7/8th Mini Low Wall Project

[JackQuest]

Okay, this is about 40% On-Topic because it's about single shots. I apologize up-front because these are rim fires, 17 HMR to be specific.

By the time I had a paying job in the 1970s all the "good" Winchester Low and High Wall actions were pretty much gone. There were limited production runs by different shops, particularly High Wall clones, but I couldn't justify the cost. Still, I loved the concept dearly.

Fast forward to 2007 or so, I'm working for a small market-focused software company that specializes in jewelry 3D CAD, and who also manufacture a sweet 4-axis desktop mill. Their entire focus is on jewelry. I use the software to design a 7/8th scale Low Wall action (from original patent diagrams), figure out how to replace the flat main spring with a modern coil spring, mill machinable wax parts (the green stuff in pics) and get them cast in 8620 carbon steel. Mostly hand finish the actions, buy barrel blanks, chamber and finish as shooting rifles. Project takes a little over 2 years start to finish.

Hope I didn't drag this thread too far off-topic.

Here is a link to PhotoBucket library.

http://s919.beta.photobucket.com/user/Moybin/library/Low%20Wall%20Project

[BCRider]

What a truly amazing project!

I'm only one of the new guys around here but I'd say this fits into the single shot forum like peanut butter goes with strawberry jam :D

Were these ALL for you or did you sell some of them off once it was all done?

[nhrifle]

Nice job on that rifle!

[Nobade]

That's incredibly neat. You do realize if you got yourself a manufacturer's FFL you could sell a pile of those, right? What you have done is so far beyond what so many "gun" companies have managed recently it's not funny. BTW, who did the castings for you?

Keep it up, you got yourself a potential going business there. Or at least sell the castings to The Rifle Shoppe for them to distribute.

[oldred]

I find this especially interesting because I too have a scaled down Highwall project underway, mine however is machined from 4140HT stock instead of castings. Those castings are very interesting and the fact they are 8620 will allow for Color Case hardening of the receiver which I could not do due to the 4140. I recently completed a full size version in 45/90 but have only recently resumed work on the smaller one which I hope to have completed before spring. Did you use the coil hammer spring or stay with the flat type? Any other internal mods? The obvious spring mods in the pics are also for the hammer?

[M-Tecs]

Very nice!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[nekshot]

If I had your talent and that equipment, I would surely get in trouble. Nice work!

[JackQuest]

Nobade:
Like all guns, there's a story to go with them. I built matched Howa heavy barrel .223 varmint rifles for my 2 sons as college grad presents. My 2 daughters did not do the college thing, but kept bugging me about "where's my rifle?". So I built the 4 falling blocks you see, 1 for me, 1 for my wife, and 1 each for my daughters. I know a guy who used to build museum grade Sharpes buffalo rifles and lost his shirt doing it. I know that with the production methods I used this is not a profitable process.

[JackQuest]

oldred:
The foundry designated the steel, not me. When I found that they preferred 8620 it was a "go" because I wanted to try my hand at color case hardening. In the photos you see my experimentation and results. I'm rather proud of the case hardened "blue" I got. Each action, grip plate and butt plate is different, unique.

The main spring IS a coil spring. It is NOT coiled around the hammer ala the Clarke Hi Walls. It sits under the barrel inside a guide tube that also performs as the hanger for the fore arm. The front sling swivel holds everything in place.

I believe parts should perform at least 2 functions if possible, and I figured out how to fold the main spring plunger into the system so that the hammer is released from the spring when the block drops exactly like the original flat spring arrangement. It also gives me some spring tension control on the hammer. I incorporated a spring and pusher behind the trigger so everything engages properly when the action is closed. The pusher also acts as a trigger over-travel stop.

Because the 17 HMR is not much for shooting beyond perhaps 150 yards under real-world conditions, and because my wife and daughters are not "sharp shooters" with iron sights, I opted to use cheaper NuStar holographic dot sights. These are a hoot on a single shot with virtually no recoil in the first place; great "both eyes open" sighting.

As you can see I milled the barrels half octagonal and half straight round, with a "wedding band" at the junction of both shapes. It's a sweet touch almost everyone who has handled one of these rifles notices.

[oldred]

That spring setup is very interesting and an excellent idea, wish I had of done something similar. I used the flat spring as a lever spring and the Winchester design coil for the hammer but I made quite a few other mods that I think were desirable improvements. First I redesigned the firing pin so that the "wing" is removed and it is retracted with a spring instead of the cam arrangement on the lever/block link, this allows the pin to be inserted into the front of the breechblock and is retained with a disc that is pinned into the block from the sides. The pin has a flange near the back that provides a positive stop and gas seal at the back of the breechblock so there is no possibility of hot gas being blown out the back in the event of a case rupture, of course I also drilled the gas vent hole in the block. I secured the trigger group from the back of the receiver with the retaining screws being hidden by the stock and I eliminated the sear pin going through the receiver by mounting the sear in a carrier that rides in slots milled into the inside of the receiver much like the slot arrangement of the lower tang. This eliminates the screw heads and sear pin ends from appearing in the sides of the receiver for a cleaner look but even more importantly the sear/carrier setup allows for easy trigger adjustment. I used 4140HT and just hot blued the parts but color case would have been preferable , unfortunately in my case with the 4140HT that's not an option.

[JackQuest]

oldred:
I went the reverse of you on the firing pin. Mine also uses a recoil spring, I tried a titanium pin but found it too light, that's right, too light, for inertial impact and uniform ignition, so back to stainless steel. The spring and pin are held in the block by an Allen head screw with a hole drilled through the hex (for the wrench) that lets the firing pin protrude for hammer impact. I wanted a solid falling block face against the cartridge case and only a hole big enough for the firing pin to break that surface.

Yes, 4140 does not color case harden, which IS too bad, but 8620 is nearly the same alloy and nearly the same strength.

These being the first rifles I ever stocked using 1/2 stocks I find I love them over a bolt or gas-gun!

Also, I spent maybe 40 actual hours just dinking with the hammer spring system in CAD, sure I could figure one out - which I did. I don't want to go into any more detail as the system could likely be patented, if I had deep pockets. :)

[rbertalotto]

BLOWN AWAY! Great design, great use of modern technology........and in your spare time you designed a great hammer spring mechanism.....and forearm to allow free floating the barrel.

You could sell those castings. I believe without an FFL as they are unfinished. (A call to the ATF would confirm). I'd be a customer for a couple...........

[JackQuest]

Roy B:

I appreciate your vote for my designing "skills" but I burned up a LOT of time hand filing and polishing those girls. I think the only reason the wife didn't file for divorce was my making one for her!

[pietro]

IMHO, you've made an outstanding personal & professional acomplishment - easily an embarassment to any number of large firearms companies.


Great work - CONGRATS ! !


.

[JackQuest]

Pietro:
Thanks! But they are not perfect; improving the ejector still eludes me. I think it is where the bolt action has the upper hand.

[skullmount]

That is really Cool !!!

Loved the pics