Good morning  Mike,

Was the Lever pin screw frozen in place? It isn't necessary to remove it to strip the action down, less than one complete turn of the locking screw will align the cut out on it's edge with the lever pin head which can simply be pushed out. However, if your uncertain always let someone who is used to that action do it. I'm surprised it's stuck inless the thread is rusted in place. Even if that has happened it's an easy job to drill out the screw and retap the thread. It's only a few minutes work to make or adapt an existing screw
to fit.

I'm always a little wary about what gunwriters put onto paper if they are not machinists. Certainly some milling was carried out on the action but most of the cutting was done by the use of vertical shaping machines which cut the breechblock mortice and squared off the sides and corners of the cut behind the breechblock mortice and many other operations. Sharps didn't spend a lot on the internal finishing of metal parts, time was money. Many people have mentioned to me just how roughly their Borchardts were machined, as long as the outside looked O/K that was it as far as the manufacturer was concerned. By examining actual actions or even perusing decent photographs and looking at the tool marks it is relativly easy to tell what type of machine was used to make any particular machining cut. Vertical shaping machines are very rare today I haven't seen one in a factory in over 35 years.

It does look like the east coast is in for some wet times over the next few days. I hope Joe can get his customers goods to an upper floor and keep them dry.

Be aware that the lower tang curve of the DST's may not fit your existing stock. 

Let's have some pictures as soon as you get it back please.

Harry

My two cents worth---the rear of the action is tapered in the Zischang style. Looks like his work.

A friend sent me this link to a Ballard with a Krupp Fluid Steel barrel Eissen, and it is a Zischang, he also owned a Borchardt barreled the same as mine, 32 inch long, full octagon in 32-40. This may be a 32-40 as I have no did a chamber cast yet. Nice to hear all of the good info as it definitely supports that this may well be Zishangs work. Joseph Lozito's work is almost as nice so when completed it should be really a nice rifle.
Thanks to all for the great input.
Here is the link:
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Harry, Joseph has several sets of these already built just awaiting an action. I think the 500.00 is a bargain. He does exceptional work. I'm still trying to figure out if I should refinish the action as it is a nice patina now but with a freckling of very small minute rust pits, and they are there but barely noticable. if it were a complete original Zischang I would leave it alone but since it gets new triggers and upper tang, and a new stock I may just refinish the action. I would leave the barrel as is it's at about a bit over 90% decent blue. If I had requested he would have just sent out the triggers to me. I feel better having Joseph set it up correctly.
Mike

Harry, I never BUFF, I use a surface plate when at all possible, high quality files, high grade wet and dry sand paper. And I always watch the lines to ensure that everyting looks correct. I may just leave it as is. I'll have to wait and see what Joseph says, as he needs to get it all together and functional first. That is the #1 issue. 
Mike

Joseph updated me and said that it is 100% fro sure a Zischang rifle. And the workmanship is impeccable. The breech block is scalloped Creedmore style. I,m having Joseph refinish it as he needs to take a small cut on each side of the trigger slot for the new triggers and it will be easier if the action is annealed first. Then Joseph will color case it for me. His colors come out at about 100 % of looking original and his price is really good. My wood is on its way to CPA for profiling so I'm making progress.
Mike

Hello Mike,

Thanks for the updates, can't wait to see the pictures of the finished item.   

Harry

Hello Mike,
I've just got back from a few days in France and Belgium visiting the WW1 Battlefields and Cemetries. I've been promising myself for years I would go and last weekend on a sudden whim I packed the car and drove to Dover on the south coast of England and took the ferry to France. I spent three days just visiting the places where so many young men died and the places where some of them remain. There are tens of thousands of British Troops with no known grave who's remains still lie in Flanders Fields and elsewhere. I'm very glad I went to pay my respects, but the overwhelming feeling I came away with was, what a tragic waste of so many hundreds of thousands of young mens lives. It's hard to try and comprehend the numbers.

The Borchardt isn't proceeding anywhere near as fast as I would like.    Last winters cold induced Arthritis in my hands did not go away this spring as it has in the past and I am very wary about operating machine tools without having full control of both hands. I'm doing dribs and drabs but I really need more control of my fingers. Maybe next spring will be warmer and I get back to working more often.

Harry