Don't see much of a difference

[Wolfdog91]

Lil story from earlier today
Just finished up some stuff on one of my projects, decided bubba had already too it 80% there might as well finish it up with a half decent rattle can job. So yeah touched up up a little and honestly though it looked pretty good so decided to take it outside and snap a few pictures.
Well I'm in the yard taking a few shots trying to get the lighting right because this phone kinda sucks and a guy who was over at my uncle's shop walked over. I knew him and he just kinda asked what I was up to and I told him what I just explained to y'all.
Well he cocks his head looks at me and says that's pretty weird to do that with a gun. "It's a gun, you buy it shoot it and you know , who paints and does all that stuff with a gun"
Well I look at him and said I do and I really enjoy doing it, explained how one of my favorite hobbies is to get used guns and tinker with them and try and fix them up a bit. Along with loading and casting for them. How each one is it's own little adventure and I just like the challenge most times. Some I paint some i sand and stain ,some are tactical some are practical , so me are just because I wanted them .And again he's looking at me like I got two head and starts talking about how I could just buy XYZ and not have to do all this.
Now this fella is a car guy, has a yard full of cars and trucks he always works on and he takes a lot of pictures posts them, does performance mods ect. Has a few nice working vehicles ,some pretty specialized some just daily drivers some show cars ,but he's doing basically what I do just with cars. So I bring that up . Well he said yeah but that's cars and trucks ! That's completely different. I ask how ? He could just buy whatever he wanted all the work done an not worry about anything. It's JUST a vehicle after all. Why all the tuning and mods and what not.
He stops ,looks at me and you know that look people have when their right in the verge of like , rethinking something? Well he had that for a few seconds then snapped doubt of it shook his head and said
"Naw naw totally different" and he proceeded to walk back over to chat with my uncle about something.
Idk seem to have this type conversation monthly with someone and it ranges from their shoe collection and refurbishing hobby to their anvil collecting and restoration obsession but very rarely do I get somone who goes " O it's the same thing just he does it with guns " I don't get how it's such a hard train of thought to connect but o well


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[deltaenterprizes]

It is your gun and you can do whatever you want to do with it!
It looks nice!
What action is it?

[Winger Ed.]

Wait until you stab someone's sacred cow with that sort of logic.

The conversation might start out with, "Why do you 'NEED' that"?

[contender1]

You are totally correct.

Sadly,, too many people can't relate to something,, if they personally don't have an interest in it. I see folks all the time who say; "It's a gun, I don't care if it's rare,, I'm gonna shoot it etc." Yet,, the same folks revere something else,, and wouldn't DARE do something to diminish the value of THEIR chosen pet item(s.)

I love it when I can do the same kind of thing to an anti-gun type. When I point out that a gun owner's passion is no different than their passion for something. (Like the guy I met once who collected lava lamps!) That deer in the headlights look when they realize the truth,, then they decide to ignore it & call me stupid. But I smile,, and say; "Yep,, but I'm smart enough to not lie to myself!"

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

He's right you know.
But then you are right also.
Everyone doesn't have to agree.
Myself, I like to get that kind of criticism once in a while...helps put things into perspective.
You can see, everyone here so far is giving you positive feedback, if all you got was positive feedback, you'd never know if something is the wrong choice. But then, I prefer to give out knee-jerk comments without putting much thought into it.
Sooooo, here goes.
I'm not a fan of camo. That paint job will probably knock down the resale value. But, if it shoots bug holes...then Yahoo !

[725]

I just love a good project. Your results look great. Now go make it shoot! The fun has just begun.

[Murphy]

Wolfdog91,

Good looking shooter you got fixed up there. Glad you found it and breathed some new life back into it. I'm not sure what percentage of gun owners buy a gun new off the shelf, a few boxes of ammunition for it, head out the door and get it sighted in. NOTE: Their idea of sighted in is staying on a paper plate an estimated 100 yards, truth is it was more like 62 yards. Oddly enough, they seen to find the biggest, dumbest bucks in the county year after year. Talk about Murphy's Law, for the deer anyway.

Then there are those who see a used gun on a rack, and at a darned good price to boot. The original owner(s) were the types who see a firearm the same way they view any other tool. Buy it, get some 'ammo' for it and it's no different in their eyes than a 9/16th's ratchet wrench, just a tool. They don't own a cleaning kit it for it.

Then there is 'us'. We see hours and hours of having a good time cleaning a nice ole' gun up the best we can. It's like you can hear it let out a breath with a big ole' thank you tossed in. Then we go to work making it ours. Little tweaks, trigger work, finish, whatever makes us happy with it.


Murphy

[Wolfdog91]

He's right you know.
But then you are right also.
Everyone doesn't have to agree.
Myself, I like to get that kind of criticism once in a while...helps put things into perspective.
You can see, everyone here so far is giving you positive feedback, if all you got was positive feedback, you'd never know if something is the wrong choice. But then, I prefer to give out knee-jerk comments without putting much thought into it.
Sooooo, here goes.
I'm not a fan of camo. That paint job will probably knock down the resale value. But, if it shoots bug holes...then Yahoo !

Lol resale value, that was killed when someone chopped the original sites off drilled and tapped the receiver for some crappy weaver mounts , when I was never cleaned so now the bore is 90% covered in carbon and fire cracking , and when they chopped up the original mil spec stock to make it a sporter . The resale value was dead with this thing before I was born lol.
And I'll be honest with you I'm a bit of a hoarder, I've sold three guns out of my collection in my life and they where just crappy headaches I didn't want to deal with.
Honestly the whole idea of buying guns and worrying about resale value or using them as an investment.....now days egh... Mabye a decade ago when you could buy a crate of mint hext receiver mosins or German Mausers for $1200 yeah but now days, unless I find something nice at the pawn shop that's been turned in buy someone's crack headed grandson or something I just don't see any money or real point.

[Wolfdog91]

It is your gun and you can do whatever you want to do with it!
It looks nice!
What action is it?

It's a old bubbaed M1917 , Winchester bolt eddystone every thing else. Dad got it while he was at ft Polk at a pawn shop , was chopped and sporterized and never really mess d with it due to recoil. Ended up letting me get a hold of it and ended up being the thing that got me into reloading in the first place. Boyds Varmint stock home made check riser , knocked off the old front site and yeah it's pretty decent, shoots cast alright

[Wolfdog91]

Wolfdog91,

Good looking shooter you got fixed up there. Glad you found it and breathed some new life back into it. I'm not sure what percentage of gun owners buy a gun new off the shelf, a few boxes of ammunition for it, head out the door and get it sighted in. NOTE: Their idea of sighted in is staying on a paper plate an estimated 100 yards, truth is it was more like 62 yards. Oddly enough, they seen to find the biggest, dumbest bucks in the county year after year. Talk about Murphy's Law, for the deer anyway.

Then there are those who see a used gun on a rack, and at a darned good price to boot. The original owner(s) were the types who see a firearm the same way they view any other tool. Buy it, get some 'ammo' for it and it's no different in their eyes than a 9/16th's ratchet wrench, just a tool. They don't own a cleaning kit it for it.

Then there is 'us'. We see hours and hours of having a good time cleaning a nice ole' gun up the best we can. It's like you can hear it let out a breath with a big ole' thank you tossed in. Then we go to work making it ours. Little tweaks, trigger work, finish, whatever makes us happy with it.


Murphy

Exactly

[Winger Ed.]

The resale value doesn't really matter if you're not going to sell it anyway.

Selling guns is sort of like selling jewelry.
If you're not in that business, the deck is stacked against you for making much.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Lol resale value, that was killed when someone chopped the original sites off drilled and tapped the receiver for some crappy weaver mounts , when I was never cleaned so now the bore is 90% covered in carbon and fire cracking , and when they chopped up the original mil spec stock to make it a sporter . The resale value was dead with this thing before I was born lol.
And I'll be honest with you I'm a bit of a hoarder, I've sold three guns out of my collection in my life and they where just crappy headaches I didn't want to deal with.
Honestly the whole idea of buying guns and worrying about resale value or using them as an investment.....now days egh... Mabye a decade ago when you could buy a crate of mint hext receiver mosins or German Mausers for $1200 yeah but now days, unless I find something nice at the pawn shop that's been turned in buy someone's crack headed grandson or something I just don't see any money or real point.

I did say "probably"

I collected lots of Mil surps in the 90s and 00s. I had one of those Chopped up Winchester '17. There wasn't much left to the rifling. I wasn't a boolit caster when I owned it. It shot pretty good with J-words...but not bug holes.

[Texas by God]

That is a serious rifle that looks serious.
Rock on with it and ignore the “advice.”
Nowadays I wouldn’t modify an original milsurp- nor would I spend a lot to restore one at today’s prices.
But improve an already sporterized one?
Damn skippy!


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[ebb]

Nice

[Winger Ed.]

I had a buddy that was a Army sniper in the Sandbox.

That's pretty much how they cammoed their rifles & other gear.
He'd put down a base coat, and let it dry.
Then throw some leaves & grass blades on it. Then spray the 2nd coat.
Dust it off, and he was done.
You could lay one of his rifles down on the ground, and it darn near disappeared.

[rbuck351]

I too enjoy buying old beat up guns and fixing them up to my satisfaction. It doesn't matter much to me what others think of my tinkering. I have two of the m17s and one p14. One m17 was bought by my dad around 1936 and is original the other has been sporterized in 416 Rem. The P14 is sported to a 358N. Neither of the bubbed ones has any chance of being returned to original so I will change them to what I like and not consider what others thinks about that.

Other than the improvised cheek piece, I like it. But, if I were you, I wouldn't be too concerned about what I think of it.

[45workhorse]

This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is MINE!
Do what you want with the rifle to get it looking and shooting the way you want it!

When they find out you shoot lead boolits through it, they are going to think your crazy anyway, so to heck with them!

[Three44s]

I have 2 of those M1917s, both bubba'ed. Bought them cheap and like them, rugged as all get out.

One wears original wood, the other has a sporter wood stock. I like wood that shows but if it came to a plastic stock, I could paint it.

Three44s

[dverna]

Do what turns your crank. Having fun along the way and not hurting others is a good way to live. If you hobby works for you, ignore the crowd.

People think I am an idiot for "wasting" my money and time shooting. I think they are idiots for going to Disney World, casinos, etc etc.

[fivegunner]

I think it look`s cool , Keep up the good work