Buckshot
11-06-2011, 02:56 AM
...............Back in the mid '90's (or thereabouts) there was a large influx of British military shotguns using Martini actions. IIRC some being sold as "Prison Guard Shotguns" and supposedly took a special 14 gauge shell. In any event I wasn't interested in shotguns but a couple places offered the actions only so I bought a couple of'em.
http://www.fototime.com/B181BBB36F52305/standard.jpg
One was used to make this in .444 Marlin. The barrel came from Numrich and was a Douglas 1.25" blank, 44 cal with a 14" twist. I really don't remember where the wood came from but I'd guess Fajen, so that was before Potterfield got ahold of them and Bishop, and screwed them both up :-( I really should rasp that rollover cheekpiece off as it sure smarts. When I had my gunsmith install the barrel I also had him make 2 dovetail cuts on top of the barrel for front and rear sights. A Lyman insert tunnel type was put in up front, but what I was going to do for a rear sight escaped me. The dovetail was there, but I really didn't want a levergun type sight.
One day I decided to make my own rear sight, and I had that big flat sided action, so I figured I could mount something that way. The only powertool I had besides a hand drill and a Dremel was my grandfather's old Craftsman drillpress, so it was mainly files, and hacksaw. Everything I used was scrap except for a couple screws and some 10-32 allthread.
http://www.fototime.com/82F9C15B4D54EF4/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/AD192423A0C0D86/standard.jpg
The basis for it all was the sidemount. It started out as a rectangle piece hacksawed out of a piece of plate. I'm sure the sidemount and windage arm is mild low carbon steel. I had no drawn plans, so it all came out of an idea in my head. The sidemount was filed out of that hunk of steel by hand, with some finishing and polishing using the Dremel.
The ear on the upper rear of the sidemount the windage arm goes into was drilled on the drillpress. The end of the windage arm had to be reduced in OD and that was done by spinning it in the drillpress and using a file to turn it down, and carbide paper wrapped around a file to smooth it up. A hole was D&T'd 10-32 in it's long axis, and a piece so threaded was tinned, screwed in then heated to solder them together.
http://www.fototime.com/22DFA0CC5E23F3C/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/4C088869B4050C5/standard.jpg
I first placed a small belleville washer on the threaded shaft, and had made the thin threaded flat washer. This was to be tightened down on the belleville washer to tension the windage arm, and then a regular ole nut was threaded on to lock them in place. In the right photo you can see a hexhead setscrew. A hole had been drilled lengthjwise through the top of the sidemount into the hole in the sidemount ear. The windage arm's reduced OD end was put into place and scribe marks made for the 'Up' and 'Down' positions. It was removed and a shallow hole was drilled in each position. Once the windage arm had been totally completed and placed in the sidemount's ear, a small ball bearing, followed by a spring (from a ball point pen) and then a setscrew went in. Obviously the setscrew seals the end of the hole, but can also be used to increase or decrease pressure on the ball bearing detent.
http://www.fototime.com/50A0A62B03F2726/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/8F44027A7A8D647/standard.jpg
The windage arm had a hole drilled lengthwise almost completely through. RIGHT PHOTO, the right end had a larger hole drilled in the end. A knob with a shoulder to fit the hole was made. An annular groove was cut into the OD of the knob's shoulder. Likewise a hole for a pin was drilled widthwise in the windage arm to accept a pin. When the knob was to be put in place, the pin would be driven in and it rode in the annular groove retaining the windage knob in place. The windage knob had also been D&T'd 10-32 to take the piece of allthread the Enfield sightstaff would move on. On the left end of the althread it was turned to a shallow point (you can barely see it in the LEFT PHOTO) to ride in the tapered hole left by the drill bit.
The windage arm was series drilled to begin the slot for the Enfield sight staff, and was then filed into a slot.
http://www.fototime.com/AF11A8B8AB1A964/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/F6D9DAF4D930DE3/standard.jpg
LEFT PHOTO shows the Enfield sightstaff was cutoff and threaded 10-32. RIGHT PHOTO has the staff lying back and showing it's base in the slot. The checkered piece just under the windage knob is the safety thumbpiece on this Greener action. The safety sets automatically when the action is cocked. I had to heat and bend it down some, as when you pushed it up, it would hit the windage knob and the striker wouldn't fall. Since I had it out for heating and bending I checkered it using a thread file.
http://www.fototime.com/B181BBB36F52305/standard.jpg
One was used to make this in .444 Marlin. The barrel came from Numrich and was a Douglas 1.25" blank, 44 cal with a 14" twist. I really don't remember where the wood came from but I'd guess Fajen, so that was before Potterfield got ahold of them and Bishop, and screwed them both up :-( I really should rasp that rollover cheekpiece off as it sure smarts. When I had my gunsmith install the barrel I also had him make 2 dovetail cuts on top of the barrel for front and rear sights. A Lyman insert tunnel type was put in up front, but what I was going to do for a rear sight escaped me. The dovetail was there, but I really didn't want a levergun type sight.
One day I decided to make my own rear sight, and I had that big flat sided action, so I figured I could mount something that way. The only powertool I had besides a hand drill and a Dremel was my grandfather's old Craftsman drillpress, so it was mainly files, and hacksaw. Everything I used was scrap except for a couple screws and some 10-32 allthread.
http://www.fototime.com/82F9C15B4D54EF4/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/AD192423A0C0D86/standard.jpg
The basis for it all was the sidemount. It started out as a rectangle piece hacksawed out of a piece of plate. I'm sure the sidemount and windage arm is mild low carbon steel. I had no drawn plans, so it all came out of an idea in my head. The sidemount was filed out of that hunk of steel by hand, with some finishing and polishing using the Dremel.
The ear on the upper rear of the sidemount the windage arm goes into was drilled on the drillpress. The end of the windage arm had to be reduced in OD and that was done by spinning it in the drillpress and using a file to turn it down, and carbide paper wrapped around a file to smooth it up. A hole was D&T'd 10-32 in it's long axis, and a piece so threaded was tinned, screwed in then heated to solder them together.
http://www.fototime.com/22DFA0CC5E23F3C/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/4C088869B4050C5/standard.jpg
I first placed a small belleville washer on the threaded shaft, and had made the thin threaded flat washer. This was to be tightened down on the belleville washer to tension the windage arm, and then a regular ole nut was threaded on to lock them in place. In the right photo you can see a hexhead setscrew. A hole had been drilled lengthjwise through the top of the sidemount into the hole in the sidemount ear. The windage arm's reduced OD end was put into place and scribe marks made for the 'Up' and 'Down' positions. It was removed and a shallow hole was drilled in each position. Once the windage arm had been totally completed and placed in the sidemount's ear, a small ball bearing, followed by a spring (from a ball point pen) and then a setscrew went in. Obviously the setscrew seals the end of the hole, but can also be used to increase or decrease pressure on the ball bearing detent.
http://www.fototime.com/50A0A62B03F2726/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/8F44027A7A8D647/standard.jpg
The windage arm had a hole drilled lengthwise almost completely through. RIGHT PHOTO, the right end had a larger hole drilled in the end. A knob with a shoulder to fit the hole was made. An annular groove was cut into the OD of the knob's shoulder. Likewise a hole for a pin was drilled widthwise in the windage arm to accept a pin. When the knob was to be put in place, the pin would be driven in and it rode in the annular groove retaining the windage knob in place. The windage knob had also been D&T'd 10-32 to take the piece of allthread the Enfield sightstaff would move on. On the left end of the althread it was turned to a shallow point (you can barely see it in the LEFT PHOTO) to ride in the tapered hole left by the drill bit.
The windage arm was series drilled to begin the slot for the Enfield sight staff, and was then filed into a slot.
http://www.fototime.com/AF11A8B8AB1A964/standard.jpghttp://www.fototime.com/F6D9DAF4D930DE3/standard.jpg
LEFT PHOTO shows the Enfield sightstaff was cutoff and threaded 10-32. RIGHT PHOTO has the staff lying back and showing it's base in the slot. The checkered piece just under the windage knob is the safety thumbpiece on this Greener action. The safety sets automatically when the action is cocked. I had to heat and bend it down some, as when you pushed it up, it would hit the windage knob and the striker wouldn't fall. Since I had it out for heating and bending I checkered it using a thread file.