Restore a TC Hawken

[CaptainVane]

Hello all,
Loking for a little help. I have Thompson Center .50 flintlock hawken that i purchased in 1974. Shot thousand of rounds thru it. It was my most prized possession.
Had a house fire in late 2014, the rifle was in another room from main fire so its still solid. But the varnish on stock bubbled up and the browning peeled off the barrel.
I cant find anyone that can work the wood or re-brown the barrel.
Yes i can buy another off gun sites, but it wouldnt be mine.
Can anyone point me to a black powder gunsmith/ restorer on the east coast?

 

[The Saint]

Don't think you'll have much on a local level, honestly. David Stavlo with Lodgewood Mfg is the best I know of, and all the above-my-head stuff goes to him. He specializes in true antiques...and is in WI.

 

[Sticky]

Many decades ago I built my first firearm, a T/C Hawken from a kit that a buddy of mine and I took on as a challenge one summer. He did his with a round barrel and blued the barrel, I did mine with an octagonal barrel and browned it. We both fitted and finished the stocks and to be honest, it was not hard to do at all. You might consider redoing it yourself if you can't find someone else to take it on. I still have that Hawken rifle, though I retired it years ago (it is a caplock, not a flintlock).

 

[CaptainVane]

Many decades ago I built my first firearm, a T/C Hawken from a kit that a buddy of mine and I took on as a challenge one summer. He did his with a round barrel and blued the barrel, I did mine with an octagonal barrel and browned it. We both fitted and finished the stocks and to be honest, it was not hard to do at all. You might consider redoing it yourself if you can't find someone else to take it on. I still have that Hawken rifle, though I retired it years ago (it is a caplock, not a flintlock).

Thx, I built a Kentucky long from a kit many years ago. Couple questions
Best way to remove the bubbled varnish from stock? The wood and stain underneath are fine.
The original brown on barrel is peeling from the heat from fire. Best way to strip it all off to re-brown?
If i can remove the old, I know I can restore myself. (Pretty sure, anyway).

 

[John from MD]

Take a drive up to this place and have a talk with the store owner. They can usually put you in touch with someone who can refinish your rifle. They don't have a website.

Dixon Muzzleloading Shop | Kempton PA

Dixon Muzzleloading Shop, Kempton, Pennsylvania. 4,901 likes · 14 talking about this · 568 were here. Traditional Muzzleloading Shop

www.facebook.com

 

[CaptainVane]

Take a drive up to this place and have a talk with the store owner. They can usually put you in touch with someone who can refinish your rifle. They don't have a website.

Dixon Muzzleloading Shop | Kempton PA

Dixon Muzzleloading Shop, Kempton, Pennsylvania. 4,901 likes · 14 talking about this · 568 were here. Traditional Muzzleloading Shop

www.facebook.com

Thank you, great tip, I will go there.

 

[Sticky]

Thx, I built a Kentucky long from a kit many years ago. Couple questions
Best way to remove the bubbled varnish from stock? The wood and stain underneath are fine.
The original brown on barrel is peeling from the heat from fire. Best way to strip it all off to re-brown?
If i can remove the old, I know I can restore myself. (Pretty sure, anyway).

I did a little research and it seems you have a couple of options for removing the browning. Some just take a block of wood baked 220 grit sandpaper to it so as not to round the edges of the flats, some use naval jelly, let it soak for a few minutes and rinse with cold water and some suggest using Birchwood Casey rust and bluing remover.

The varnish will be a little more involved, I think. I didn't use any on my build, I just mixed up an oil/stain mixture (I don't remember exactly, I'd have to look back (that was over 40yrs ago) and applied several hand rubbed coats. It came out looking like a varnish finish in the end, but I used no overcoat on it at all. I would likely take it down to bare wood, or close to it and refinish the entire wood stock if it were me. You will likely have to at least sand down or strip off the old varnish, which will likely affect the stain under it to some degree. Paint stripper 'may' take off the varnish without removing the stain, but I have never tried that.

 

[Gordon]

Can you send or post some photos of your stock. The barrel is easy to refinish.

 

[CaptainVane]

Will try to post pics tomorrow.

 

[B-9]

Hello all,
Loking for a little help. I have Thompson Center .50 flintlock hawken that i purchased in 1974. Shot thousand of rounds thru it. It was my most prized possession.
Had a house fire in late 2014, the rifle was in another room from main fire so its still solid. But the varnish on stock bubbled up and the browning peeled off the barrel.
I cant find anyone that can work the wood or re-brown the barrel.
Yes i can buy another off gun sites, but it wouldnt be mine.
Can anyone point me to a black powder gunsmith/ restorer on the east coast?

Good Afternoon Capt,
I’m new here and recognized you post is

Hello all,
Loking for a little help. I have Thompson Center .50 flintlock hawken that i purchased in 1974. Shot thousand of rounds thru it. It was my most prized possession.
Had a house fire in late 2014, the rifle was in another room from main fire so its still solid. But the varnish on stock bubbled up and the browning peeled off the barrel.
I cant find anyone that can work the wood or re-brown the barrel.
Yes i can buy another off gun sites, but it wouldnt be mine.
Can anyone point me to a black powder gunsmith/ restorer on the east coast?

Good Afternoon Capt,
I’m new here and realize your post is a year old. If you would like to reach out to me I may be able to help you with your TC repair.
B-9