shane a gress
40 Cal
This was my attempt with one of Jim's barrels and his patina solution.

That looks really good, Shane! Strong work!This was my attempt with one of Jim's barrels and his patina solution.
This was my attempt with one of Jim's barrels and his patina solution.View attachment 32721
Wow! This is the kind of stuff that keeps me coming back!
Wow! This is the kind of stuff that keeps me coming back!
I checked out that website for Crockett Longrifles. It's a great site, with lots of nice pictures, and the guy does interesting work. It was slow to load, probably because of the "slideshow," but well worth a visit. I think it's pretty cool that he has settled on one basic style of rifle, with only three minor variations, and I appreciate the historical significance. However, with a base price of $9,000.00 for a plain, southern style rifle, his guns are just out of my price range. I think I'm probably speaking for a lot of us on this forum. That's not a criticism... He is free to ask whatever he wants for them, and I sincerely wish him the best of luck!
Notchy Bob
I'm sure that's part of it. He (Greg Murry, the gunsmith) apparently sand casts his own brass buttplates and trigger guards. He carves his stocks "from the plank," and makes his own set triggers from scratch. The barrels are from Rice (like the Kibler rifles) but contoured to the exact dimensions of the original rifle. He uses Chambers Late Ketland or L&R John Bailes locks. So yes, he does hand-make the triggers, mountings, and stock. This probably accounts for some of the price, in addition to the fact that every one of his rifles is evidently a bench copy of one of the three originals... or, at least, that's the way I understood it.I wonder if he’s making all the components by hand? That might account for it if so.
It is more important to have what you really want then to be able to prove it was used.I am so upset to hear cherry wasn’t used on southern guns and makes a poor stock wood. I greatly admire its look and enjoy the way it deepens in color over time and exposure to sunlight...![]()
I finished my first in the white gun some eight months ago, a 20 gauge trade gun with a cherry stock. Left hand lock as well and I found it fairly easy to work although as has been mentioned, it can be chippy depending on what angle your blade edge is to the grain. I was going to use lye in order to bring out the color but a buddy gave me some red mahogany stain, suggesting I use that instead. Three coats with some sanding in between with very fine grit paper. Top coat was TruOil and it came out pretty nice.
Thank you for the compliment. I must admit that it took me a while to even start learning about the many ways of finishing cherry and that the prospect of completing an in the white gun intimidated me. I did quite a bit of woodworking in my younger days but very little in the past 25 years.YES it did, very nice!
I’m going to try and let my cherry stock age naturally to see what color I get. Plan B might be a mahogany stain as it looks so nice on your gun!
Thank you for the compliment. I must admit that it took me a while to even start learning about the many ways of finishing cherry and that the prospect of completing an in the white gun intimidated me. I did quite a bit of woodworking in my younger days but very little in the past 25 years.
After using the stain on a test piece of the same wood I liked the red tones it brought out so I decided to go with it on the stock. Be aware that the tone and color of cherry can vary widely so make sure you test what you've got first. For some folks, the mellow browns and tans are what they are looking for so only an oil finish is used, sunlight does the rest. Lye brings out the red but for an intense red tone you may need stain. I'm going to attach some pics of some other things made from cherry so you can see the difference. The are not from the same tree or area of the country either.
That box the kibler smr kit comes in is too nice to throw away. Seems like it would make a nice gun cabinet if you put some hinges on it.Cliff from Organ. I. Got the walnut but it came damaged so they replaced it with a ex fancy maple awesome the kit is excellent.