Started my Kibler .32 SMR Today

[garypl]

Didn't have much time to do any work on my rifle last week until Friday. Spent 20 minutes polishing the buttplate. On Saturday, I looked at the fit of the bolster to the barrel and decided the shim was not a good idea. I spent 40 minutes disassembling the lock and working on the inletting to improve the fit in the mortise. I closed the gap to where there is only one spot toward the front of the pan that is maybe 0.001" and I decided that it would be acceptable. I also put several coats of tung oil diluted with gum turpentine (@70/30 mix) on the ramrod.

I decided to make a toe plate and was having a hard time finding some 16 GA steel until I called a local sheet metal fabricator. He had a piece of leftover 16 ga that measures @ 16 x24" and I traded him 2 boxes of .22LR and a can of Ballistol for it! There is enough steel here to make 50 toe plates!

If I have time tonight I will start cutting out the toe plate.

Note: spent 30 minutes tonight polishing the lock and getting a tighter fit between frizzen and pan. Started playing around with scraps of cherry wood and different stains. Bloomed a piece with AF, but didn't like how dark it turned out - mayne I flooded too much on the wood?

Total time on the build so far is 11 hours 30 minutes.

 

[user 34300]

AF is not normally used on cherry. Some use oven cleaner that contains lye. Call Kibler and ask.

 

[garypl]

AF is not normally used on cherry. Some use oven cleaner that contains lye. Call Kibler and ask.

I’m thinking of skipping the AF for cherry. I tried lye on some cherry scrap but it was too dark on the sample. I’ve got a lot of different color stains and dyes on hand and I’m going to keep experimenting to try to get the most pleasing results!

 

[garypl]

So tonight I spent 90 minutes working on the lock, polishing the lock plate, cock, and frizzen. Started with a fine file then 220 paper and then 400 wet dry paper. It’s slow going, especially the cock and frizzen with all the curves and tight corners. Still have a long way to go!
Total time to date 13 hours (I work slowly!)

 

[Hatchet-Jack]

So tonight I spent 90 minutes working on the lock, polishing the lock plate, cock, and frizzen. Started with a fine file then 220 paper and then 400 wet dry paper. It’s slow going, especially the cock and frizzen with all the curves and tight corners. Still have a long way to go!
Total time to date 13 hours (I work slowly!)

If you have a drill press a fine wire wheel really speeds up the final finishing process on steel and brass.

 

[garypl]

Never thought of that! That probably would be helpful to smooth the tight areas. I will give that a try and thanks for the tip!

 

[garypl]

Spent 1 hour tonight filing and sanding trigger guard and playing with some different stains on cherry scraps. I find that some of the more tedious tasks (e.g., smoothing metal) are easier for me if I don’t try to do it all at once. If I start getting tired and/or in a rush to finish, I’m likely to make a mistake.
Instead, I have some soft music playing and I keep my mind clear of everything except the task at hand. When I start getting tired or start thinking about other things to do it’s time to stop. I’m in no rush to finish this kit and I would rather go slow and enjoy the process!

I have now spent 14 hrs working on the SMR and tomorrow I hope to cut out a toe plate and start inletting it.

 

[hanshi]

IMHO you're doing quite well on the SMR. I like that you stop when you realize you're tired and prone to error.

 

[garypl]

Thanks Hanshi - going slow trying to keep from messing anything up. Spent an hour today cutting some strips of that 16 gauge steel sheet so I can make a toe plate, played around with some cherry scraps with different dyes trying to come up with something I like, and spent another 30 minutes working on polishing the trigger guard - still have a ways to go with metal polishing.

Also melted some beeswax and mixed in some Ballistol to make a lube to use with wads for a couple of rifles. Thought I would try a lubricated wad with a thinner patch and see how it compares with my regular thick patching.

Guess I spent 90 minutes today bringing total time to 15.5 hours.

 

[garypl]

Been busy for the past week and haven’t had much time to work on my SMR. On Monday I spent 30 minutes polishing the trigger guard. Tonight I spent 2 hr 45 min polishing the lock, making a toe plate from some 16 ga steel sheet stock, and inlet the toe plate.

Tomorrow I plan to drill holes in the toe plate to secure it and then start smoothing the butt stock and blending it to the metal and file the butt plate and toe plate so they blend together.

Total time spent to date 18 hr 45 min

 

[garypl]

Spent 2 hrs today drilling the toe plate, inletting it, and filing it flush with the stock and butt plate. Still have to polish it and the screws in the photos are temp screws.

I had a heck of a time trying to countersink the holes so I can set the screws flush. Will work on this some more before I finish the metal.

Next I plan to start sanding/scraping the stock.

Total time spent to date 20 hrs 45 min. I’m still going slow

 

[The Crisco Kid]

Everything looks great so far. Don't give up on the Lye for the stain. If your first try was too dark just dilute the solution until you get what you want. Also, if you want to get fancy, use a counter sink or lapping compound on the screw fit so that the slots line up North/South. When I was putting things together I used a couple of wraps of blue masking tape to hold the barrel and stock together.

 

[garypl]

Everything looks great so far. Don't give up on the Lye for the stain. If your first try was too dark just dilute the solution until you get what you want. Also, if you want to get fancy, use a counter sink or lapping compound on the screw fit so that the slots line up North/South. When I was putting things together I used a couple of wraps of blue masking tape to hold the barrel and stock together.

Thanks for the tips - your SMR looks great! I’ll work on getting a good fit of the screws to the plate. Still playing with wood coloring

 

[garypl]

Spent 2 hrs this afternoon cleaning and darkening all the metal parts except the trigger guard and barrel - still need to polish them before darkening. I suppose I should also do the trigger assembly- it’s still installed in the stock holding the barrel in place.
I also started sanding the stock from the lock plate to the buttstock. Lots of little ridges to clean up from the cnc machine. Going slow and steady. No interesting pictures to post today☺

Time spent so far is 22 hrs 45 min. I know, I am slow!

 

[garypl]

Boring 2 hrs today sanding my stock Also reassembled the lock and colored a couple more sample pieces of cherry trying to find a color I like. Tomorrow I plan to start smoothing the barrel and then put finish on the barrel and triggers.
24 hrs 45 minutes into it so far.

 

[frankie]

What caliber? Your doing great work

 

[garypl]

What caliber? Your doing great work

Thanks Frankie - I am enjoying the process and I try to stop as soon as I start getting tired or distracted so I don’t make too many stupid mistakes! This is a .32 caliber rifle - looking forward to finishing it and getting it out and shooting it!
Gary

 

[frankie]

Thanks Frankie - I am enjoying the process and I try to stop as soon as I start getting tired or distracted so I don’t make too many stupid mistakes! This is a .32 caliber rifle - looking forward to finishing it and getting it out and shooting it!
Gary

Post pictures Gary, we would like to see them. Remember, the only difference between an average stockmaker and a professional, the professional knows how to cover his mistakes up. ha

 

[AZshot]

I would perhaps thin down the rim of wood around the lockplate. A lot of originals I have are thinner there.

 

[garypl]

Post pictures Gary, we would like to see them. Remember, the only difference between an average stockmaker and a professional, the professional knows how to cover his mistakes up. ha

I'll post more pics later today when I get back to my shop - last few sessions mostly been sanding polishing and not much to look at until I get closer to final finish!

I would perhaps thin down the rim of wood around the lockplate. A lot of originals I have are thinner there.

I have started to cut down some of the wood around the lock plate and side plate areas - going slow so I don't take too much off!