first build

[StarnesRowan]

just got done with my first build what feed back can I get

 

[StarnesRowan]

sorry I didn't wait for these to load

 

[Larry (Omaha)]

First build? Meaning from a blank? Tell us more about what you have done. Looks OK for a first, but you do have the front sight on backwards. The high end should face the eye.
Tell us more, especially how she shoots.

 

[Spikebuck]

First build? Meaning from a blank? Tell us more about what you have done. Looks OK for a first, but you do have the front sight on backwards. The high end should face the eye.

Hi Starnes. Congratulations on your first build.

I agree with Larry that it would be good to know more to make suggestions specific to what type of rifle you were working toward.

Besides the front sight, I think your rear sight is on backwards as well.

A couple of generic comments for your consideration:

1. It's "aggressive" to try to do decorations like carving, beavertails, moldings, etc. on a very first try. These types of decorative elements have their own learning curve, so sometimes, unless one has obtained these skills elsewhere, it can be best to focus on the basic rifle build first. Most of us certainly appreciate the works of art that are displayed on this forum, but a very well executed "plain" gun is a beauty to behold....simple and elegant.

2. Sometimes it is hard to tell from pictures because of the angle of the photo, but it looks like there is a convex "swoop up" on the top line of the barrel channel from the nose cap. The nose cap appears to come up about 1/2 way on the barrel. While it varies on the type/school of rifle, if the wood then jumps up to only reveal about the top third of the side flat, that is probably too much wood which could have been taken down from nose cap to lock to provide for a slimmer appearance of the forestock and a clean line front to back.

3. Cleanup: Areas around the carving and other features could be cleaned up with small files, etc. to get rid of "tool marks" and provide a more finished appearance.

4. "Edges" where there shouldn't be any. Pictures are really great tools during the build process. I think that they can reveal things that just looking at the gun with the naked eye can miss. I know that's the case for me. For instance, in the first picture of the second set of pictures showing the lollipop tang, there appears to be a "flat" on both sides of the tang, and more so on the left side than the right. See how the light shines on that flat and makes a defined "line" where it then drops off and down the sides? That "edge" along the light may show too "abrupt" of a change that could be lightly worked to get a smoother transition that is even on both sides. Take pictures as you go and use the light on the stock to "see" things you might need to address along the way.

5. Again, pictures are difficult to decipher sometimes, but it looks like the comb of your butt plate points "down", then the wood comes back up a little before curving back down toward the nose. It might be just the way the picture was taken. While the top line of the comb of the buttstock can take any number of shapes depending on the style of rifle, it should integrate into the direction that top line is taking where the two meet. If you lay a straight edge on the buttplate comb, does that top line "flow" into the continued direction of the wood top line of the comb at the junction of the two?

The above suggestions are clearly cosmetic and with a little more time and patience could provide a cleaner result. A lot of the fun of building is adding to one's skills for the next one! It's good to see that you jumped in and started building. That's the main thing. As has been said many times here...all builders make some mistakes, it's how they fix them that makes the difference!

Would also like to know how it shoots! In the end, putting the round ball on target is what really counts, so look forward to seeing how the load workup and shooting goes.

 

[Col. Batguano]

Nicely said Spikebuck.

We all start somewhere, and, becoming our own harshest critic is perhaps the most important evolutionary skill we acquire in our gun making careers.

 

[rchas]

The area around the lock panels, and transition foreword into the forearm, and backward into the wrist is tricky--I still have trouble with it. It looks like you carved a line to suggest the edge of a lock panel, and then the wood steps down. The edge of the lock and sideplate panels should be formed by the flat of the panel and the bottom and top surface the triggerguard and tang are inletted into--if that makes sense. I would suggest getting a copy of William Buchele's "Recreating the American Longrifle"--I thing it has the best written discussion of how to shape the various parts of the stock. The very best is to attend some shows and actually look at some old rifles. Two dimensional pictures just don't cut it. I hope you enjoy shooting it!

 

[Crow-Feather]

I figure that you know what is good and what you wished you could retry. Same with me and my first build. For me, if it shoots straight and groups well, your rifle is a success. Gunsmiths made rifles way back when. Others, who couldn't purchase a ready made rifle, bought the parts and did the job themselves. Their success was also how well it shot and that it held together to be passed down eventually. My "Bella" has faults, but it is mine and I am proud of her and how she shoots.

 

[StarnesRowan]

I know she's a little rough around the edges but as crow feather said It's mine and I'm proud of her.

everyone keeps asking what school I'm trying to replicate but it is a fantasy rifle. as my name suggests I live in Rowan County NC and the carving is a nod to a family heirloom that was said to have been built in Rowan County around 1770 an was used in the revolution. the lollipop tend was a mistake on the part of the kit company. thank all of you for the feedback and I will improve with experience

 

[Henry Miles]

Nice job for first build, regardless of issues. You're learning and that's what matters. It looks like your rear sight is turned backwards. Front sight is also backwards. No big deal, easily fixed. Keep up the effort. Enjoy the fruit of your labor!

 

[Buckskinn]

It better to post pictures prior to finishing the rifle for input, that way you can tweak the areas that need work...

 

[Pete G]

Keep it, love it and shoot it for a year, then take back apart. By then you should know enough about stock shaping to be able to remove more wood where needed.
In the meantime, welcome aboard to a lifetime endeavour.