In over my head?

[Rick G.]

I just retired and was thinking about building a flintlock rifle. I have a CVA Kentucky hunter in ..5o cal. that I have hunted with,and need another boomstick. I looked at the Build tracks Jaeger rifle parts set kit from Track of the wolf, as well as the early american jaeger rifle kit from Dixie gun works. My question is,which one is good for a first build? I first looked at the Baker rifle from The rifle shop and that one was very involved to build, and was looking for something a little simpler but of high quality. Any advice is welcome...

[G-Man]

Are you set on a Jaeger?  If not, you should consider Jim Chambers kits - his components are top notch.  He has a variety of American colonial era kits to chose from.  I have seen a lot of nice rifles made from these by first time builders.  Actually, he has a nice short barreled English rifle - very Jaeger like, just an Anglicized version of a short hunting rifle. 

GM

[docone]

I have, on several occasions, messed up several builds. A bunch of little stupid mistakes that in the end really showed up.
My suggestion,
Take your CVA. Measure the barrel. Get a stock, probably a Lancaster style. Inlet the parts.
That is what I am doing right now, and I have a stock to use for reference. That and this forum, and other sites.
I have a 7/8ths barrel, and the stock is a real tight 7/8ths. Real tight. I got mine without a lock cut out. I will have to do as much work anyway, so I got this stock with the ramrod channel drilled, and the barrel channel inleted.
I will have to inlay everything, pending getting a replacement lock. An upgrade. I have to cut one dovetail, make three barrel pin lugs, inlay the barrel. I am right now, inletting the pipes. I also ordered a muzzle cap.
I am also changing the butt plate to a wider one.
I am glad I did this one. The rifle was a shooter. A proven base to start with. What I am learning from my inletting is priceless. Get good chisels! They really help. Each part I do, I get better and better.
I got videos by Jim Turpin. They help also.
That is my approach. I got tired of wasting good money, barrels, and locks. When I am done, I will not have a museum piece, but I know it will shoot, and I can tweak it. That is all I really wanted anyway.
I want to make me an Hawken fullstock with percussion cap upgrade. I saw one a long time ago, and it is there in my mind.
I will, actually finish this rifle though.
It is nice to have hands on the stock the parts came from.

[Rick G.]

Are you set on a Jaeger?  If not, you should consider Jim Chambers kits - his components are top notch.  He has a variety of American colonial era kits to chose from.  I have seen a lot of nice rifles made from these by first time builders.  Actually, he has a nice short barreled English rifle - very Jaeger like, just an Anglicized version of a short hunting rifle. 

GM

I went to the Jim Chambers website and saw a lot of nice projects, but I kinda like the lines of The Jaeger.

[Rick G.]

I have, on several occasions, messed up several builds. A bunch of little stupid mistakes that in the end really showed up.
My suggestion,
Take your CVA. Measure the barrel. Get a stock, probably a Lancaster style. Inlet the parts.
That is what I am doing right now, and I have a stock to use for reference. That and this forum, and other sites.
I have a 7/8ths barrel, and the stock is a real tight 7/8ths. Real tight. I got mine without a lock cut out. I will have to do as much work anyway, so I got this stock with the ramrod channel drilled, and the barrel channel inleted.
I will have to inlay everything, pending getting a replacement lock. An upgrade. I have to cut one dovetail, make three barrel pin lugs, inlay the barrel. I am right now, inletting the pipes. I also ordered a muzzle cap.
I am also changing the butt plate to a wider one.
I am glad I did this one. The rifle was a shooter. A proven base to start with. What I am learning from my inletting is priceless. Get good chisels! They really help. Each part I do, I get better and better.
I got videos by Jim Turpin. They help also.
That is my approach. I got tired of wasting good money, barrels, and locks. When I am done, I will not have a museum piece, but I know it will shoot, and I can tweak it. That is all I really wanted anyway.
I want to make me an Hawken fullstock with percussion cap upgrade. I saw one a long time ago, and it is there in my mind.
I will, actually finish this rifle though.
It is nice to have hands on the stock the parts came from.

I am sure to screw this up somehow, but thats part of the fun. Perhaps when I develope more skill Ill tear down the CVA. Some things I will be getting are books and videos related to the subject. That is a great suggestion. Thanks for the advice.       

[G-Man]

I am pretty sure that Tip Curtis has a couple of Jaeger patterns and you can get his guns in any stage from kit, in the white or finished. From what I have seen his in the white guns are very nice so if you want a relatively simple project you could go that route.  He does not have a website unfortunately.

If you want to tackle more of the build, you can get it in kit form from him.  The barrel will be mostly inlet and the lock and other parts close - you will have to finish the inletting, etc. and then finish shaping, deocratiing, and finish the rifle yourself.  

I can't recall right now, but I think RE Davis may also have a Jaeger kit, as does Pecatonica.  These would be pretty similar to the Track of the Wolf kit.

There are others, just varying degrees of how much work is left to do on them.   With any of them I would get a good basic "how to" book - Chuck Dixon's is probably the most straightforward - and also get access to good photos of originals.  Really study them carefully.  If you can get a look at antiques at a show that will help you a lot, if not antiques well built contemporary guns.

Perhaps others who have experience with Jaeger kits from these suppliers can give you a better idea of how much work there is in each one.   I have heard good things about Tip's kits and his in the white guns seem to be a good value to me if you are looking for an easier project. The Chambers kits have long had a solid reputation as the way to go for first time builders but if you really want a Jaeger they do not have one.

Good luck

[Pete G.]

If you like the Jaeger style go with the Dixie kit for a first try. Since it is a kit version of a production gun it is basically final fit up and finish. It will give you a good feel for how things go together, but still be involved enough to give a good feel for gun building. You will also get a good start on the tools required for a more complex build. The other kits are a set of components that are much more involved. You will end up with more of a custom gun with the Chambers or TOW kits, but there are lots more opportunities for mistakes.
The other thing to do is BUY BOOKS, then tools, then more books, etc., etc.

[LRB]

  I built one of those TOW Jaeger kits for a friend a few years back. It came out great for me, but that is not one you want to start with. IMO. Even though roughly inletted, the butt plate was a bear to get in right. I would suggest something simpler for a first.

[Rick G.]

Thanks very much Folks for all the good advice. I think that I'll buy some of the reference material suggested, and then be better armed to make a final decision on a build. I will keep you Folks updated once I figure out my project....

[Larry Luck]

Here's another Jaeger: 

http://www.dunlapwoodcrafts.com/ComponentSets/JaegerRifle.php

I believe the DGW kit has a parallel sided barrel.  Not authentic and will create a muzzle-heavy rifle.

Larry Luck

[Tim Crosby]

 Here's another:    http://www.longrifles-pr.com/jaeger.shtml

 Tim C.

[blunderbuss]

 

  Never copy from a copy always copy from an original that way if you screw up it's only once. Get a book that shows a rifle from every angle and study it. Look at every detail ,sure they will all differ some but your in the ball park all Jaegers didn't look the same but they're all similar there is room for individualism with in that frame work

[Rick G.]

Mr. Luck, Mr. Crosby,  great links to awesome builds. I think that I will put off the Jaeger project untill I develop the skills needed to do a good job. In the meantime I am looking at the English sporting rifle from Jim Chambers. When I called them this was one of the reccomended kits for a novice, and a fine looking rifle. I orderd some DVD's on how to build thier kits and I'm looking at obtaining the proper tools. I hope I don't need to go back to work to pay for all this cool stuff!