Kibler SMR in cherry

[KenM]

I plan to get one of his SMRs in cherry soon. I will let mine naturally sun age with only an oil coating as IMO cherry ages into a beautiful red color all by itself over a short time and staining it is kind of a shame. Yours looks good though.

After 200 years it will look great

 

[olskool]

yea but he won't,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[Smokey Plainsman]

After 200 years it will look great

If you say so.

 

[MIOutdoorsman]

Gorgeous gun man. I’ve only assembled one kit (a Pendersoli Kentucky) and while it turned out great, for whatever reason, rifle kits still intimidate me. I’ve been wanting a smaller caliber squirrel rifle in flint but dang those aren’t common. May need to get over my fear and assemble a Kibler?

 

[geelee71]

very nice

 

[Hatman/2nd line]

This is a Kibler rifle. 46" swamped barrel gives it the perfect balance. lock made by kibler, 61" overall length. Everything only required minor fitting and finishing. This worked well for me since I'm not a "wood guy", but a metal guy who usually wrenches and does bodywork on old vehicles. Check their web site.

Where did you obtain the patch box?

 

[Hatman/2nd line]

Since I really don't have 200 years for my SMR to develop a natural patina, something had to be done. The cherry bed in my old pickup still looked like a carrot after 3 years, so it was the guinea pig.
The cherry gun stock is aged with easy off oven cleaner for 9 minutes at 60*, then wiped off. If you rinse with water the cherry will turn black, so don't do that unless you want a black gun. After that, the rifle was finished with Danish Oil, Natural. This soaks into the wood and strengthens it.
The old pickup bed that still looked like a carrot turned out pretty good too.

Really makes a big difference and looks good too! What kind of finish did you have in the bed before you tried the oven cleaner?

 

[KenM]

Where did you obtain the patch box?

I made it out of a piece of old shelving.

 

[KenM]

Really makes a big difference and looks good too! What kind of finish did you have in the bed before you tried the oven cleaner?

Linseed oil

 

[Hatman/2nd line]

I made it out of a piece of old shelving.

Nice job, good work!

 

[glidingdoc]

Hi, Sorry to be so ignorant but could you explain the purpose of the "lips" carved into the left hand side of the stock and the "pin" lodged underneath? Doesn't this catch on clothing when you bring it up to the shoulder? I love the colour and echo a previous comment about its clean lines and beautiful colour.

 

[YJake]

Hi, Sorry to be so ignorant but could you explain the purpose of the "lips" carved into the left hand side of the stock and the "pin" lodged underneath? Doesn't this catch on clothing when you bring it up to the shoulder? I love the colour and echo a previous comment about its clean lines and beautiful colour.

Handy spot to keep a vent pick. I’m tempted to try something similar if I build one. While hunting I periodically reprime the pan and pick the vent, this would make that easier.

-Jake

 

[Hatman/2nd line]

Gorgeous gun man. I’ve only assembled one kit (a Pendersoli Kentucky) and while it turned out great, for whatever reason, rifle kits still intimidate me. I’ve been wanting a smaller caliber squirrel rifle in flint but dang those aren’t common. May need to get over my fear and assemble a Kibler?

Go for it, Kiblers are easy, all the hard work is done for you!

 

[Spikebuck]

Ken....really nice job. That cherry stock is beautiful.

 

[Spikebuck]

...rifle kits still intimidate me. I’ve been wanting a smaller caliber squirrel rifle in flint but dang those aren’t common. May need to get over my fear and assemble a Kibler?

"Assemble" is probably the closest term to describe putting these kits together. It's not a "build." I would say that the Kibler SMR would probably be less work than that Pedersoli was. Almost everything on mine was snap fit. Very little chisel work. Most fitting was with scrapers. And the best part is, you get an absolutely gorgeous and historically correct rifle that is long and sleek, but lightweight and balances like a dream.

 

[Capnball]

Finally finished my 45 caliber rifle with a cherry stock. What strikes me is the perfect balance of this rifle. With the ramrod in you can carry it on two fingers. View attachment 72958

Every time I see one of these Kibler kits done, I like them a little more. That gun is dead sexy!
Neil

 

[KenM]

Hi, Sorry to be so ignorant but could you explain the purpose of the "lips" carved into the left hand side of the stock and the "pin" lodged underneath? Doesn't this catch on clothing when you bring it up to the shoulder? I love the colour and echo a previous comment about its clean lines and beautiful colour.

If you look at the original Whitson rifles and research narratives that the Kibler SMR is based on, the cheek rests on these 1800-1850 rifles often had a decorative crease carved in. Vent picks were typically mounted under the cheek rest, as evidenced by the pick holders. The actual picks are missing since the surviving originals were converted to percussion caps around 150 years ago.
The pick location hasn't been at all a bother when I shoot the rifle and is easily accessible.

 

[YJake]

If you look at the original Whitson rifles and research narratives that the Kibler SMR is based on, the cheek rests on these 1800-1850 rifles often had a decorative crease carved in. Vent picks were typically mounted under the cheek rest, as evidenced by the pick holders. The actual picks are missing since the surviving originals were converted to percussion caps around 150 years ago.
The pick location hasn't been at all a bother when I shoot the rifle and is easily accessible.

So does this gun shoot as good as it looks?

Also, where did you order those holders for the vent pick?

-Jake

 

[KenM]

So does this gun shoot as good as it looks?

Also, where did you order those holders for the vent pick?

-Jake

Thanks! Yes it does shoot as good as it looks. Zero delay with 3F powder in the frozen. It does not blow smoke it your face either.
As for the holders, they are just the 1/16" pin stock bent in a horseshoe at tapped into the wood. The vent pick is a scrap of 12 guage copper electric wire that was clamped in the vise then wrapped on itself until there were enough curly-ques. The straight part of the wire was pounded square and twisted to work-harden it.

 

[YJake]

The pin stock I have is fairly brittle, did you heat it first before bending it?

-Jake