All,
Thank you for your compliments.
Joe, the Bucks county entry pipe is one-piece, formed from .040 brass. Just make a forming block with a female depression for the tang. Anneal the brass first. Bend the pipe, solder it closed, slide a drill through it and then hammer the tang into the depression carved into your forming block.
Daryl, picking a stock blank is kind of like picking a puppy. Half of what you get is the product of your training and socialization of the pup, the other half is in its genes.
On previous guns I was often unhappy with the finish. So on this one I really focused on the finishing process. The whole stock received the same staining treatment. That one area on the right side of the butt just would not take stain! The whole stock is scraped - no sandpaper. Then I put on neoprene cloves and washed the stock with Dove detergent in warm water to remove any hand oils and raise the grain. (I can't use organic solvents due to health issues) I did that twice rubbing the stock down with de-oiled steel wool after each wash. Then I used pure water to rinse and raise the grain, and burnished the stock to take off the lifted fibers with a brush of sorts made of 1.5" hemp rope. I did that twice. Then I applied my vinegar/iron stain, the same pot I've been using for 20 years. It got 3 coats of stain each followed by drying and burnishing. By the time the 3rd burnish was done the stock looked as if it had been oiled already with a soft shine. Then Chambers stock finish per the instructions on the can. I did all of this while wearing neoprene gloves. That part of the stock just did not "want" to get any darker.
I have thought about retro-fitting a simple brass butt-box just to visually interrupt that large area. Unfortunately, the carving on the right side limits that option, some. I'll think about it.
Best Regards,
John Cholin
