Half Stock California Rifle from TOTW

[Bad Karma]

Is that painting by Remington?

Charles Marion Russell. There are other paintings that depict actual Californios roping Grizz as well. This is supposed to be Montana. Boys will be boys…

 

[Dave Markowitz]

The rifle arrived today. Track sure packed it well in the box, surrounded by foam. It hangs nicely for offhand shooting. The builder is J. Goodoine of MN.

The barrel keys are captured, which is nice.

Maker's stamp on the barrel:

The sights were left in the white. I'm going to hit them with some cold blue to darken them and then as I always do, paint the back of the front sight so I can see it.

I'm really looking forward to shooting it.

 

[Uncle Miltie]

Jim Goodoien is one of the finest barrel makers of recent times.

 

[TDM]

It’s a beauty @Dave Markowitz! Congratulations.

 

[Dave Markowitz]

Jim Goodoien is one of the finest barrel makers of recent times.

Thanks. I haven't heard of him but I'll be doing some research. I'll email Track of the Wolf to see if they know who built the rifle.

 

[Mtblackdog]

Jim Goodoein was a barrel maker. Maybe somebody here can correct me. But my guess is he was not tge actual rifle builder.

 

[Dave Markowitz]

I got the following reply to my email to Track for additional information on the rifle:

"The builder name was not provided with the rifle. J. Goodoien barrels were a hand lapped high grade barrel. Mr. Goodoien is now retired from barrel making, but we have shot many rifles with his barrels and they have all shot very well. There is a hand lapped choke in those barrels, so don't cut the muzzle back or you will lose that feature."

Hot dang!

 

[Andrewmtnman]

Very nice rifle! Can’t wait to hear how it shoots

 

[Mtblackdog]

I got the following reply to my email to Track for additional information on the rifle:

"The builder name was not provided with the rifle. J. Goodoien barrels were a hand lapped high grade barrel. Mr. Goodoien is now retired from barrel making, but we have shot many rifles with his barrels and they have all shot very well. There is a hand lapped choke in those barrels, so don't cut the muzzle back or you will lose that feature."

Hot dang!

Yes they are great barrels. If I would of saw that it would have pushed me into buying that sucker. Great purchase. I went ahead and ordered a Bergmann to round out my quiver with a bigger caliber.

 

[Notchy Bob]

I got the following reply to my email to Track for additional information on the rifle:

"The builder name was not provided with the rifle. J. Goodoien barrels were a hand lapped high grade barrel. Mr. Goodoien is now retired from barrel making, but we have shot many rifles with his barrels and they have all shot very well. There is a hand lapped choke in those barrels, so don't cut the muzzle back or you will lose that feature."

Hot dang!

Wow! You got a keeper, Dave! Goodoien barrels are legendary, but I did not know about the hand-lapped choke. A lot of old-time riflemakers did this to enhance accuracy and ease of loading, but relatively few of the modern muzzleloading barrelmakers do.

What a beautiful rifle, inside and out!

Notchy Bob

 

[Shiloh]

What makes a rifle a California rifle?

 

[Dave Markowitz]

What makes a rifle a California rifle?

It's basically a plains or mountain rifle. However, this one was inspired by a rifle made in the 19th Century by a California gunsmith. Notchy Bob was kind enough to share upthread pics of the rifle that apparently served as this rifle's inspiration.

 

[Bunk]

Man Ive been eyeballing that rifle for two months. Was close to pulling the trigger many times. If it had been a .54 cal I would have done it weeks ago. Congrats I probably should of bought it. Hope its a good shooter for you. Ive been patiently hunting a custom .54 for months. Looks like Im gonna have to breakdown and order a Bergman or a Selb.

hesitate and you are lost

 

[Dave Markowitz]

She shoots!

I took a vacation day and took the new rifle to my club even though it was raining. We have a covered firing line that kept me dry until a squall blew in for a few minutes and got me and everything wet. But before that I got the rifle zeroed at 50 yards. Windage was dead on but it was shooting 8" - 10" low. Some trial and error with a file work on the front sight got it shooting ~2" high at 50 yards, about where I like it.

If I do my part (not always guaranteed) it looks like it'll put them within 2" - 3" at 50 yards. Load development may help that. I mostly shot .490 balls patched in .020" patches cut at the muzzle, lubed with Mr. Flintlock Patch Lube and Bore Cleaner, on top of 60 grains of 3Fg Goex black powder. I used CCI No.11 caps and in about 2 dozen shots had no ignition problems.

For the last 4 or 5 shots I used 0.018" pillow ticking lubed with neatsfoot oil. I fired these at steel gongs offhand so I can't compare how the rifle shoots with the thinner patches.

I did not have to swab until after I finished shooting. The last round loaded as easily as the first. I attribute this to the Mr. Flintlock lube but also to the hand-lapped bore. Although Track's email stated that Goodoien barrels are choked I could not feel that while loading. It's possible that this barrel was originally longer and cut down at some point, removing the choke.

I have some .495 balls that I plan to try in the rifle to see how they load and shoot.

But right now I'm happy as a clam with this purchase.

 

[Notchy Bob]

That's some great shooting, Dave! You have a mighty nice rifle!

I think choked rifle bores only constrict a couple of thousandths, but it's enough to make a difference. It is supposed to enhance accuracy and make seating the ball easier, too. However, your suggestion has merit, in that somebody may have cut off the choke at some point in the past, and the hand-lapping alone might be good enough.

That rifle must be happy in its new home!

Notchy Bob

 

[Dave Markowitz]

Today I pulled off the buttplate and found a signature under it. Looks like R M(something). I don't suppose anyone recognizes it? I emailed the pic to Track to see if they recognize it.

 

[BillKilgore]

It's a beautiful rifle and it sounds like it's a good shooter. Enjoy.

 

[Notchy Bob]

I think I'm seeing "R Noyes," but I could be convinced otherwise. That name is vaguely familiar, but I haven't turned up anything in a quick search online and on the CLA artisan's database. @Comfortably_Numb knows a lot of contemporary builders. If we can bring him into the discussion, he might be able to help.

Best regards,

Notchy Bob

 

[Dave Markowitz]

I emailed that picture to Track and got the following reply from Ethan:

"Looks like it reads R Noyes. That is a fairly common last name in our data base."