This is a rifle that is owned by Wallace Gusler that feels was made in Virginia. The original is a well balanced rifle that shoulders and points as a rifle should. I was glad to get the opportunity to be able to study this rifle up close not only from the outside but completely dissassembled so the study could be done in detail.
I am going to post another thread of the study pictures and my attempt to recreate this great rifle.
I did use mostly scrapers and rasp to shape the stock once the blank was band sawed out. I hand inlet the barrel and drilled the ramrod hole.
The butt plate and trigger guard were cast by Wallace using the originals as patterns. The lock is Jim Chambers, Jim thank you for wonderful lock. The trigger, trigger plate, nose cap, thimbles, side plate and inlays were hand made by me from sheet. The barrel was made by Ed Rayle.
The stock was stained with Wahkon Bay Aquafortis (nitric acid) this was also used to brown the barrel.
I have found that Nitric Acid will rust steel at a rapid rate. As you can see on this barrel I got a very dark surface and a little bit of an aged texture to the barrel. This was from 4 coatings over a two day period with one carding after the second coating. I let each coat stand for about twelve hours, thus the rougher texture. A finer finish can be had if the coating only stands for an hour or two then carded and recoated.
The finish is about 15 coats ofhand rubbed tung oil. Each coat would be applied, let dry and then buffed out with an old terry cloth hand towel. Then I applied about five coat of Johnsons paste wax after the oil was dry.
The metal was all filed by hand down to my finest files and then lightly sanded with 220 grit paper backed with files. I then buffed the metal with 0000 steel wool and after sighting the rifle in I wiped the brass with one of the blackend cleaning patches to take the shine off the brass and then buffed with 0000 steel wool again.
