In 1982 a secret hate was fostered deep in my soul. I was brought to the point of tears by and underhammer Hopkin's and Allen and have never gotten over the shame and the hurt. It all started with a simple request...
A good friend came over one night as I was putting the finishing touches on my ne Hawken rifle, curly maple stock, 34" browned barrel and everything just like the Baird book. For a Deputy with kids this was the ne plus ultra and the most expensive thing I would ever own. My buddy drug in a rifle he bought for his son, a Numerich H and A underhammer with a trashed barrel. He bought it for $25 and wanted to see if we could make it shoot for his kid. I looked in the scrap heap and found an off center Numerich 44 caliber barrel that I had set aside as I didn't like the off center bore. I cut it to 25" and breeched it up on theis mousetrap looking gun with the bore running up hill and put on a lower front sight. Total time say 2 hours and I think I charged him $25 for the barrel.
The next week at the club shoot the kid shows up with his new rifle, all cold blued and ready to go. This thing looks like someone beat it to death with and ugly stick and it rose from the dead palstic buttplate and all.
I pull my Hawken out of the case to the oooh's and Ahhh's of the club and we commence to shoot. That DDDDDD Underhammer! If I shot an 8 the kid shoots a 9 if I hit the 100 yard gong once the kid hit it twice! I went home from the Spring shoot with 3 trophies and the KID went home with 3 all one step better than mine! He beat everyone in the club at least once with a rifle that cost less than most of us spent for moccassins! In one shoot his mainspring broke and he finished out the match using a rubber band around the hammer! I don't think he ever had a misfire or a hang fire and the gun always hit just where it looked.
Jump to 2009 and another friend comes over with a chunk of iron bar had had bent into an underhammer frame and a hammer and trigger. He tosses them on the bench and said," I will never do anything with this see what you can do'. Last week I took out the action and rummaged in the piile and came up with a barrel. I found a broken stock for an old rifle and a fore end for a Mowery shotgun. I am now the proud??? owner of a underhammer buggy rifle. It sports a 26" barrel with quick takedown and the trigger breaks at just 2 1/2 pounds. The gun doesn't look half bad except it's and underhammer and dog gone it shoots too. Next week I head out to fall rendevous and I am taking this thing along, either I will come home a big winner or with luck someone will offer me a dead frog and a marble for it.
Did I say I HATE underhammers!
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There is just something about underhammers that I like. They are the ultimate in simplicity, and utility.
Originally Posted by Shooter
