Smokepole progress

Im trying to go backwards in time the best I can. I have archery season covered and have plenty of arrows made from last year. Ive been hunting with a .45 cap that i restocked with some walnut I personally cut down. im pretty partial to it since it was my grandfather’s but shooting the cap just seems a little like cheating.

So i got a .54 flinter and decided to go all the way and do some carving. Pretty happy with the progress. Sending the furniture off to my uncle to hand engrave. Very excited to see that stuff back in my hands. Snow. Nessy. Whatcha think?



Maybe ill post an update when i put it all together for the final time!

That stock is beautiful!

Keith

Please do post that final picture!
What you got there so far is beautiful.

Very nice Dean, thanks for sharing!

Very nice !

I can’t pull that carving off....

But do like shooting them all....smooth bore flinter.....45 cal Rifle flintah.

Life is just to short ...to learn all the crafts

Speaking of going backwards in time... you shooting a Selfbow ? And Shaving with a straight yet ?...lol

I have a few self made self bows and a straight razor. I feel young at 40 but i dont feel i belong in this era. Im sure most here can relate

Question for all you rifle builders- why is the inletting always left unfinished? Is it traditional or does it serve a purpose? Thank you.

I finished this stock by first coating it with tanic acid solution. Then i put an iron nitrate solution on that. Think of it like soaking the wood in acid and then putting iron water solution on top. Rust. Kind of. It creates an oxidation that is sort of caustic. Its very black at first. You heat gun it and it brings out the orange brown color. Then rub finish in with a fine scotch bright pad. So the theory is that if you keep it out of the inlets, it wont hurt the furniture as bad. That said, i finished the inside of the inlets with the finish im using. As a builder and a hunter of bad weather, i aint leaving any raw wood. I just cant do it

Ok makes Sense I know about the acid stain I used a ready made stain and yea you can’t leave the wood un finished . Thanks for the reply

Looks awesome, Dean. Great carving!

Yup

Craftsman indeed!

looks great thanks for sharing

Now I got the itch to break out and run a few rounds through my my front stuffer!

That looks really nice. Great job on the carving. Looking forward to a pic of it laying across a deer.

Was this a custom build? Do ou know the maker?

Just got back from a day at the range with flintlocks. 36 cal at bullseye targets and a 20 gage at clay birds. I am NOT a shotgun shooter by any stretch.

Snow, I got myself a Kibler Woodrunner .54. The last two guns I built were more or less from scratch. I’ve stocked a bunch of guns and for this gun I just wanted to focus on the carving. I also just wanted a Kibler because they are sweet and getting a .54 has me more comfortable for elk season. He has a great layout, the swamped barrel is awesome, and the wood is fancy for sure. Having a father that was a machinist, i can also appreciate his precision and the lock is quick. I’m itching to shoot this thing, but i got to break the news to my uncle that he has some work to do. This is a patchbox he did for my father. By hand…

Wow!
Some great work in this thread!

I did quite a bit of shooting with a traditions Kentucky rifle in 50 caliber yesterday shooting 490 round balls at a hundred yards. Had this rifle 20 plus years as my wife bought it for me. Got a good bunch of triple 7 powder in a box of stuff I bought from an individual. Was shooting 100 grains by volume. Accuracy is pretty good. Can hit a clay pigeon standing on edge at that distance. Heres my shoulder though this morning. Thing hits back too.

PS shooting from a bench. Rest wasn't tall enough. Made a weird angle against my shoulder to get in position to line up the sights.

DT - That check piece looked like a woodsrunner, glad you are happy with that Kibler. I have heard lots and lots of good things about those kits. That engraving work is beautiful.

Danny - 100 grains is a healthy load for sure. And shooting from a bench doesn't help at all with felt recoil.

100 grains is just asking for punishment. In my experience, a .50 only needs 70 grains and adjust a little from there. When I'm target shooting shorter distances I can shoot 25 grains without having to adjust my sights.

CoonsBane I am not sure why I am replying to you but those bruises are the result of to low of a rest. It was like shooting at geese (almost) flying right over your head. Load was safe and accurate, I was only shooting round balls. no where near the weight on the label.

Well I got the parts in. My uncle impressed me and honestly let me down at the same time. Somehow he lost the (This word is unacceptable on Trapperman) screw and he told me he was looking at locks designs of yore, but he sent it back to me blank. I really wanted that scratched. Its ok though. He has had a tough life, and Im happy with what I got. Ill get another screw. On the bright side he scratched the brass real nice. Now i have to sacrifice some days with the bow to shoot this thing, but i think ill be able to cope

Kiblers are a great kit and require almost no skill to build, I'm saving for a woodsrunner 54.

Amazing work

Looks great!

Even with another 30 added to your 40 I still feel young More than 50 years ago my grand farther would say to me "{i was born 100 years to late ". I would laugh at him Even though I knew what he meant and agreed with him.

nice work, looks great

Pretty rifle for sure. Have fun getting her dialed in.