Cas City Forum Hall & CAS-L
Special Interests - Groups & Societies => The Barracks => Topic started by: LongWalker on December 17, 2023, 11:15:59 AM
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Whilst schlepping around the Holdrege gunshow last weekend, I was walking around with my trapdoor as trade bait. Rumor was someone there had an 1866 and I was hoping to draw him out and maybe arrange a swap. Anyhow, as usual, the Saturday crowd was rather . . . crowded. I got the bright idea that bayonet would be nice for clearing a path about the same time a friend said there were some bayonets on the table behind him, and the predictable happened.
I picked up a decent bayonet in a US marked scabbard. Unfortunately, the bayonet only goes on to the first turn: I'm not able to rotate it into place--and who wants to use a loose bayonet for crowd control? Any suggestions for what I should/shouldn't do while getting it to go into place?
Thanks,
Jim
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With the fear of stating the obvious I would suggest to take a file to the inside of the bayonet's socket, rather than to the outside of the rifle's barrel...? 8)
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Brake Cylinder Hone
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Was the bayonet a repro?
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Is the bayonet itself 'US' marked?
If not, a number of foreign bayonets were triangular bladed, so look carefully for proof marks at the 'J' bend of the piece - pretty much all will fit the issue scabbard and look 'right' until one tried to fix it to the barrel.
Scouts Out!
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The bayonet is US marked on the bend of the shank, and appears to be the correct pattern and dimensions.
My trapdoor is a shooter that was previously "refinished" by an idiot (nicest way I can describe whoever did it). Aside from the sanded stock and poly finish, the barrel was spray painted. . . . On the bright side, it has my preferred rear sight, shoots very nicely, and was fairly priced for the condition.
I used steel wool to remove the paint around the muzzle. While the bayonet still doesn't turn and slot into place, the "fit" feels much better going that far. I think my next step will be to go over rifle barrel and the slot in the bayonet with a magnifying glass looking for any burrs or dents that might be impeding the fit. If need be I can make a hone and ream out the bayonet a couple .001" but I'd rather avoid that.
Maybe I can even get around to re-bluing the barrel this winter.
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20 years or so ago I bought some paki import trapdoor bayonets for the living history program at Fort Hartsuff. Looking at them from the outside they were a dead ringer for an original, but they were tight on the barrel and the slot for the sight base just wasn't big enough. I worked on them with a file and got them to turn into place. That's why I asked if they could be repros. As I recall, about the only visual indication that the quality was subpar was the locking ring. It was loose and looked "off".