ROAR! II

[Mike Brooks]

Here's my rendition of the Lion & Lamb gun. I made some changes from the original as if it may be another from the CS shop with C. Oerter having more hands on. The wire work being in the style of Oerter as well as the slight swelling at the rear pipe. Oerter styled sideplate and absence of the Moravian star at the cheek piece as you'll see occasionally on Oerter's guns. It has a Rice 41" EDL barrel in .54 caliber, 1 3/16" at the breech with a rapid taper in the first 8" or so with a slight flair at the muzzle. Chambers Virginias lock. Supper dense flame figure sugar maple stock originated from Tiger Hunt. All the brass was cast locally. The box master courtesy of Mr. Kettenburg. Trigger pull is right at 13 3/4". Weight is 9 3/4 lbs. The weight is mainly in the buttstock with the buutplate and heavy cast box plus the weight of the super dense maple. The balance point is about 3" behind the rear sight.

[Mike Brooks]

Click on the pics for a larger view.

[Stoner creek]

Mighty fine! Like all of the eye candy. There’s plenty going on there. I look forward to laying my big paws on this gun!

[Mike Lyons]

WOW, unbelievable !!  It’s got it all.   The checkering and detail around the comb turned out perfect.  The finish job is amazing. 

[Robert Wolfe]

Very nice Mike. Certainly one of your best.

[sqrldog]

Great rifle Mike.  You keep raising the bar.

[Bob McBride]

Gorgeous.

[tallbear]

Thats a great gun Mike.I really like it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mitch

[Tim Crosby]

 Beautiful, amazing work. That carving at the comb is really neatly done as is the triangle at the tang.

   Tim

[Mike Brooks]

Thanks all. Now that I see the pics I find a few things I still need to deal with that I forgot to do. There are several screw heads that never got darkened and there a shiny spot on the frizzen spring that catches my eye that I don't like. I also need to address the tang screw fix just ahead of the tang screw. I bought this barrel off this forum and when it showed up it already had a hole for a tang screw drilled. The barrel had never been in a gun so I'm not sure why that was done. Anyway, I soldered in an old  short tang screw I had laying around and the blasted slot was still there after I filed it all down. I'll have to figure out some way to darken solder.
 I was surprised by the weight of the gun after it was finished. After my surgery I  can generally only handle a 7 1/2 lb. gun. This one at 9 3/4lbs is no problem for me, the weight is all in the buttstock and breech and it holds well, no wobbles or shakes. I'll have this gun at F-ship, so if you see me have a look at it, it looks much better in hand than in pictures. If I still have it I'll have it at the CLA too.
 Now, off to a new project!

[Ed Wenger]

Very cool rifle, I really like the tang carving!



           Ed

[Mike Brooks]

Very cool rifle, I really like the tang carving!



           Ed

Thanks Ed, You're very good at that sort of stuff too!

[rich pierce]

Mike, you seem to have taken your carving to another level the last few years.  Hope you can make another 50 or so!

[Mick C]

Though I've never been in love with that particular patch box, that is one incredibly well sculpted and crafted rifle.  I'm absolutely drooling here along with my Bassett Hound bestie beside me.

[Eric Kettenburg]

This is a great piece, great!  Also I'm so happy to see you went the way of "the next one" philosophy as opposed to doing up a "copy."  That's just me, though, since I find copies boring as all h**l.  I think you really nailed it in pulling off a believable piece that looks as though it may have been made by the same shop, without slavishly copying anything.  I really like it!  Fantastic.

[oldtravler61]

   Nice job Mike and as other's have said. You keep stepping up the bar.
 Impressive work to say the least.  Oldtravler

[Smokey Plainsman]

.54 cal is a dandy stopper!

[Lucky R A]

Hi Mike, nice job on your latest, just the right amount of funk to be your style.  I have found Novacan black patina, to work very well to blacken lead and solder.  This chemical concoction is usually used by those who do stained glass work, so it is formulated especially for darkening lead solder etc.  I use it to get rid of the occasional little shinny solder when I install a under rib.

Ron

[TommyG]

Mike, That is some great work on your CS combination rifle.  I really like the treatment on the tang area.  A lot going on there to take in with the carving, as well as your border on the comb.  I have a short barreled CS gun I am starting to finish this week with the same approach, a compilation of different elements from Albrecht and Oerter guns.   Real nice finish too - I like the color.

[BOB HILL]

Your work is still evolving, Mike. I really love it. It's nowhere near time for you to even consider retiring.
Bob

[Mike Brooks]

Your work is still evolving, Mike. I really love it. It's nowhere near time for you to even consider retiring.
Bob

I bought a boat a couple weeks ago....

[Craig Wilcox]

Mike, you keep saying that you try to improve with each new rifle.  Well, Sir, you have indeed!

While I like the entire rifle as a package - it all fits together so very well - I especially like the tang, and the use of the silver wire inlay.  At first glance, that portion of the silver along the toe-trigger line actually looked like a split in the wood, after a couple minutes of looking, it really started to appeal to me.

Thanks for making and sharing this wonderful firearm,

[smylee grouch]

That really is special. I like it. 

[Anonymous]

I bought a boat a couple weeks ago....

Call it what it is. Got to have a canoe for that back room canoe gun collection.   

[Mike Brooks]

I bought a boat a couple weeks ago....

Call it what it is. Got to have a canoe for that back room canoe gun collection.

Ok, that would be a Alumacraft for my Alumacraft gun collection. It's a 16 footer....maybe I should mount a punt.