Here's my son's dog Root and the Timber Wolf. I think the dog may have been jealous as my pocket knife came up missing! Don't worry the dog returned it yesterday...that's the truth!

So far all I've got for you are these glam pics. But notice the peep sights installed...custom fit... by hand file.

Pretty squirrel warning!!!

Here's a closeup of some of Gary's finest work. How many techniques are in this view.

Here you can barely see the file marks I left on the receiver to fit the rear sight...

The front sight is a little more obtrusive to the overall look. I'm still adjusting things so final it isn't.

Yes, this is one of Gary's Black Diamond guns. Here's the badge to prove it. Nice touch!

Here's a different view of the receiver. The slide breech works wonderful, it glides under the "shroud" over the barrel seamlessly to complete the Kentucky long rifle facade. The lighting here causes the breech slide to appear unmatched to the barrel patina, not so in person.

Pretty squirrel warning!!!


Next time some shootin' pics,

Kent



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/31/2010 01:09AM by Cajun Justice.

That squirrel look worried to you? hahahaha.

Yeah ... I could hardly see those horse shoe rasp scars .....

More fringes on the leather strap .... maybe a beadwork collar on the dog ... hahahah.

Lookin' fine. Hope it always shoots where you want it to.



Gary

Sweet rifle Kent, that one is sure a looker. I like the sights, they go well with the rifle. You can always spray them with some Brownels baking laquer if you wanted another color. Earth tone brown would blend right in with the antiqued brass. Like I said above though, I like them just like they are. Thanks for posting the pics, I enjoyed seeing that one again for sure.
Happy New Year

Kent,

Beautiful dog.

Oh, nice gun, the site turned out great.

Lon

HI Joe,

Good idea with the Brownells lacquer. I'll check into that when I get the Latigo sling that works so well. I might even consider stamping the leather for a scout project. I've enjoyed the tooled leather sheaths you've done any suggestions for a beginner?

Hey Lon, I even got a little hand file work to go my way. This allowed me to lower the front sight by at least 3/8th inch. Here's the final result with the sight fitting tight to the barrel and dovetail.



Kent



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/31/2010 11:21PM by Cajun Justice.

Oh Man! How DO these guys hit anything with that insert?

What's the diameter of that disc insert Kent?

Good Heavens .... might as well shoot with a bag over your head .... look at the thickness of that donut .... you could hide a bus behind that thing ...



I know ... I know ...

I swear ... you guys do this on purpose ....

Gary

Oh ... BTW ... nice job of fitting it. A shame you had to work so hard to lower it. I suspect there's some options for inserts that could effectively lower it more for you.

More pics, more pics ... haha.

Gary

Kent,

A good file and a little patience and a person can do some decent work.

Nice job. If you hadn't mentioned that you filed it I wouldn't know.

Lon

Kent: Beautiful rifle. I am glad it found a worthy home.

Karl

Kent:

Thanks for the great post. The pictures are so clear and with excellent contrast.

Root is looking good!

You did a nice sight selection for your new rifle. The Timber Wolf is ready to go to the field, enjoy it.

The only thing missing is...the Davey Croquet hat...
Happy New Year,

Julio



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/2011 12:55AM by Julio.

Sheesh Kent, you are a very lucky man! That squirrel should be VERY afraid....
Happy New Year
Neil

I wanted to put a footnote in, regarding the Timber Wolf project. Recall that it was shown here, all during the build, and early field testing. I disclosed it as an extra project that goes to keep the lights burning in the shop. I asked anyone that was interested to contact me. Just wanted to say something about Kent and his wife Kelli. They are both very conscious of only collecting "free range trophies". The Timber Wolf went to the Cajun Cup Invitational. It wasn't until the second or third day of the shoot, that Kelli asked me about the rifle. Kent never did at all. Finding that it was available, she followed up on it.

Those of us who "make stuff" for a living, really appreciate those who find it of interest. Isn't that an understatement? haha. Kent, himself; calls it those who "get it". They don't have to think I walk on water. They don't. They realize that there is something going on here, that's just not normal. The availablility of information, photos, contact, and feedback ... from sources like this forum, make it seem "routine". But, if anybody bothers to look around, they find that it's not "normal". It's people like them, that keep the lights on. And I certainly appreciate it.

Now, it might be tempting to consider that they are in a better position than many. And, it's only their extreme hard work and diligence that put them there. But, keep in mind, they participate to a far greater degree than normal. Their situation is shared by more readers of this forum than you can imagine. It's their participation, and willingness to do so, that provides endless opportunities for readers to experience my work. You don't usually find that the guy with the exotic supercar, is willing to have you take it around the block. It's never happened to me. That's rare, and I appreciate it.

Well, nutz, my coffee is cold. But, I just wanted to comment on these concepts.

Enjoy the New Year. Hope we all have a great run.

God Bless,
Gary

Yes, Gary it is hard to see anything thru the peep hole and large surround. This is the small diameter, marked 3.2, included with this target setup. I'll be making some changes to improve this. I'll keep you posted.

You guys that think the squirrel is nervous, how about me taking that last pic. Even with the breech open, it still raises the hair on my neck. Yikes

Kent



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/2011 06:19PM by Cajun Justice.

Right ... actually, I didn't catch that. Guess you were behind the camera ... huh?

Bet he'll be harder to catch sitting, when he sees you carrying a long stick ... hahah

Gary

I've been tossing over ideas too. I'm sure they were thinking 2 dimensionally and had their laser cut out little discs that would take the strain, and take handling. But - I suspect there are other ways of doing it, to give you a much better picture .....

What's the OD of the disc?

Kent,

Try the "pointed post" insert, I find it's the most useful. I actually made one from a paperclip to try the design and liked it.

Drill a hole in a similar sized dowel and wrap the paperclip around it, drill it close to the end of the dowel so removal doesn't disfigure it too much. Trim the post height to sight in.

Something like this:





Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/2011 05:24PM by Bigbore.

Clever idea - and niffty tooling Lon.

Good job.

Gary

Lon, That's a great idea so I tried it.

Here's with the donut obstructing everything.


The rear sight maxed out in elevation.


Here are the dimensions of the reticle. BYA Thickness is the 0.016 inch.


How the front sight is arranged.


Here's how I started with some 10 ga copper wire and a .5 in dowel.


Here's semi finished wire.


Here's the sight pic with the wire installed.


I'm sure I'm not finished with this project. I do like the copper wire next to the barrel's finish. It may seem a little flimsy but to get the proper height and concept before committing to a permanent solution is a good idea.

Kent

Hi Kent,

Lon had a great idea there. You're on the right track.

Perhaps I can give some thoughts for you to consider too. You will want the post to be straight up - with a nice corner at the bottom. I think the curved base will fool the eye. You can insert some copper wire into vise jaws, and bend it 90 degrees, then lightly hammer the bottom corner nice and sharp. Once you have that, you can use your rod mandrel to bend the loop. You can also use a slot in the end of the rod, rather than a hole. That way, you won't get locked in.

Also consider .... to get a thinner blade, hammer it flat once you have bent the 90 degree. If you want to get fancy (after you have decided your height) ... then make one where you ...

1. file the blade part and leave a bead at the top. 2. Bend and crease the 90 degree. 3. make the loop. 4. blacken with cold blue or a black sharpie.

Fun to get it right.

Lon ... how did you insert that drawing? Very niffty.

Gary

More ...


To make it bi-sect the circle well .... use a metal rod ... saw the slot across the end and refine it with files. Then insert your pre-bend 90 degree copper wire stock .... bend the circle .... and then lightly hammer everything to the metal rod mandrel. It should all be in line then, and the light hammering will harden it too.

OK .... I'll stop now ...

hahahah

Gary

Gary,

That is Windows Paint, it has a default white background. It's actually a square picture, the background just happens to be the same color.

Kent,

Gary has a great idea about slotting the dowel. I will encourage you to use a simple paper clip: soft, thin, "easy button". You have a post insert you can grind if you need to once you figure out the most suitable configuration.

Sorry for the crummy pic., you get it. It can be trimmed but, OH, the amount of available adjustment.


P.S. A flimsy post/insert shouldn't be an issue with that sight.

Lon



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/02/2011 01:43AM by Bigbore.

Ah ... the old "white background" trick ... hahah.

Reminds me of the time I accidently switched the type color to white, on a new web page I'd been working on ....

HEY!!!! Where'd the page go? And ... WHY doesn't the keyboard work anymore? It was like being in the Holo-Deck inside a copy of the ship! hahaha.

Gary

OOH, I like all the ideas! I'll be working some more metal. Lots of fun. First, I'll get the sights adjusted on and then formalize the insert.

More later,

Kent

Hey Kent looking good. I am wondering why you don't use the post insert that came with the rifle. The one you have in there now is a target insert, works very well when shooting at a round bullseye. When used properly the shooter will have an equal amount of white showing all the way around the black bull.
I'm not sure you can get good results stamping a finished sling. The leather needs to be a good tooling leather like vegetable tanned and damp. A finished sling will probably be sealed. Practing your pattern on some scrap leather to get comfortable and go for it when you are.

Use the post that came with the sight, where's the fun in that! Just kidding Joe, the post does seem to be the best for my needs. One of the reasons for all the mods is to find the right height for the front sight. I've maxed out my rear sight and the front has been lowered to the barrel. Next step will be to raise the rear on dovetail adapters, not my first choice as the current setup lines up so well.

Thanks for the leather advice. I've got a piece that I cut off a previous sling that my work for practice and to see if the leather is workable.

Kent

Kent,

Do a search on "Tandy Corp." They will cover you up with leather and leather tools. Typically, leather is soaked pretty good to shape or tool. If dried slowly, it stays pretty soft. If baked dry, it gets much harder. As Joe pointed out, your strap is most likely sealed to resist the water needed to tool it. You might find that the imprint would not "take" ... and would swell back and sort of "heal" afterwards.

They used to call the tooling leather "Oak". Available in hides, half hides, straps, etc. Don't get stuff that's overly thick. Thickness is spoken of by "ounces". I wanna say 10 oz. is good. But I need to check my memory. Perhaps Joe remembers.

Gary

Hi Gary, they still call it Oak on some sites, vegeatable tanned on some and others just refer to it as tooling leather. make sure to get shoulders, sides also will work. Stay away from belly as it stretches and would not make a good sling. I prefer 7-8 ounce for sheaths, the slings I have on my rifles look to be 7-8 on some and 8-9 ounce on others.. Several places to buy leather on line, Tandy has good hides, there is also a site called e-leather that has good hides and will sell pieces if you ask.
When you get ready to start wet the leather, you don't want it soaking wet, just wet enough to soften the leather. To wet and the stamp will not make clean crisp stamps. Blot the leather with a dry towel if you do get it to wet, then keep a damp sponge handy to moisten the leather as you work. I like to compress the leather using a piece of polished bone before tooling. This will help the leather take the stamp better and also keeps it from expanding. The leather will grow a little as you stamp it. What ever you use needs to be polished and free of defects.
I have a habilt of sliding my hand down the stamp as I work, be careful if you do the same. Your fingernails will start to stamp the leather too if your not careful.
Tandy also has belt stamp pattern tools available, these will allow you to roll the entire belt or sling in one easy pass, they are kind of pricey though. A search on ebay sometimes turns up deals on these.

If you decide to use your post supplied with the sight you can hammer out a small piece of copper wire and attach it to the site post will a small dab of JB Weld to increase the post height. You will break the sight off before it goes anywhere.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/03/2011 11:39PM by Joe Hoover.

Hey Kent ...

You should have several site inserts ... a tooled sling .... and a couple of optical lenses by now!

Whatcha been doing?

Hey - you jinxed me today by talking about overhead lights. I have a bunch of 4 tube housings I traded for about 20 years ago. They were older then. I've had a bunch of them on the ceiling .... and they've become intermittent. Nothing lasts ... hahah. Well, today ... the lights went out right over my nerve center! New bulbs had no effect. Clearly a ballast issue ... but no museums were open nearby for parts. haha.

So - off to Lowes. Etc., etc., etc. And then ... there was light again. hahaha.

Years ago when I shot target bow I used for a front sight a clear lens with circle scribed on the lens and it worked great...if you have an old watch you can use the lens from that and cut to fit...hope this helps, Allen.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/03/2011 03:22PM by allen avram.

Allen,

Another great tip! I may make some out of plastic sheet - blister pack? - and see if I can dye the scribed lines black.

Should keep me out of trouble for quite a while.

Lon

Happy New Year Lon...If you want to go high tech, talk to you eye doctor and have him put a -3 lens in your rear peep and a lens in your muzzle end sight to get magnification to whatever power you want...I had mine set so @ 20 yds the scribed circle was same size as 10 ring on the bullseye...eye Dr. will have to know distance of eye from peep and distance of peep to lens at muzzle end....1x to 15x you will be capable of...hope this helps, Allen.

Just to add to the wealth of info Allen posted ....

They call such sights "scopes" for compound target bows. It's a mount with a lens in it. Lens is about 1 1/2" in diameter. Various powers. And various qualities from simple plastic to glass. The rear is a small peep lens that goes in the split bow string. Works great. Reason I mention it .... there are packages of black and orange circles that are sold on a card. Look like reinforcment rings for loose leaf paper. But - there are a huge variety of diameters and thicknesses of ring widths. You just use an exacto knife to pop them from the card - and they are self adhesive. Let them hang on the exacto blade to position them, and just stick them down. I had a thin small black one surrounded by clear glass - then a larger orange thin one around that. I found that the orange was great in shadow ... and the black was great for target in bright lights. The eye would center either one. I used 4X and loved it. As I recall - the cards of stickers was dirt cheap and worked great.

Of course, you must have some material that's uniform enough that it's not going to cause distortion.

Gary

Happy New Year Gary...Archery target shooting...now that brings back some memories...shooting a perfect 300 was really something, then shooting 60 spots really was a perfect score...never made 60 spots, best I done was 300/50...anyway here is a great website for you Lon...Check out the Clarifiers, Lenses, Dots and Circles...everything you need to be on the cutting edge of a compound bow scope placed on a Big Bore BB gun....should have done this along time ago... [www.specialtyarch.com]
Kind Regards, Allen.

Good link. That's the ticket. There's a lot of crossover possible there.

Gary

Hi Guys,

All those tips are great! Now I just have to start gathering the items to make the sling and scope/peep. I may begin by machining the sights first with an add on option for lenses. The sling leather scrap is going to get a try first, it's soft and matte finished so maybe it's still workable. It would be nice to have some leather handy for a few other projects as well. The projects continue to mount.

I'll unveil some ongoing work soon, thanks again,

Kent

Wadda ya mean .... SOON .... we want pics .... we want pics .... hahahahaha.

Where's my tin cup .... .... hahhaha

Gary

Page 17 or so. For some reason - this rifle has crossed my mind a few times lately. Thought I'd bring it to the top just to have some AIRGUN stuff to look at again! Can't wait to get some more stuff ready and out the door.

Check the pics above Kent provided.

Gary

Thanks for reminding me how nice this piece is. I haven't got any hunting stories with this gun yet, but maybe this year.

I have relented to putting a red dot sight on this gun. While it doesn't have the same clean lines as the peep, it is easier for my eyes to bring everything into focus. The peep restricted my view so as to make the target hard to acquire. The red dot is very short and doesn't distract from the looks of the rifle as much as a 12 in long telescopic sight.

Kent

Anything that makes the gun enjoyable to shoot is fair kit.

I'd hang some leather fringes, beads, or a wolf jaw from it though. Just to make it look "Mountain Man" ya know. Yeah - the whole jaw ... just rip it off and hang it on there. Let it season in good ... it'll look fine. Trust me.

Yes ... I am prolonging my break because I'm sick of packing boxes ....

Fine ... I'm going ....

Uh oh, could be another modern holographic sight coming to a very modern "period piece!"

Could be that an Aimpoint needs a bit of cosmetic work to match the "period" look. Don't they offer one in "antique bronze"?

Those red dot sights are SO much easier on old eyes, I'll bet the mountain men of yesteryear would have loved them in the dark and shadowed woods.

Wow great pics and beautiful work Gary. The background seems to really make the details stand out.
Boy do I have alot of reading to do to catch up to Nov..

Joe

That's what happens when you slack off. Haha.

very nice gun. I like it

One more time around. Shameless.