I imagine that there are many reasons why the rib extension was usually steel, but it probably just came down to cost.
Some ideas I had.
The pattern in damascus is a result of stock removal, so making a matching piece would require some figuring (npi), hard to pair the right nib with the tubes and ribs from europe.
Pattern welded barrels (as opposed to knives) were pretty soft and while the cylinder was plenty strong for barrel work, a nib on the end of the barrel was probably more resilient in steel. it would likely wear better too.
Regarding 2- I dont know much about early barrel manufacturing but I have been wondering. Were civil war arms made of steel or iron? I just got a burnside carbine which is marked cast steel which I believe means the barrel is made of crucible homogenized steel, not cast as a barrel but could be incorrect. Regardless it is steel from 1864. I think it is clear that composite barrels were prefered by sportsmen and thats why they appear on higher grade guns. Lc Smith and Parker featured fluid steel barrels on the entry level gun but stepped up to a composite one Grade above and this held long after it was cheaper to make "better" steel barrels.
Thats a very nice looking Twist barrel gun!
|
Threaded Mode