#1 - Sheetz - I would appreciate your help with constructive feedback.

[WV_Mountaineer]

This is my first build.  I tried to build a gun based on the Sheetz/Hampshire County guns. I have received tremendous help from this forum, tutorials, etc.  I would appreciate more of your help, I enjoyed this (even though it took nearly 3 years) and would like to improve on my next build.  The beginning - and the final product - and the other side - (sorry about the canoe).  The patch box - , cheek piece , side plate , and lock mortise -

Did I capture the school?  What should I do differently.  Should I find another hobby?  Thanks, so much for looking and commenting.

Steve

[Ben I. Voss]

Mountaineer, that's a mighty ambitious first attempt and I'd say you did very well from what I can see! The lock panel / wrist area has a kind of beginners awkwardness to it, but experience will fix that if you keep making them! Keep up the good work - you can be proud of your first rifle.

[Dave B]

I agree this was a big under taking just out of the box. Your butt stock section looks great but that lock area has the flat look that comes from not having the real thing in your hands and using only pictures. If you were willing you could still improve upon what you have here by taking off a bit more wood around the lock panels  to slim it down. But I have been told by some once your done with a gun move on to the next one and improve on what you have done previouly. Learn from your mistakes. I was also told you need to sign and number them so you can have a record of what you have done.  I still have my first gun and its ugly. You have some good things happening here but you do need to improve on your side plate profiles. They are a bit square in cross section. You must first shape down the profile then at the end of this do you cut in the outline of the beaver tails and the front lobes of the lock panel. Your carving looks nice as well as your engraving. Much better than my first attempts. Find some one near you so you can get the reall thing in your hands and it will make a big difference in how you will shape out your next rifle. You can not hold too many originals.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v648/DaveB44/BerksCOtangbreacharea.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v648/DaveB44/DSCN4628.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v648/DaveB44/DSCN4623.jpg
Note the anle of the portion of wood that is between the tang and the side plate. It is at an angle of about 30 degrees or so. Some rifles have this area actually concave.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v648/DaveB44/DSCN4625.jpg
It is always easier to close the corral after the horses are out

[Tom Currie]

One observation I will make is that your lower forestock appears too thick top to bottom. A lotta wood there. How much web is there between the barrel and RR hole ? How much wood under the RR hole ? I believe the thickness of this lower forestock is adding to the oversized lock panel area also and a thick wrist. I'm not sure how the trigger bar even reaches the lock sear.

That being said your level of effort shows promise. I would have wrote up almost the same critique on my first rifle.

[KLMoors]

Here's a thought that may get you pointed in the right direction regarding the profile issues. I notice there is a plan in one of your pictures. If it is a decent plan it should have a bunch of sections (cut throughs) shown for each area of the rifle. These are the sketches that look as if you cut through the gun with a band saw and then looked at it endways. If you look at them closely I suspect you'll notice that they are more round, and probably smaller, than the corresponding area on your gun.

Take a piece of clear plastic like that tough stuff that everything comes packaged in now-a-days and lay it over the section drawing. Draw a reference line on this plastic that you can use to help you orient this piece of plastic later, such as a flat line that lays accross the top flat of the barrel.  Sketch the outer profile of the stock onto the plastic with a sharpie and then cut along your line and remove the "gun". Leave your reference line so you can use it for orientation. Cut your template in half so you've got one for each side of the gun. Now, hold this template/pattern up against the stock in the area where that specific section was cut and it will show you how close , or far, you are from the correct shape.

I hope that makes sense. If you've got a crappy plan that doesn't show proper sections then I think you are going to need to see a good gun up close. Actually, you are going to want to do that either way but a good plan will get you closer than you are.

[Rasch Chronicles]

I really like the dark muted finish. How was that accomplished?

Albert

[WV_Mountaineer]

I really like the dark muted finish. How was that accomplished?

I used two coats of the 'Magic Maple' and sanded back with hot water and scotch brite type pads, kinda looked like osage orange wood at that point,  then applied thinned LMF nut brown stain, and finished with 2 coats of LMF permalyn.  Sanded in between every coat with scotch brite type pads and final with 0000 steel wool.  Wiped that down with Boiled Linseed.

[bama]

You have made a very good first attempt and can be very proud of it. In addition to the others comments I noticed that the wrist area right behind the tang is a little humped. I think this may have been caused by not putting enough bend in the tang. The tang as it comes usually needs a lot of reshaping, tapering and bending to get the right flow to the wrist area.

I will say that your carving, fit and finish looks very good for the first build. The engraving is not bad for a first attempt either. Just a few adjustments and you will be on your way to being as hooked as the rest of us.

[WV_Mountaineer]

Dave B (and others),

Your butt stock section looks great but that lock area has the flat look that comes from not having the real thing in your hands and using only pictures.

You hit the nail on the head, (only pictures) and I hope to take care of that in the next couple of weeks.  Seeing and hopefully holding some original guns.  Your first picture really drives home the point of where I have too much wood and am debating going back to the bench or just live with it and make the correction on the next one.  Don't know if I can fix it and still match existing stain.  I did number it and sign it on the barrel, it just doesn't show in those pictures. I thank you for taking the time to explain it in this level of detail.  

Capt. Fred, I will check the cross sections, as you suggest.  The plan was for an Isacc Haynes with swamped barrel.

[Hawken62_flint]

Steve,  as I have seen and handled your first rifle in person, I just want to say that for a 1st effort, you did an amazing job.  All the pointers that are being given here on the forum are good and all that slicker, more rounded, not so fat look will go away with more experience.  Your carving and engraving seem amazing to me for a first effort and I don't believe that you told that you made the sideplate, thimbles (including the entry thimble), nosecap, patchbox, and both front and rear sights.  Great job--I look forward to going out and burning some powder with you and your new rifle.