Guns and Ammo Thread

Has anyone had a firearm or parts Cerakoted? I'm thinking about having a current project's metal finished with it- the barreled action and stock hardware done together so it looks clean and not a mismatched overlooked piece of shit. Something to replicate a semi-gloss hot bluing job, like damn near black.

It would be for this- a KIDD Classic (custom 10/22 clone) with a Shilen match grade heavy taper barrel I am stocking.



I said I was done with 10/22s last year... and then I was approached with that beast. There isn't a single part in it made anywhere near Ruger and I had that nice stick of claro walnut waiting, so I jumped on it.

Here's some nicer photos of those two Mausers:

Spoiler

Oh, and I updated my website/blog a bit too: <a class="postlink" href="http://northernriflestocks.com/gallery/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://northernriflestocks.com/gallery/</a>

 

A gunmaker in Pennsylvania who uses my walnut/carbon fiber blanks just sent me these photos today of a .22lr benchrest rifle he just finished.

This has a polished Remington 40x action with a custom checkered bolt handle, Shilen ratchet barrel, Leupold 45x45 scope, and a stock he made out of laminated spalted maple and carbon fiber.





Holy shit, right? Not your average stick of firewood there.

 

This homemade chisel with a tiny little edge is the best. As long as I give it a quick strop after a few minutes of use, it can shave the thinnest slivers off gnarly end-grain (like the butt-end of a highly figured stock) with little effort.



These are just crappy cell phone pics because my computers card reader decided to die last night, but the rest of the stock is coming along too.

 

Why haven't I made something like this yet??



Genius.

Anyways, that buttplate is fitted to the point where every cut can set me back way farther than make progress. Gotta keep the little chisel sharp.



I've rasped and scraped off almost every bit of excess wood off the butt, so now the seam between the walnut and steel is revealed.



I think this is the best inletting I've done on a plate yet, I'm happy with it. I nicked the buttplate a few times while filing the wood down along the edge, but it doesn't bother me too much since I'm going to sharpen up all of the checkering on the plate with files anyways. I still have to sand the wood down flush with the metal and will do a little touch-up work in some spots, but so far it is looking good.

 

When you're nailing your girlfriend a little too hard and your 870 lands on her face it won't seem like such a good idea anymore.

 

What if she has a gun fetish... that would be perfect timing. Hey you gotta be prepared to defend yourself 24/7.

Spoiler

That thing has got to be a joke, how can you take it seriously?

 

Whenever I get back to NC, my concealed carry permit will be ready. I'll finally be able to pick up my Glock 23.

I should also have my HAMR and deltapoint waiting for me to put on my M400.

Coming home should be exciting.

 

I just got some pics back from the same stockmaker who did the target rifle above, this time the photos are of stocks he is almost done with, made from blanks I made last year. Seeing my blanks transformed into awesome stocks never gets old, it's like Christmas morning when I get these photos. What's especially exciting about these is they are all made for Stiller 2500x benchrest rifles, which is the latest and greatest thing out there in RFBR competition.

Spoiled for lots of pics.

Spoiler

Before:




During:

(he is working on the other two blanks in this lineup right now)

After:

 

A new 1000 yard 10-shot benchrest group record was recently set, and it is almost 25% smaller than the previous record (pending).

2.6872"... you can cover that with a coffee mug. It is mind-blowing when you think about it- that's like shooting at a baseball 10 football fields away and nailing it 10 times in a row.



I finally just got some maple and cherry wood I laminated with carbon fiber back from a guy with a CNC milling machine I sent it to for him to clean up, after months of waiting. Making stocks with horizontal and vertical laminations takes additional steps and is a massive pain in the ass compared to vertical-only laminating (which is enough of a pain as-is), but it'll be worth it in the end. I think there could be some advantages to it from the engineering standpoint, but regardless it is a unique look and this is some beautiful wood.



It will become one bad-ass stock for my Suhl 150 benchrest rifle, and if I can manage carving the design I have in my head I'll pursue having a copy pattern made so the design can be duplicated.

 

I just finished up some major surgery on a project, the wedge-shaped ebony tip I did a couple months ago. After looking at the tip and thinking about it, it was clear the ebony was just too short. Regardless of the barrel or total fore-end length, there wasn't enough of it extending beyond the walnut. I believe certain proportions are critical to making stocks look and feel good and the ebony to walnut proportion was just way off.

So... being a perfectionist and unable to turn a blind eye to it, there was only one option: Start over from scratch.





(This Image is Too Large to Be Displayed Within the Post. Click Link to View) (614 kB)

I politely asked the existing ebony tip to fall out and it didn't budge, so I raised my voice a bit and then it obliged. Okay well it didn't exactly happen that way but I managed to remove the old tip without damaging any of the walnut, including the razor sharp edge along the tip. It was a miracle if you ask me. The trick was gently driving heat into the wood via pressurized steam (a clothes iron) to break the Titebond III glue bond, since heat is the enemy of most glues and epoxies. Then the next step was chopping another block of ebony, a longer one this time, and re-fitting it to the stock.

When I fitted the first ebony wedge, the walnut fore-end was square in profile. It was much more challening to fit the ebony wedge in this time around with the stock already profiled to a semi-oval shape, and again the walnut tip ended in a sharp edge where it previously formed the seam against the ebony. I'm glad it's over and done and I managed to join them back together nearly as well as the first. More importantly, I can look at the stock now and not cringe at a tip too short!

Another shop miracle recently happened, I managed to finish laminating the maple/cherry/carbon fiber blank for my Suhl all together in perfect alignment. After trimming and removing some bulk excess (see the small mountain of wood shavings in the pic), I'm ready to start inletting this thing and getting the real stockmaking work going.

 

It really depends on what you are reloading. My old roommate and I used to reload 410 shotgun shells because for some reason, those fuckers are so much more expensive than 12 gauge. Once you get the press and all the materials, it generally costs about half the price per round. And with practice, you get quicker at it.

 

Which caliber is he going with? Generally, Savage makes a good rifle and has for a long time. Looks like it has the accu-trigger as well.

The reloaders they sell over there are pretty good. Its up to him how many stages he want the press to take care of and how much hand loading he wants to do. With a good press, you can start making ammo real quick. But if its for a less expensive caliber, it might not be worth it.

 

The rifle package is a basic yet well-rounded rig and should be a good no-frills hunting rifle. Not a bad deal for a new rifle if he is set on a Savage and likes the Nikon scope. A buddy of mine had one exactly like it in .30/06 except without the newer trigger, and it shot very well.

 

If it has the varmint version accu-trigger, like mine, he will love it. Adjusts down to 2 - 2.5 pounds and breaks cleanly.

 

I know you are talking about riffle reloading. But with my target pistol, i couldn't afford to shoot it without reloading. I think it was less then 20 percent of the cost for me, so when you are doing 100+ rounds when ever you go out it makes a huge difference.

 

Quality ammo for a 300 win mag is expensive. You could have basic press paid for after just a few boxes.

 

Yep, that is one where you will save in the long run by reloading even if you don't shoot it a ton. What kind of competitions does he want to shoot in?