The L.C. Smith Collectors Association

The L.C. Smith Collectors Association
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Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by Clint Meier on March 15, 2021, 8:18 pm

Howdy gents,
I am trying to disassemble and clean an LC with what I have learned here is called a Curtis forend release. There is only one wood screw holding the forearm iron to the splinter forend. The serial # is 3490XX with the R suffix, and is so marked on both the forend iron and water table, along with the word 'Field' on the wt. It is an extractor gun, with the lock plates held onto the frame by two small screws near the front ends and a through screw closer to the high rear ends.

I have a modest gun library but have not been able to find a schematic or any info on how this type of forend latch comes apart. Logic would indicate that the tip unscrews from a rod within the forearm, like the Anson, but I am hesitant to try twisting on it very hard without knowing for sure.

Another small dilemma that I will come up against later is how was the small square cocking plate oriented before it fell on the work bench after I took out the screw holding it to the forend iron? Any info would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you, Clint cymeier@att.net

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by Jerry Andrews on March 16, 2021, 6:30 am, in reply to "Curtis forend release disassembly?"

Be careful! That spring in that forend is RARE! It’s easily broken. The rod does not unscrew. You must lift the forend metal straight up out of the wood with the plunger depressed. Unless there’s an issue, I’d leave it alone. I do this for a living and I’m really cautious with this spring. Jerry

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by David Williamson on March 16, 2021, 8:05 am, in reply to "Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?"

Jerry is right, taking one apart and putting back is tricky but it's in my nature to do so on something new, and it is complex.

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by Clint Meier on March 16, 2021, 6:22 pm, in reply to "Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?"

My thanks to Jerry A. and David W. for their replies above, but now I am confused and may have misidentified what I have. I was looking at a photo posted by David W. in the archives of 4 LC forearms. The third down from the top looks like the one I have as it has a button at the end of the forearm and I thought I read that this was a Curtis FA release.

When I clicked on that photo, I was taken to photo albums posted by poacher110 on photo bucket in 2011. However, the photo posted by David W. in the reply above is not like what my FA iron and visible parts look like, and it appears to me, based on other photos posted on photo bucket, to be similar to that of an 1899 First Style Release instead of a Curtis, if I read things right. I did find a drawing on photo bucket that seems to match up with the parts I can see on my FA, it is labeled Auto Ejector (E) System Part 10-RE, drawing #431, shown below, although my FA iron appears to be for an extractor, not an ejector model, as it has an extractor actuator.

image hosting

On the inside of the slot ahead of the forend spring there are two projections, one on each side, that move sideways out of view when the button at the end of the forearm is depressed and spring back into view when the button is released, as if to pinch a lug on the underside of the barrels to help hold the forearm in place. These projections seem to correspond to a part called a spring lock 41-RE, also shown on drawing #431, and see green arrow in photo below.

From the drawing, it appears that the button does unscrew from the shaft, but I can’t get to the threads to put any kind of penetrating oil on them. Is this mechanism strong enough to grab the button and unscrew it? Again, any advice will be greatly appreciated!

Oh, and I did find a photo on poacher110's photo bucket pages showing what I think is the proper orientation of the cocking plate and how it should be held and slipped into the forearm iron slot.

Does that seem right to you guys? The posting of all of these and many more photos is a tremendous help to guys like me! Thanks again!
Clint

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by David Williamson on March 17, 2021, 1:06 pm, in reply to "Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?"

Clint, poacher110 is a name I used in the earlier days and then changed it to the name you see now.
Your fore arm a is Curtis release and even though the drawings state ejector which is right, because it is ejecting the shell to be removed from the extractor, not ejecting the shell from the gun.

If you look closely at the print the trip stem 64 RE has a groove at the end and this is where the spring lock 41 RE fits into. When you push the stem in it releases the spring lock from the barrels loop which has a slot on each side, releasing it from the barrels to be removed.

Removing the button will not help in removing anything and quite possible you could break the spring lock.

If you look at the picture I posted your screw is missing and will not let the it function properly to slide. I am not sure what size that screw is but either 8-32 or 10-32 and only long enough to catch the slide.

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by Bill Murphy on March 24, 2021, 3:33 pm, in reply to "Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?"

A.P. Curtis was a talented designer and a great administrator and officer in the Hunter Arms Company, but his forend design is fragile and prone to malfunction.

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by Denver Dillard on March 25, 2021, 3:11 pm, in reply to "Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?"
Edited by board administrator March 25, 2021, 4:24 pm

This posting motivated me to do some work on one of my 4 Curtis Release guns. I need to replace the wood and will make one. Disassembled, the mechanism is different from the picture in the first Williamson post. There is no slot for release, alignment tab, coil spring, or spring housing. My 4 Curtis guns were made in '16-19'. My parts seem to match the Curtis Patent drawing on p. 675 of Houchins. Was there more than one design?

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by David Williamson on March 25, 2021, 4:33 pm, in reply to "Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?"

Denver I have to apologize, that picture I put up is not for a Curtis for-end release it is for the first style ejectors that used a clam shell type of roller release.
I'm surprised there were no alert people correcting me of that picture.

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by Bill Murphy on March 25, 2021, 5:49 pm, in reply to "Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?"

David, don't be surprised. I and many other posters have never disassembled a Curtis forend and wouldn't know what one looks like from the interior. We trusted you to know what you were posting, especially after it had been up for awhile.

Re: Curtis forend release disassembly?

Posted by Charles Cashdollar on March 28, 2023, 3:26 pm, in reply to "Curtis forend release disassembly?"
Edited by board administrator March 28, 2023, 3:49 pm

How to release curtis beavertail that appears stuck

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