Up coming builds?

[Herb]

I am commissioning to build an exact copy of Jim Bridger's Hawken rifle as it looks now (over 150 years old), for Fort Bridger State Park.  The superintendent plans to let people handle and even shoot it.  I needed a shaped non-inlet stock (except for barrel channel and ram rod hole, because I have had all the work I ever want hand sawing Hawken stocks from blanks) and Phil Meek suggested Tiger Hunt had one that would work.  I wanted a plain hard maple stock, with little or no figure, but Mike Barton there had only one in stock, in nearly presentation grade.  I got it to see if I can cut the Bridger stock from it, and it is just what I need.  So I'll use it in my presentation on building the Bridger Hawken at the GRRW Rendezvous at the  end of the month, and build It into an exactly copied Bridger but as newly built (no wear) and with the fancy grain highlighted instead of varnished black-brown like the original.  I have no plans for it.  Then I need to get a plain maple stock and build the one for the Fort.  I plan to do a tutorial on this.  Next I have a one inch .54 barrel and friend Kevin is giving me a Hawken Shop 1" plug and tang, so I'll build that as a Kit Carson Hawken and make a tutorial on that, too.  No plans for that rifle.  Photo below is an exact enlargement of the Kit Carson Hawken with the Tiger Hunt blank and then my copy of the Bridger Hawken, which barrel is 2" shorter than the original, because that is the GRRW barrel I had.  Thus I had to shorten my forend.

The stock is inlet for a 1 1/8 to 1" tapered barrel, which I have, but I have to set the barrel back about one inch.  There is plenty of wood for cutting an exact match of the Bridger (or Carson) stock.  Very hard maple, I love it!  Other than that, no plans.


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[Frank]

Finishing up a Chambers York County rifle. Up next is a Clay Smith Early English Tradegun.

[Mike Brooks]

This week I'll be slowly starting back to real work. 1st up is a gun I'm very excited about for a customer that lets me build what ever I want. I'm doing a full blown Rowan Co. NC rifle. Stump cut super duper rock hard 1/4 sawn curly maple, Bill Large .36 tapered 42" barrel with a Roller flint lock. It will be mainly based on # 141 in Ivey's  book. It's a gun by Isaac Ribelin and dates 1827. I'll probably borrow a couple features I like from other Ribelin guns I like as well.
 Then I'm going to do a spec gun. It will be a Gillespie "bear gun" in wally nut, Davis late Ketland lock brass trigger guard and pipes, no other mounts, strictly a poor boy. The barrel is a 42" swamped Hoyt .58 with a 1 in 56" twist. (wish I would have went 1 in 48") I'll be happy to play with that gun till somebody buys it. I took a lot of the drop out of the pattern so it won't hammer so hard. It should make a supper midwestern/eastern deer gun.
 Like Alex, some time down the road I'm going to do a French "Fusil de Anchor" for myself as well. I love these guns and would like to keep this one for myself. The barrel is a 50" Hoyt in 20 bore Oct. fading to round. The stock is heavily curled walnut. I just bought a Rifle Shoppe lock for it through Steve Zihn's latest sale. It will be mounted in brass and the barrel is already in the wood.
 I have a lot of interesting guns on my list I'm looking forward to, but I won't bore you with all that. I want to build some guns for myself that I have been excited about. I want to build another Ribelin gun for myself, cast about in the Vogler style, then go on and dabble in West VA Sheetz family guns. Oh, I have 5 pistol barrels I need to use up. I have a matched set of Paris 8" swamped barrels in .60 rifled that will probably end up as colonial restocks with old euro parts, nothing fancy. Got a pair of longish Getz Oct/rnd .54's, one rifled one smooth, don't have any idea what will get built form those. Then I have an unidentified maker 10" .45 Oct. barrel I want to make a NC Kennedy styled pistol... I might do that one soon as I have some clever ideas about it. OH! and that cool "Running Deer rifle" that is over on the antique gun page. I gotta get to that, that is just too cool and has to be done!

 If I get all that done in the next 10 years I'll be amazed.

[Joe S.]

Wow,folks have alot of stuff planned or already on their plates.Still working on my first and hope to have it done by winter.I'm in no real hurry so......am pondering my next.Companion pistol,maybe but before that might try my hand at making a possibles bag.

[WadePatton]

Wow,folks have alot of stuff planned or already on their plates.Still working on my first and hope to have it done by winter.I'm in no real hurry so......am pondering my next.Companion pistol,maybe but before that might try my hand at making a possibles bag.

Do note that a full range of makers, from Pro to Doh! have participated in this "survey".   

I can say that because I'm on it. 

[Treebeard]

For my second build I am thinking of a little 28ga with 36 inch barrel in hopes of getting my daughters and grandkids to shoot with me. Of course I am hoping to avoid the mistakes of my first build!

[Mike Brooks]

DOH! I need to make myself a flint shotgun for shooting skeets too! And then there's that set of Ambrose Lawing  mounts by Myron Carlson I need to get made into a gun. Maybe more like twenty years to get it all done?

[n stephenson]

Mike,  Great Topic!!  It has been cool to see all the different responses. I could almost "feel"  the anticipation in the builders , as they described their future works . I guess I`m not the only one that is always looking forward to the next one.  Thanks Nate

[seniorsgt]

My grandson and I will be working on his lh and my rh 36 cal smr's. Summer got away from us with his archery and my cabin build.

[Joe S.]

Life has a way of doing that.I looked at the date I started my build,,man time flies.You know you been dragging your feet when folks give up asking you if you ever got that rifle done

[Treebeard]

I forgot to mention that the little 28 will be flint.

[Dennis Glazener]

It will be a Gillespie "bear gun" in wally nut, Davis late Ketland lock brass trigger guard and pipes, no other mounts, strictly a poor boy. The barrel is a 42" swamped Hoyt .58 with a 1 in 56" twist. (wish I would have went 1 in 48") I'll be happy to play with that gun till somebody buys it. I took a lot of the drop out of the pattern so it won't hammer so hard. It should make a supper midwestern/eastern deer gun.

Mike,
Just curious what the drop will be on the Gillespie? Many complain that the Gillespie's don't have enough drop as is. My original Mathew Gillespie only has 3.25" drop at the heel and that is with a 14.5" length of pull. Most of his sons rifles i.e. Harvey, Philip, John, James had more drop, can't remember for sure but I think the Harvey I made my pattern by has 3.5" at the heel but with a little shorter LOP.
Dennis

[Dennis Glazener]

Just finishing up a Kibler kit (walnut stocked 45) and next will be a 16 bore fowler using one of Mike Brook's rejected stocks (rr hole broke out under trigger guard). Not sure how long Mike said he had that stock laying around and I have had it probably a couple of years. Have had all the parts to finish it but kept putting it off. Need to get to work on it.

Then I will have to get back to making Gillespie's, have a long list of "I want one" customers but I need to take a break from them every once in a while.

Also have a Gillespie bear pistol that I started a couple of years ago and put under the bench "for awhile" and need to get back on it.

My problem is I can only take a couple of hours working at the bench before my knees/legs/hips start hurting too bad so its slow going.
Dennis

[Mike Brooks]

It will be a Gillespie "bear gun" in wally nut, Davis late Ketland lock brass trigger guard and pipes, no other mounts, strictly a poor boy. The barrel is a 42" swamped Hoyt .58 with a 1 in 56" twist. (wish I would have went 1 in 48") I'll be happy to play with that gun till somebody buys it. I took a lot of the drop out of the pattern so it won't hammer so hard. It should make a supper midwestern/eastern deer gun.

Mike,
Just curious what the drop will be on the Gillespie? Many complain that the Gillespie's don't have enough drop as is. My original Mathew Gillespie only has 3.25" drop at the heel and that is with a 14.5" length of pull. Most of his sons rifles i.e. Harvey, Philip, John, James had more drop, can't remember for sure but I think the Harvey I made my pattern by has 3.5" at the heel but with a little shorter LOP.
Dennis

2 5/8" at the heel, 1 1/2" at the comb and 13 3/4 pull. That's right off the top of the barrel. Add probably  1/8" to 1/4" more drop on those measurements to allow for sights. Those measurements fit me well and I never have to hunt for the sights. Also makes recoil a little easier for me. So, in the end I suppose I reduced the drop by  around-about 1/2"?
 I don't even run those Fowling gun stocks anymore, I can't afford to be in the kit business, too much capital outlay to keep an inventory. They don't have a lot of drop, you better get the barrel in and see how it fits, then decide how your going to shape the comb. I designed that gun to be used as an upland fowling gun, most shotgunners like it, hard core rifle shooters sometimes have trouble with it. I know how you feel with your restricted bench time, I was fighting that for the past several years do to one ailment or another. I was only able to finish three guns from January to June this year. That's why I finally went to the Doc to get my 350 gun body rebuild.

[smallpatch]

About to do carving on a Lehigh, just finishing the patchbox now, then the finish.

Next, a little NC, ash stocked rifle, .40 cal Southern classic, brass plated Queen Ann lock.  (Copy of a Joe Schell)........ after that?

[Dave Patterson]

Well, here's one from the "Duh" category:

Am planning on/working toward a 5-gun series of SMR (TN/NC) squirrel rifles for family:  one each for me (experimental/trial-and-error piece), The Bride, Only Son-in-Law, Younger Son, and Elder Son; in my own style, but loosely based on MBS's Zacharia Luster drawings.

There's been an awful lot of rifles in the four branches of my family over the centuries they've been here, and until Grandpa Walters and my ol' Pop passed, not a one of them left in family hands that we know of.  Since I've never been able to acquire any other sort of "estate" to pass along to my kids, this is what I want to leave them when I tip over, so I want them to be recognizably "MY" work.

At this point, I'm still gathering tools, parts, etc; once I start this, I've gotta get 'er done pretty steady, so nobody gets to feeling left out if the Big C wins before I get them completed.

[PPatch]

I have a nicely aged 70 inch long walnut blank that would probably take a plus 50" barrel that I can't decide what gun to make of. The grain flows through the wrist area perfectly, the blank has minimal figure and in the year and a half I have had it in the shop is showing no signs of moving, warping.

This thread reminds me to order more stock blanks soon.

dave

[t.caster]

As I mentioned in my "Ladies Bucks Co." thread the other day, I have an early .54 x 42" JP Beck in the works.
Then, don't know 4 sure but I have a nice p'ce. of curly ash that wants to become a southern rifle someday! Then some Cherry with the same desire. Probably another Eng. Walnut .62 Jaeger this winter. Could make two of them.
Numerous Curly Maple stocks that also talk to me from time to time! I know you all talk to your wood, right?

[oldtravler61]

  Tom I talk to my stocks. I lay the stock on the bench with the lock an barrel.
 Then I say " How many times do I have to show yeah"  Just like the wife. They never listen. 20 + years an they still refuses to do it. Oldtravler

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

ABOUT DROP AT THE HEEL AND COMFORTABLE SHOOTING BUTT STOCK DESIGN:  It's the drop at the comb that matters to me, and like Mike, I prefer anything that is > 1 1/2".  If it's less than 1 1/2", it cracks my cheek and is miserable to shoot.  The top of the butt stock can be parallel to the bore, but the drop at the comb matters a lot
I have a Verner .50 cal pistol to finish but  I must do a client's 20 gauge Penn fowler first.  After that, I will go where the spirit moves me.  Among my builds:  Antes swivel .54, Beck smooth rifle in .50 Cherry stock, Kibler .40 cal rifle kit, .50 cal SMR of my own design,  double flint 15 bore on original Staudenhauer bbls, .25 Cal Western Pa rifle in walnut, Christians Spring .58 cal., Mediterranian lock (Miqulette) on 48" original bbl., and that's enough for the time being.

[BOB HILL]

If everything goes as planned, I am going to retire Jan. 1st. I hope to be able to get caught up on some of my orders and build some of the guns that run around in my head. I also need to build a few more guns for our eight grandchildren. I've worked shift work all of my life and it has really gotten in the way of the work I love. When I'm working on a gun, I get very involved and don't like stopping and starting. I hope to change this shortly.          Bob

[TommyG]

Just finished up 8 maple/sapele end grain cutting boards for Christmas time, but no matter how hard I try, they won't go bang when fitted with locks & triggers!!  Seriously though - Have a early Dickert started with a 50 cal 38" B barrel from Rice.  Have a barrel coming from Ed Rayl(should be here this week)to start a Jaeger build around RCA #5 for my son, 58 cal - 26" long.  Recently ordered another barrel from Ed Rayl  - 42" Oct-Round 16ga for a turkey gun I'd like to build around Grinslades BS#11.  Of course in between all this, there is hunting season.  Oh well, when your not buildin' 'em, might as well be using 'em.  TomG

[WKevinD]

King Philips english musket and a  1690s French fowler
Kevin

[satwel]

Just finished a TOW 1742 Long Land Pattern musket. Worked on it for six years and shot it for the first time last week.

Starting a Bedford county longrifle with a Rice barrel and very hard Tiger Hunt maple stock I picked up at Dixon's fair two years ago. I'm going to put the L&R mule ear lock on it. I've built only flintlocks so far, but I've long been fascinated by mule ear locks and thought I'd give one a try.

After that, I will be restocking a Miroku Short Land Pattern repro. It was owned by a local re-enactor so the stock is really beat up but it had been fired very little. I just acquired a nice walnut blank from a fellow forum member that I'll use for it.

[Daryl]

ABOUT DROP AT THE HEEL AND COMFORTABLE SHOOTING BUTT STOCK DESIGN:  It's the drop at the comb that matters to me, and like Mike, I prefer anything that is > 1 1/2".  If it's less than 1 1/2", it cracks my cheek and is miserable to shoot.  The top of the butt stock can be parallel to the bore, but the drop at the comb matters a lot
I have a Verner .50 cal pistol to finish but  I must do a client's 20 gauge Penn fowler first.  After that, I will go where the spirit moves me.  Among my builds:  Antes swivel .54, Beck smooth rifle in .50 Cherry stock, Kibler .40 cal rifle kit, .50 cal SMR of my own design,  double flint 15 bore on original Staudenhauer bbls, .25 Cal Western Pa rifle in walnut, Christians Spring .58 cal., Mediterranian lock (Miqulette) on 48" original bbl., and that's enough for the time being.

Quinn is REALLY looking forward to that gun, Taylor.  Oh yeah- I had forgotten about those Staudenhauer barrels.  Nice! I think the .25 will be fun and we'll have to go bunny hunting after it's done.