Flint62Smoothie

Thanks all for the comments! Yes, this one apparently had a TG at some point, as the inlets are empty and pins are missing, but more so ... I can see a slight bit of wear where they once sat. My goal is to restore it to shooting condition. I'll probably send the barrel off to Bobby Hoyt in PA to be honed smooth. He does a remarkable job, if people haven't heard of him before. Off-topic ... yes, but he'll work on any BP barrel and has never had a threaded breech plug that he's not been able to successfully remove. He also will check the integrity of welded shut BPlugs. He even takes smaller bores and re-rifles them to whatever larger caliber the barrel steel will safely accomodate. Last time I had a smoothie barrel honed it was only $60 USD ... and it looked brand NEW! He also took a 62-cal smooth barrel and rifled it to be 62-cal rifled for my British Baker (think Sharpe's 95th Rifles) and that was only $100.

… now to find OR FORGE a replacement trigger guard!

Thanks! I’ll measure the bore later. I just thought the inletting looked ‘different’, what with the deep scores, but that just could the individual’s build method.

Last photo … but I can take more as advised …

Just came in … Fully functional, but just missing the Trigger Guard & 2 pins and 1 pin that holds the main spring. The breech plug came right out! The bore will need refreshing. Most interesting and curious, in no particular order: -Appears to be sub-40 caliber, of 39” barrel -No Japanese markings -The large cross-pin securing the serpentine is locked in place by a pin down through the top, behind the tang -No ‘through hole’ to hold cord -Barrel is RIBBED the entire length, on the top-most octagonal facets -Stock shows a line on the bottom, below the ramrod hole, but it is not cut through -Inletting in barrel channel appears different that my other Tangs, with the slot cut below the ramrod hole, but what stands out is the deep scores for the bottom barrel flat Any ideas?

Rust Removal: Link = http://www.big45.com/ If you haven't ever used these...try them. They do work phenomenal! I once had a Colt Python that I bought after it went through a fire, so the blued finish was 'fleckeled' on the sideplate. This B45 metal pad removed all traces of the flecks/rust wthout harming any of the original blue finish. It is incedible for use in bores and on old guns and muzzleloaders. NOTE I've not tried it on an origial Tanegashima yet though ... FYI, steel wool WILL SCRATCH and damage a barrel and/or remove the finish! These 'Big 45' pads won't do either, as they are a proprieitary blend of Monel, which is harder than rust, but softer than steel.

What can one do to HELP move this along to publishing?????? It's possible I could asist with upfront $$. I also have done considerable Tect Writing for the Biotech field, if I can be of any further help with basic formtatting and proof-reading ... although clearly my knowledge of Japanese terms is NON-existant without Google Translator, LOL!

N I C E !

FWIW the best penetrating solution one can use is a DIY homemade mix of 50% acetone and 50% automatic transmission fluid (ATF). Years ago “Machinist Workshop Magazine” did a test on penetrating oils. Using nuts and bolts that they 'scientifically rusted’ to a uniform degree by soaking in salt water, they then tested the break-out torque required to loosen the nuts. They treated the nuts with a variety of penetrants and measured the torque required to loosen them. This is what they came up with: Nothing: 516 lbs WD-40: 238 lbs PB Blaster: 214 lbs Liquid Wrench: 127 lbs Kano Kroil: 106 lbs (ATF)/Acetone mix (50/50 mix): Only 50 lbs!

No, I meant I've ALWAYS been able to get the breech plug out on any BP arm I arm, original or replica, less those like a Toradar where they were forge-welded in place. Please show me a close up picture of the end of your breech plug and I may see the answer for you! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Now, besides a 'heat hammer' (torch) that alwys helps loosen parts (it is the heating AND cooling cycle that does it, so immediately plunge the hot part into cold/ice water bath) FWIW the best penetrating oil one can use is a DIY homemade mix of 50% acetone and 50% automatic transmission fluid (ATF). Years ago “Machinist Workshop Magazine” did a test on penetrating oils. Using nuts and bolts that they 'scientifically rusted’ to a uniform degree by soaking in salt water, they then tested the break-out torque required to loosen the nuts. They treated the nuts with a variety of penetrants and measured the torque required to loosen them. This is what they came up with: Nothing: 516 lbs WD-40: 238 lbs PB Blaster: 214 lbs Liquid Wrench: 127 lbs Kano Kroil: 106 lbs (ATF)/Acetone mix (50/50 mix): Only 50 lbs!

I've never not been able to get one out. Great job on your pin and other rebuild efforts!

Maybe, but the pin is not solid, but it actually hollow ... more like a rivet, so that a 'rain umbrella' - not unlike those served in fancy drinks at Chinese/Polynesian restaurants - can be set into the top hole.

I fully realize this ornate serpentine is off one of the non-firing replicas made by the Denix Company, but the Europeans did decorate their serpentines to look like a dragon’s head. Is there any evidence the Japanese made them more ornate like this?

Oh, that's good to know then, thanks. And yes, I bought that other one, but haven't read it yet. Many thanks!

Your book sounds fascinating! And thanks for the ‘heads up’ in interpreting the others.

Thank you! I just bought the Perrin book and am on the 'lookout' for the Taira book. I've done a TON of proofreading in my career if I may be of any asssitance on the book effort. You are a wealth of information here and very responsive, and I greatly appreciate both of those traits! Cheers!

@Bugyotsuji - Thank you for your response! Please let me know if you find anything. I am presently making a forge and have a computer-controlled heat trating oven. When I retire next JAN 2026, I plan to start making wheellocks, but as left-handed ones. Right now I am focusing on making 'replacement' V-spring mainsprings for the flintlocks in my collection, to aid in my knowledge of the spring making process. Some day I will forge myself a serpentine for my Tang if i don't find any parts in the mean time. Cheers! Dale

Hey all: I guess I am lucky enough to have an English version of his Book 1, acknowledging that there are eiting errors as a few have pointed out here. But has any other English speaker purchased his 2nd book and have any comments regarding its value? Thanks in advance! Dale

Yes, Piers ... using the principle of Occam's Razor and only seeing them on the heavier caliber arms leads me - as a shooter - to that conclusion. Even Samual W. Beach can see that function. Here is how it is held in place:

Gents: Guessing as to what the purpose is - as a collector/shooter of the early arms - would this feature serve to protect the fingers of the firing hand from being broken on the heavier caliber arms? (FYI, my shootable BP collection includes cheek-fired and chest-fired Snap Matchlocks and Petronels (fired when held in front of the chest). Photo credits -

Restoring the Tanegashima below ... looking for spare parts ...

FWIW that is the recipe that my friend Hilton (who made post #3) and I use. Simple! I am now making some using the potassium carbonate powder for boiling the lignin out in an attempt to define the best accurate measures/portions of the ingredients, as Hilton just dumps some in. The cordage I am using is 9-strand braided hemp procurred from Etsy and it came from the UK. This picture below is not cord, but tinder - just dried 'tree fungus' (not even nitrated!) made from birch polypore. It burns HOT without ANY ash head on it! So far the braided hemp burns hot almost as well, and without much ash residue, although one should 'tend their match' (blow across the breech, with pan over closed as per Jacob de Gheyn) for best results before a shot.

Yes that’s great, and very true, however that is NOT the hole or feature that I was quizzing people about …

You pull out the lock pins from the lock plate side. Then you would push the smaller of the pins (in diameter, if one was smaller) into that hole to push OUT the rear of the lock plate. That tips it out of the inlet that it is set into, from where the forward-most end is 'trapped' under the brass barrel band. Clever, if not ingenious!

Let’s see who else does … as I have a few educational quizzes lined up.