Got my TC Renegade!

[exarcher]

I bought a 54 cal Renegade last week & it came in Tuesday.. I think it was late 80's model?? serial #111XXX. The Crown looks good as new.. Of course it needed some loving care.. The nipple was almost carbon welded in place.. I finally got it off & ran a 1/4x28 tap in a couple times to clean up the threads & cut the black fouling out.. I then installed an Ampco nipple.. The barrel was fouled quite a bit.. I went to work on it & after a while the problem revealed itself... it was plastic lined!! I plugged the nipple & filled the barrel with acetone & couple hours later poured all the plastic fouling out.. This left a small streak of lead which come out pretty easy. Scoping the barrel,, it looks excellent now! Bright and shiny, absolutely No rust or pitting. Next, I took off the lock & trigger which needed a good bath. Crud fell on the bench as i removed the lock.... Scrubbed with warm water & soapy toothbrush. (Just like in the Idaholewis video) The set trigger group looked parkerized... but the toothbrush & soap brought it back to normal, The adjustment screw is so tight i'm afraid to mess with it for fear of breaking it off.. It is plenty light already, hopefully it won't be a problem... The buttstock actually is attractive with a bit of figure, (it has a few small dents expected in a probably 35+yr old rifle... It has some freckling towards the end of the barrel (on outside) which is not noticeable from a few feet away.. Whomever had it "tried" to remove the breech plug & boogered both the plug and barrel.. Black sharpee hides this pretty well and shouldn't hurt performance. Overall i'm very pleased with the rifle.. I got it to shoot & use hunting this fall.. I've got everything i need to shoot it now, except powder.. I have an order placed that hopefully will be filled sometime this month, & then the real fun will begin! a couple photos to follow: (I got it for just under $400)

 

[toytruck]

Sweet!! Beware of the wood ramrod, it can break and splinter. I replaced mine with a TC synthetic rod.

 

[Muley Hunter]

Previous owner should be lynched!

Enjoy your new gun.

 

[exarcher]

i had a t/c hawken 50cal bought in late 70/'s or early 80's (whenever Tn. had first ML season), which an "in-law" lifted when i was going through the big D.. knew virtually nothing about how to make em shoot well then... I've learned a ton from this site!, hopefully to great advantage!

 

[Hatchet Jack]

Good looking gun. Congrats on your purchase. Assuming it is a 1-48'' twist, what loads do you plan on shooting from it?

 

[Matthew323]

If you decide to refinish the stock, spray paint the raw walnut with flat black paint, and after it dries, sand off the excess. Then finish the stock the normal way. The black paint will fill the pores & really make the grain pop, and highlight the figure. You could also scrub in the wet paint with a maroon 3M pad, and wipe it off.

 

[Muley Hunter]

Or, you can leave it black and play Rambo.

 

[exarcher]

Good looking gun. Congrats on your purchase. Assuming it is a 1-48'' twist, what loads do you plan on shooting from it?

I've got some"no excuses 545grain" to try with over powder wads... I'm not sure of load yet,,, I have no "powder".. I have a few lbs on backorder that is supposed to arrive later this month... All i could find i had is 4f goex from when it was $7,50/lb!... I've thought of wetting in, & pucking it, then breaking it back up collecting the more coarse.. (But that is more "trouble & aggravation" than i want to endure at this time) It is 48 twist by the way.

 

[exarcher]

If you decide to refinish the stock, spray paint the raw walnut with flat black paint, and after it dries, sand off the excess. Then finish the stock the normal way. The black paint will fill the pores & really make the grain pop, and highlight the figure. You could also scrub in the wet paint with a maroon 3M pad, and wipe it off.

i have no plans to refinish (yet)... looks pretty good as it is.. Thanks for the info though,, i had not heard of doing the flat black treatment to enhance grain.. & will keep that in mind... I have another rifle (centerfire) with quite high grade walnut stock that does need re-finishing.. (if i ever get around to it)..

 

[Muley Hunter]

I posted this once before. If you don't mind paying a Hazmat fee. It's the only way I can buy BP.

https://www.addictedtoblackpowder.com/back-powder/

 

[Hatchet Jack]

I've got some"no excuses 545grain" to try with over powder wads... I'm not sure of load yet,,, I have no "powder".. I have a few lbs on backorder that is supposed to arrive later this month... All i could find i had is 4f goex from when it was $7,50/lb!... I've thought of wetting in, & pucking it, then breaking it back up collecting the more coarse.. (But that is more "trouble & aggravation" than i want to endure at this time) It is 48 twist by the way.

I would wait for the new powder to arrive if I were you. What brand of powder and which grain size did you order? 2f or 3f?
Over powder felt wads seem to work great for me.
The 535 gr No Excuses are a good choice. I have a feeling your most accurate charge will fall between 70-90 grains. Only one way to find .
Good luck. Let us know how things go for you.

 

[exarcher]

I would wait for the new powder to arrive if I were you. What brand of powder and which grain size did you order? 2f or 3f?
Over powder felt wads seem to work great for me.
The 535 gr No Excuses are a good choice. I have a feeling your most accurate charge will fall between 70-90 grains. Only one way to find .
Good luck. Let us know how things go for you.

i've got both 3f and 2f coming,, the only one that had a "shipping date" was goex, & only one the would take "backorder" on..... I'll get some swiss when its available.... Probably try 80 grains 3f to start, with wool wads? I've seen that load on a number of posts and articles... Do you have any idea what velocity that produces?? thanks! Kirk

 

[exarcher]

If you decide to refinish the stock, spray paint the raw walnut with flat black paint, and after it dries, sand off the excess. Then finish the stock the normal way. The black paint will fill the pores & really make the grain pop, and highlight the figure. You could also scrub in the wet paint with a maroon 3M pad, and wipe it off.

you have any photos of that method in action?? thanks

 

[michiganmuzzy]

If you decide to refinish the stock, spray paint the raw walnut with flat black paint, and after it dries, sand off the excess. Then finish the stock the normal way. The black paint will fill the pores & really make the grain pop, and highlight the figure. You could also scrub in the wet paint with a maroon 3M pad, and wipe it off.

I would love to see what that looks like, too.

 

[Hatchet Jack]

I would guess between 1000 fps to 1300 fps using between 70 to 90 grains of Swiss.

 

[Matthew323]

I don't have any images of the black spray paint method of staining black walnut. Mike Brooks over on American Longrifles forum is kinda credited for pioneering the idea over there, and a lot of the other builders have adopted it.

 

[Bad Karma]

I don't have any images of the black spray paint method of staining black walnut. Mike Brooks over on American Longrifles forum is kinda credited for pioneering the idea over there, and a lot of the other builders have adopted it.

I’ve done something similar by wet sanding ebony stain into black walnut and then wiping the surface with mineral spirits. It’s a nice effect on Black Walnut and a trick for Oak. Gives oak a really different look from the standard “Golden Oak” used on 75% of all furniture made in the 1980’s...

 

[eekjellander]

I’ve done something similar by wet sanding ebony stain into black walnut and then wiping the surface with mineral spirits. It’s a nice effect on Black Walnut and a trick for Oak. Gives oak a really different look from the standard “Golden Oak” used on 75% of all furniture made in the 1980’s...

I got a stock that needs that treatment ,Thanks Ed

 

[Frank in Fairfield]

Nice looking Renegade. I built my .54 from a kit, including the bluing. I added a few touches of my own. I would like to shoot sabots with copper bullets (I tried) for the California Muzzleloader seasons. I bought an inline .50 for that purpose, though. BTW..check ebay for some unbreakable DELRIN rods...

 

[Bad Karma]

I got a stock that needs that treatment ,Thanks Ed

As you wet sand, (220 grit or higher) you’re creating a sort of wood/stain paste which is held in the pores of the wood. The only more porous the subject piece, the more noticeable the effect. This can also be accomplished by staining a commercially available pore filler (Rocklers and others handle it) filling the pores by following the instructions and then finishing as normal.