FALout, All metal pieces on this rifle were finished prior to assembly on the rifle with exception of the nosecap. It has been attached to the rifle as Swampwalker described in his post.
Ezra, I obtained all of the steel hardware and miscellaneous components for this rifle from Tip Curtis. In my opinion, you'd be hard pressed to find a finer, Southern gentleman with which to do business. There were a couple of issues with the five faceted butt plate (too wide at the top where it abutts the comb) but we worked through it.
This rifle sports a "C" Weight, Colerain, turkey-choked barrel. That's the main reason I decided to go with steel hardware. Now if I can just get a bird to walk in front of it! That hasn't been a problem in the past but we'll see in a week or two.
And lastly, although I take great pride in showing this rifle as the owner, I cannot take credit for its construction. This summer I met its maker under the ALR tent at Dixon's Gunbuilder's Faire. I guess I have Acer to thank for that. The gunsmith was Ed Wenger of Catlett, VA. I talked to a couple of gunsmiths hanging out there but one look at the rifle that Ed had with him that day sealed the deal. His metal to wood fit is phenomenal! His carving, as you can see, isn't half bad either. I don't know what I'd have done if he would have said no. The build took him about 2 1/2 weeks and he documented the build with about 30 pictures. We had at least that many emails with questions and concerns. If you have any additional questions about the finishes on this rifle, look him up on the web and give him a shout.
