Best guns you've made up?

[lancem]

My Phoenix build, one of several M1 Garands recovered from a fire. The fire occurred 20-30 years ago so the story goes and these had been residing in a corner in a back room of a replacement building since then, till I got hold of them. All in sad shape. I carefully dismantled them and ran them through the blasting cabinet. Then the receiver was re heat treated and the other parts were cleaned up and re parkerized. New bolts, barrels, and stocks later we have... I still have two receivers left to heat treat and build, at least one of them is going to be in .308.

[Blackwater]

Dragon, post your pics! It doesn't necessarily have to be your own work. I intended it to be an honorarium of sorts for guys with the talent to creat really GOOD guns, and they don't even have to be walnut and blued steel. All guns have their place and purpose. They don't even have to be all that nice, like in the example of my buddy's 12 ga. Stevens 311 double slug gun - just nice, in some respect, like the concept, unusual and good thinking in concept, etc. Gunsmiths, I've always found, are a very thougtful and innovative lot, and given a small suggestion from time to time, just simply like to be challenged, and like to be innovative and experiment a bit now and then. Knives are game here, too, if any of you do that. I just got through (almost) making my youngest grandson a little patch knife type with an old Swedish blad I've had for a long time and never got my round tuit to make up. Just got some mosaic pins to dress it up for him. Deer antler handle, and it's one heckuva dang knife, functionally. It's not a "fine" or "art" knife. More like a "primitive" usin' type knife, but I really like those, and wanted him to learn to appreciate them, too. The mosaics, maybe, will doll it up enough for his young mind to appreciate it more? We'll see soon.

[Von Gruff]

If knives get a run then this is one I made from my great grandfathers scrub slasher. African blackwood handle slabs with nickel silver bolster, butt cap and pins.




And another from an old saw blade

All set to go ebony bolster and butt held on with hidden pins and walnut slabs with copper pins

A hunt or two under its belt where a couple of falls on icey rocks have left their mark


This one is handy in the kitchen and was from another saw blade


Been quite a few more that mostly sit on the shelf now as these two are my mainstay knives. The little one is my rabbit knife and I made it in the late 70's from a commercial hacksaw blades and has dressed litterly hundreds of rabbits and remains a firm favourite for that task.

[Blackwater]

Wow! Great minds DO think alike! HAR! I made one similar to yours, Von Gruff. Mine was made from 440C. I learned from that knife NOT to cheap out, and next time I got precision flat ground 440C. That's still a great stainless alloy, even today, for its balance of qualities for a real usin' knife, but the black scale on the stuff I got a first is VERY difficult to grind off. That stuff's HARD!!! Oh well, live and learn.

I can only do flat grinding, but I've worked with a Burr King grinder, and want one BADLY! MUCH quieter than the Square Wheel grinder, very powerful, and I think I can grind just a tad more precisely with it. I also like the way it allows me to work around it in various positions. Have made some dozen or so knives, and with a good, full heat treat, they've really amazed me at how they'll hold up. I usually specify that they be heat treated to about RC 57-58, and they've shown that, with a really good heat treat (the REAL key in knife-making, IMO) makes 440C into a REAL knife, not at all relatable to the garden variety store-bought 440C knives we see for sale for cheap.

I suspect many aren't even heat treated at all, especially if they're priced cheaply. Heat treating costs money, today, and if the knife is cheap and made of 440C, it may be rust resistant still, but it surely won't hold an edge that well, which is what we woods type guys really want and need. Good 440C makes a REAL knife, though there are others that will hold an edge even longer, but they're harder to sharpen, too, so it's always a trade-off.

I have a friend of a fried, who's become a casual friend of mine, now, who's been a guild member for well over 20 years now, who taught industrial arts at Union Co. High School for many years. He's retired now, and making knives full time. He's an old Ga. mountain boy, and the lines on his knives remind me so very much of the round, smooth stones in those sweet, clear, cold Ga. mountain streams. Just beautiful, and very "organic" looking. He tends to take off everything from his knives that don't really need to be there, and he likes them as compact and light as possible for a given blade length.

I've really come to respect his work. I've got one of his Nantahela models with a 5" bowie style blade, which I specified. I went whole hawg and chose mastodon ivory for the forward portion, a strip of highly figured wood (he chose a nice piece of exotic for that) diagonally placed mid-grip, and the butt end of real stag. The grip cap is 416 SS, as is the guard. It's my "lifetime" knife, and I really love it. It has a D2 blade, and looks really great, and works like any good knife ought to, of course, and holds a great edge with the D2. I specified that it be heat treated to the lower range so it'd be a bit toughter. D2, when heat treated for maximum hardness, can sometimes be a bit brittle for a real usin' knife.

Also got my son a 4" drop point hunter with real elephant ivory scales for his 21st birthday. He still loves that knife, but won't take it out and use it. It's a safe queen, but if that makes him happy, so be it. He's 44 now so that was 23 years ago. I keep trying to get him to take it afield, but he's afraid something bad will happen to it. His website, if you're interested (and what knifemaker isn't?) is:

http://www.dennisbradley.com/

You may want to take a look at his stuff. Ideas are always the biggest part of making any knife, and since it's the most basic and useful tool man has ever made, we always tend to be very ticky about our taste in them. That sure is keeping a lot of knifemakers in business these days! Dennis's knives are very simple looking, and you really have to handle them to appreciate their design and utility. Like any good ol' mountain boy, Dennis is a real stickler for functionality.

He doesn't have a big name, at least yet, so he's able to keep his turnaround/delivery times fairly good, and his are the kind of knives you come to appreciate the more you use them - deceptively simple looking, but VERY well contoured, laid out and executed. He's FAR more particular and knowledgeable than I am about these things, and he's my go-to source of info.

I made my first knife for my son's 18th birthday, and Dennis did the heat treat for me. He was very complimentary of it, which was really humbling coming from him. I was VERY glad I consulted him before jumping in. He was VERY highly helpful, and glad to provide it - just what you'd expect from a good ol' mountain boy. He's very talented, but never loses sight of the function his knives are for. Mine is on the large side for a real all-arounder, but I wanted something I could stab with if it ever became necessary, that would pierce the hide for hanging deer on a gimble, and also that could get in small spots like the bung hole of a fish in gutting them.

The Bowie style blade does a lot, but it does sacrifice point strength as the trade off. I can live with that. I NEVER use a knife to pry with! EVER! They're not really designed for that, except maybe for the "tactical" types that seem to be popular now, but those types just don't handle nearly as well or handily as a more conventional/traditional design.

I've been thinking for some time now about getting some 1095 and making some more, and particularly some thick stuff to make a couple of really good hatchets from with integral handles. One of the books on knife-making I have is David Boye's, and at the end, he observes that when you've completed your first home-made knife, and been diligent in your efforts, and you sit and admire your own handiwork, the thought suddenly strikes you that your NEXT one will be just as much of a challenge and require just as much care and work as the first one. That was a most humbling realization in my own case, and it's what's kept me from doing more knife-making, along with the demands on my time, of course.

Great work, and no knife will ever mean as much to you as the one you make for yourself. I like the designs, and especially the little one. I like the drabber colors, too. No sense wearing all cammo and then spoiling it with some bright, shiny handled knife, is there? Very funtional, and functionality is remembered and appreciated LONG after the beauty fades, just like with women! HAR! Just by looking at the pics, they really look like they'll feel great in the hand. I just completed a rustic looking one from a bought Sweedish "patch knife" type blade and a deer antler grip for my younger grandson. It was a little plain, and he knows its a very nice and capable knife, but it just didn't "move" him, so I got some mosaic pins to put in it, and will be doing that some time this week. I think it'll please him much more once I do that, and put a butt on the end as well. He's really just starting to appreciate things like this. Made a decent sheath for it too, with some old leather I've had for a good while now. He still likes a little "decoration," though, so that's what I'm giving him.

[Love Life]

I didn't make this one.

It started out as a stock FN SPR chambered in 308. After some thankin' and pondering I decided it would do better as a .243 Win. So, a call went out to my favorite person who happens to own one of those spinny things. He chambered and mounted a Krieger 1 in 7 twist RV contour barrel that finished at 26 inches. He also made the cheesy sling swivel bipod mount rock solid as well as made the most awesome bolt knob ever out of stainless steel. The added mass of that knob makes working the bolt super fast and super positive.

Now, I had this one built to prove a theory of mine. Per internet wisdom the 308 accuracy window is way up there in the 3500-8000 rd count (depending which website you read...). It was stated that this long barrel life is due to the efficiency of the cartridge and it's operating pressure. After researching that, G. Gardner began posting about a cartridge he designed. The 6.5 SAUM, which using H-1000 powder, was able to drive 6.5 bullets to good speed, accurately, and good barrel life. IIRC he won the Snipers Hide Cup with 4,000 rds on his 6.5 SAUM barrel. The claim was that the pressure the rd operated at (similar to 308) gave him the barrel life he got.

The gears were still turning in the dome. I did some maff, and figured using Retumbo powder and 107 gr bullets, that I could keep my .243 in the operating pressure range of the 308 while having plenty of juice. In theory (my mind) I was hoping to achieve a usable barrel life of over 2,500 rds (Sub MOA accuracy).

My theory was wrong. Using a dose of Retumbo, 107 gr SMK, my barrel went south at around 840 rds. When I first got the rifle from Tim, it would shoot 10 shot 100 yd groups in the .3 range from a bench with front rest. Shooting from bipod, the rifle shout sub .6 MOA out to 1,000 yds consistently. There are/were witnesses and stuff. Then, like someone flipped a switch at the 840-ish rd, the rifle wouldn't shoot under an inch.

Back to Tim it went to chop 5 inches off and rechamber me into fresh rifling. Once I got the rifle back I had to move to a faster powder H4831SC. After the set back it was a solid .75 MOA rifle. Now I have over 1500 rds on the tube since the set back and it has opened up to a consistent 1.1 MOA.

I love this rifle.

[Blackwater]

This is the kind of cutsomizing on a "tactical" type rifle that I really like to see, LL. You're obviously a man with a plan, and you understand what all the elements of a gun and its appointments do and how to use them. We all hope we never have to use these type rifles for their intended purposes, but they're a blast to shoot with on a range, and compete with other like-minded men. I really like what you did with it, and admire why you did it - functionality. That's always the essential element, and even beautiful rifles lose much of their attraction if they don't serve a purpose really well. More like a painting or statue to be admired statically, rather than to use, and use at top efficiency. Great job. MUCH better than many of the guys making up rifles now who don't know or want to know why they're made the way they are, but just want to be "tacti-cool." Many are disappointed when they learn that even the best of rifles must be shot well for them to perform. I sure wouldn't want you shooting at ME, even WAY past 1,000 yds.!

[Love Life]

Thank you for the compliments. I can't build them, but if you ask the man who does he'll tell you that I have some pretty wild ideas bouncing around.

I find as much beauty in a custom tactical rifle as I do in a custom sporter with finely figured wood and mile deep bluing or any other well made firearm. Both rifles absolutely require the talented touch of the smith's hand, not just to look beautiful or tacticool, but to perform as expected as well.

If the smith doesn't do his part, then the cost/quality of the parts is moot.

[LAGS]

My first attempt at a Tactical Rifle, my teacher said , you have it all wrong.
You have a Target Beavertail forend, a Prone rifle grip, and a Sporting rifle buttstock. It is not Polittically Correct.
I told him, With the right Caliber, You can change political opinions.

[dragon813gt]

From Zero


To Hero














All courtesy of Tim(Goodsteel)

I think there is a thread about it in the Levergun forum. Started as a 99E in 308. JES rebore to 358. Reblued, NOS stock that was stripped, checkering repointed and hand rubbed oil finish. Turnbull color case hardened lever. Skinner barrel mount sight and partridge style front blade. I really need to have a proper stock made for it. It's not the greatest piece of wood and the color varies quite a bit. I need to shoot it more often

[nekshot]

That is a fine looking 99. I saw one of them with a mannlicher forearm and I want one(meaning I want a pistol grip one so I can do the work) but funds don't cooperate.

[LAGS]

This is a Knife I made, that is similar to something I once saw.
It solves the problem of bringing a Knife to a Gunfight.
It is a 22LR barrel in the top of the blade.

[oldred]

These knife pics are very interesting, to say the least!

[Blackwater]

Dragon, that's one GREAT 99! Great job, and though I understand your desire for a more fitted stock (if that's your aim) it's awfully hard to discard that one. If you're not satisfied with the color, from the pix at least, you're as ticky as I am about your guns. That'll never be a problem, though! Great work on Goodsteel's behalf, for sure. I did one sort'a similarly but e-nickeled the receiver. It was a 99F, IIRC, and the customer balked at the price UNTIL he saw it. He left a VERY happy customer. He hadn't expected quite what we gave him, and we did give him an excellent price on the work. We were given little instruction other than to make it "look good," and price wasn't to be a problem. That's always a hard order to fill, but that time at lest, we succeeded, and the guy is still bragging on the gun and showing it off at every opportunity. It's gratifying to get that kind of satisfaction from a customer. Those 99's have long been a great looking gussied up piece of kit. That big, flat receiver is a natural canvas for engraving, but I've never been able to afford the good stuff, and don't much care for the machine made stuff - just no personality in it, really. Great rifle!

And LAGS, I just LOVE your knife/gun! VERY interesting, and clearly "out of the box" thinking. It's amazing how things like this shock us out of the ruts in thinking and taste we can often get into. Ya' done good, bro'! REAL good!

WHen I started this thread, I was anticipating some great surprises, but this is even more and better than I'd hoped for. YOu guys all seem to have great talent, and your thinking really opens new vistas, probably, for all of us. It's easy to get into doing the same old things the same old way, but that really gets boring, and all gunsmiths I've ever known were, essentially, artists at heart. The degree of artistic temperament and demandingness may vary, but they're - and YOU ALL ARE - true artists. Many many not realize it, but that's really what art is all about. Since the beginning of time, man has adorned his tools and been very particular about what he carried to hunt or fight with, and you guys are carrying on a very, very long and very, very honorable and needed field of endeavor. That'll always be worthy of respect and admiration, whether the society around us today realizes or acknowledges it or not. PLEASE keep these coming! We can NEVER get enough of this! I still have some old Gun Digests, and the first thing I tend to do with them, unless I'm looking for something particular, is turn to the pics of the custom guns. It takes me into a whole 'nother and very pleasant world, that only artists, or those who TRY to be one like me, can really appreciate. I'm envious of your many skills. Now that I have neuropathy in my hands, I'm pretty frustrated in my attempts to work on guns these days, but I keep trying. I'm just slower and more deliberate than ever. Can't do a lot, but I can't stop, either.

Keep 'em coming, PLEASE! We all love this stuff.

[LAGS]

The Knife was not my design, I can not take credit for that, I just had to figure out how it was put together.
And I am sure it isn't as good as an Original.

[Buckshot]

............I made up my iteration of a Marlin 'Light weight' rifle. Started with a M1893 action. I bought the wood from an outfit in Texas and a NOS Marlin '36-CS' 20 " bbl from GPC several years ago.



Once I got the stock fitted up I clamped it in the milling machine vise (after lining up the holes) to drill for the stock screw.

The barrel I got from GPC (original NOS Marlin barrel) almost clocked perfectly, but not quite...........



I had to make a spacer ring to torque the barrel up snug.



You can just see it here with the barrel in place.



Then the magazine was cut back and fitted to a dovetail on the barrel.



After the barrel was fitted I had to cut a dovetail to fit the front sight. Since the barrel was tapered I couldn't simply clamp it in the vise on the milling machine.



I parted off a couple pieces of brass hex stock (could have used aluminum round stock) and with a 1/2" ball end mill cut opposing grooves 90º apart on each piece. I then parted of a couple pieces of 1/2" round stock to use as bearings and set it up in the vice as shown. Since the side loads wouldn't be great in cutting the dovetail it worked like a champ. If there had'ave been downward pressure I'd have put a jack under the barrel.



Dovetail done. The screwhole is factory and there are 2. One is slightly aft of this one. I suspect the barrel was supposed to carry a ramp.



Magazine and forend fitted. Only issue is that the forend piece is supposed to be for a hexagonal bbl, but it doesn't look bad. Anyone waiting for me to Tig up the band and grind it hex shouldn't hold their breath.



Here it is completed. A 20" tapered round barrel, chambered 30-30. The magazine hold 3 rounds. A nice light competent rifle for someone who doesn't need 15 rounds.

[Buckshot]

.............PArt 2:



It has an original Buckhorn rear sight ................



.............A MArlin type "S" buttplate.



The front sight was from the spare parts box and needed a bit of tweaking.



It ened up being a very fine and easy handeling carbine.

............Buckshot

[Blackwater]

Buckshot, that's great work! I never had much chance to use a mill or lathe until I started helping out at a LGS. As a result, I have a VERY healthy respect for your work! Only time I used a mill entirely by myself without any instruction was making a broken piece for an old Cooey bolt action .22 that really tried my abilities. It worked, though, and the best compliment I've ever been payed was when the 'smith I was working under told me not a single on of the guns I worked on came back with any complaint. The other helper he had wound up being the reverse, but he quit before he could be let go.

When one decides WHAT to do with a gun, the main question is HOW, and that always is the part that often demands ingenuity, insight and plain old know-how. One of the things my Ackley trained 'smith told me that made a very lasting impression on me was that Ackley always told his students it didn't matter HOW they removed wood or metal, just that it be done correctly, whatever the method or technique used. That jived with all the things I'd accumulated, having usually had to work with a minimum amount of tools through the years in my own case. It's always more of a question of WILL to get things right than it is of technique, or equipment, or even method. Those old early PA and KY 'smiths that made those grand old rifles from the Revolutionary era are perfect examples. They didn't HAVE a lot of stuff, and it was mostly through sheer strength of WILL that they created those wonderful works of art and utility. Stuff like you did there shows the kind of ingenuity and determination and creativity that few seem to appreciate these days, but is and will always be worhty of great respect. Maybe one day folks will have few left who know HOW to get things done, and folks who DO know will finally get the credit they've always merited. Maybe?

[lkydvl]

Here's a few I have built...

[Blackwater]

Gee whiz, ikydvl, you sure know how to make a feller's heart start poundin'! Great work. It's a shame most of the younger shooters don't value guns like those any more. The wood on that Sharps is .... well, you know. Is that maple or walnut?

[Ballistics in Scotland]

Here's a few I have built...

I think that is more the Peabody kind of Sharps, but the case-hardening is wonderful. Did you do it yourself, and did you think any kind of packing etc. was needed to prevent warping? I have a restored Martini-Henry I would love to do that way if I dared.