Another Virginia Rifle...

[Ed Wenger]

Thought I'd share some pics of another Virginia rifle I recently finished.  This one is kinda based on a Valley rifle with a step wrist.  The barrel is a 46" Rice, "B" weight, .50 cal.  The lock is a Davis Early Colonial.  I rounded the pan to give it a more "English" look and modified the tail some.  Obviously, it's stocked in walnut.  Reeves butt piece and trigger guard with Dave Keck's wonderful ram rod pipes. 









    Ed

[Mark Elliott]

Ed,

You did a nice job.  The carving is very neat and crisp; a very hard thing to do in walnut.   The only problem (and I am guilty of this myself as are any number of originals) is that the carving behind the cheek piece is noticeably below the plane between the butt piece and the wrist.   I am guessing that you didn't leave enough wood back there.   Otherwise,  it appears to be flawless.

Mark E.

[rich pierce]

Great looking rifle.  The stepped wrist is nicely done.

[Elnathan]

That is a really beautiful rifle, Ed. Do you have full length pictures?

[agaboric]

Nice job, I like it.

[Tom Currie]

Well done Ed. The lower butt molding and contoured sideplate stand out for me.

[Long John]

Ed,

Another fine looking rifle!  This is getting to be a habit with you.  Knock it off!

Best Regards,

JMC

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Ed, you've done a great job.  As has been said, details like these in walnut are very tricky.  You have done a great job of filling the pores without destroying the details of your carving.  I like the rifle.

[longcruise]

That's a great looking rifle!  I like the Goering brass.

So, now I'll be the first to ask a really dumb question.  What do you guys mean by "stepped wrist"?  How does it and a non - stepped wrist differ?

[Ed Wenger]

Thanks very much for the kind words from all...

Mark...  I hadn't noticed the carving being low...  It's centered to my eye, which might not be saying much, lol...  maybe it's a perspective thing from looking down on the rifle?  Or maybe I'm missing something, which is entirely possible...  At any rate, thanks for the feed back.

Mike...  The stepped wrist is a kind of pistol grip.  If you notice where the rear of the trigger guard comes in contact with the stock, there's a small "step", it's not a straight, smooth line up to the trigger.  Hope that makes sense...

      Ed

[Acer Saccharum]

@!*%, Ed, your work keeps getting better and better. Your carving is really creative, and right looking. Like the English flavor muchly. Well scraped ramrod, too.

Tom

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Ed, I see what Mark is referring to.  I could just be the photograph, but that is what we have to work with.  What I see is the elements of the carving cut into the plane , and the wood cut away to bring them into relief.  The wood between the butt plate and the closest element appears to rise from the butt plate and then fall as it comes to the carving, leaving a low "hill".  This theme appears to be repeated in a number of other areas in and throughout the carving.
The carving...I like the collection of features of the rococo "C's", the leaves, the interesting flower device, and the incised curls.  It's a very appealing design.

[Mark Elliott]

Ed/Taylor,

It could be that the dip/hill around the cheek carving is only seen in the photograph.    I don't see a lot of stuff until the finish is on and I photograph it.    As much as I try,   I always miss areas that needed more attention.   Now, fortunately,  with regard to photos, I can fix some of those problems in the photos so that the gun at least looks good in my portfolio.     With a problem like Eds,  I would put more light on the top of the carving, and vola! a perfect carving!

Mark

[Tim Crosby]

 Great looking rifle, very nice work. I for one have always been a big fan of Walnut.

Tim C.

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

Ed, it is an elegant rifle. I love the cheekpiece molding!! the tang carving and the carving on the patchbox lid!!  Your incised carving is an inspiration!

[nchunter]

How did you age your metal?  I like that dark gray color.

[Ed Wenger]

Thanks again everyone...

Taylor...  After your description, I see what you mean!  I took a hard look at the rifle and although there is a bit of a bump in places, it ain't nothin' like the photo, at least I don't think so!...  It's a great teaching point that Mark brought up for all of us, one that I'll remember.  I've attached another pic from a different angle that shows the carving at a slightly different perspective.  I took the pics outside under natural light and I think that exaggerated the effect somewhat...

The metal was cold blued with Super Blue, then rubbed back with fine steel wool and WD-40


Thanks again,

         Ed

[longcruise]

Ed, ok, now i see the "step".   Thanks for explaining that.

[J.D.]

Wow. That is nice, real nice. I  especially like the way you did the very well done stepped wrist. Most builders over exaggerate the step, giving a clunky look. Not so in this case.

God bless

[deano]

Lovely gun, the walnut is very striking.

May I ask the pattern number on the trigger guard that is exactly the one I have been looking for.

Ken

[Ed Wenger]

Ken...  The trigger guard and butt piece are Reeves # 10...

           Ed

[deano]

Hi Ed,

Thanks for the help I ordered a set of #10 castings today from Reaves. I do like your gun in Walnut but this one might be a Maple stocked rifle. Was the stepped wrist difficult to shape correctly?

Ken

[bob243]

I like it allot.  Very nice.     

 I started one in cherry about a month ago,  I am still figuring out and collecting parts.    It has a 50cal D weight Getz which I just got finished inletting last night.  I also selected the same BP/TG combo.  Also going with an early Ketland style lock.      I havent really gotten brave enought to attempt carving yet, but I am thinking of doing the outline on top of the wrist around the tang and allong the top of the sides for the lock and sideplate.