister had abandoned at his old house.

It's an FIE made "short" Kentucky rifle.

Something we're wondering is what size nipple wrench to get.

I sure hope it's #11, because that's all anyone appears to sell.

For most things you do a search and can find drawings.

Not nipples.

Mine measures 0.210" across the flats.  What size nipple wrench fits that?

Marv found one of his wrenches and it's just 0.180".  What size nipple is that?
Posted by Angus McThag at 12:30
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5 comments:

  1. Therefore11 August, 2020 19:10

    I solved that problem by making my own nipple wrench. Not pretty but it worked. Then I measured the threads and got back a nominal size. Then it was easy to find the right replacement nipple.

    Post a picture of the nipple. I need the size of the nipple, size across the flats, the size not across the flats.

    Method, drill a hole in a rod big enough for the nipple to fit into. Turn to same diameter as the it side of the nipple or to the size of the opening that the nipple is recessed in. Finally mill a slot for the flats, add a cross hole for leverage.

    Last time I did this I just used plyers to hold the wrench as I removed the nipples.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Angus McThag11 August, 2020 19:27

      I contacted a friend who does muzzle-loaders in a big way and he assures me that it's a #11 nipple on there.

      He also says that if it's not a #11 then rip it out however I can make it turn, measure the threads and put a #11 in the hole and never worry about this again.

      Delete
    2. SofwareJanitor12 August, 2020 11:42

      I'm not an expert on muzzle-loaders, but I would agree with that advice. Even without the right wrench it is probably possible to get the existing nipple out without damaging it if you really want to as previously mentioned. If not just bubba it and use vice grips or something. Have you tried putting a #11 cap on it to see if it fits? I've got a couple of cap & ball revolvers and the wife has an inline muzzle loader. Because of that I have some #10 & #11 caps around, although like many, the inline muzzle loader uses shotshell caps. If you're planning to go with #11 caps, you might just buy a pack and see what happens.

      Delete
  2. Therefore11 August, 2020 22:47

    Let me know if you need a custom wrench

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Angus McThag12 August, 2020 00:17

      Will do! I have my eyes crossed that a normal #11 will do the deed.

      Delete

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