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[Eric Krewson]

This rifle is such a mess I only pick it up when I need to kill time, such was the case lately. I inletted the entry pipe but the ramrod wouldn't go in to the forestock. A check with my borescope indicated although the inletting looked good the pipe was still a little high. I lowered it a bit and everything worked out just fine. I slopped the pipe around trying to get the alignment right, I ended up with a few gaps that will need to be shimmed.

[Eric Krewson]

I started in on my trigger guard, this and the nose cap are all I need to finish before I shape the wood and get the basic construction done.

[PaulN/KS]

Good to see you back at the bench Eric.
Looking forward to future updates. 

[Eric Krewson]

I hope this one shoots OK, if it does it may be my last. I had the barrel reamed out to .54, the guy who did it left a slightly loose place down near the breech, the rest of the rifling is spot on.

If this one isn't a good shooter I may throw in the towel and get a Kibler colonial kit to finish for my final gun. I have two or three of everything now, fowlers, squirrel rifles and deer rifles.

The bad thing is I can't see the sights on any of them as cataracts and old age have started blurring everything.

I made a prototype tang mounted peep for my deer rifle the other day, I stuck it on the gun for the picture but it isn't finished up and still a little rough. I did take a few shots with it to adjust the aperture size. In the right light the sights are very clear but I have to have my head just right on the stock to achieve this.

[Eric Krewson]

This rifle has been a pain, partly because of the precarve and partly because I am not doing the quality of work I once did and I don't know why.

Case in point; simple job, line up the side plate with the lock plate, drill the bolt holes, tighten down the bolts, scribe around the plate and inlet it to the proper depth.

Something went wrong, somewhere between tighten down the bolts and scribe around the plate something shifted. I took out the bolts and inletted the plate to the proper depth, the lock bolt holes were very slightly off and were binding in the holes through the stock and wouldn't hit one of the threaded holes in my lock plate. On close examination I could see I had the plate inletted a bit too high.

I recut the inlet to where it was supposed to be and still had a slight interference with the holes in the lock plate so I filed the holes slightly larger.

The recut inlet now had gaps, I hate gaps so I started adding shims, it took 9 of them in all and several days to get the plate fit just right and tight.

I like to show my builds warts and all, I have had a bunch of warts lately.

First the patches, none will show on the finished gun, then the final side plate fit.

 

[Eric Krewson]

All I have to do now is inlet the nose cap and remove the excess forestock wood and define the wrist and butt stock a little more and I will be done.

[Eric Krewson]

Removing wood to get getting ready for the nose cap installation which is one of my least favorite parts of gun building.

[Eric Krewson]

I realized I had filed too much of the original cast nose cap away and bought a new one. As I was putting the new cap in place it wouldn't go on. I thought there was too much wood blocking it so I kept filing. I had overlooked the lip inside, I had never used a cast cap before. Turns out the lip on the casting was holding the cap back from going on.

I had removed way to much wood so it was time for super glue and sawdust to build the wood back up to the right contour. This patch won't show and will be twice as strong as the wood would be alone. This is not the first time I have had to use super glue and sawdust on a nose cap inlet.

[Parnell]

That's a good trick, Eric.  I'll remember that.  Your shim work looks very clean.

[Deerhunter21]

going back to the peep sights

the funny thing about peep sights is that the small back hole actually focuses light to your eye making it look clear. im nearsighted and if i take my glasses off and make a very small hole with my forefinger and thumb, and then look through it, i can see clearly far away.

[Eric Krewson]

I was curious about my ability to see through the peep in the fading afternoon light. I tested it at various intervals as the sun went down a few days ago. When the sun dropped below the horizon  the front sight became invisible. I painted my front sight white and could see it through the peep way past legal shooting hours.

[JW_Halverson]

......and the next morning it snowed! 

 

[Eric Krewson]

I got the nose cap on, I use a screw on the inside and tap the nose cap for the screw threads. The screw doesn't show and where it comes through the nose cap, it looks like a rivet. I soak all the wood in the barrel channel with superglue to harden it.

[Eric Krewson]

A little more, screws in the buttplate and inletting the toe plate.

[Parnell]

Looking good, Eric.  Having finished some housework projects, I am back on my .45 Lancaster.  I’ll have to post up...