Well it's that time of year again, spring is here and turkey season is just around the corner, next Saturday here in NC as a matter of fact. Saturday morning about daybreak I went out in the yard and owl hooted a few times, yes my neighbors love me, and was rewarded with three gobblers sounding off and one jake doing his best to gobble. All were roosted within four hundred yards of the house in different locations.
Can't wait until next Saturday, Wiley and me or going to do our best to get him one. You can only use a shotgun here in NC, since Jerry lives to far away that means I'll have to use a powder burner. Unless Jerry want's to ship me his 62 smooth bore to try, Ah well maybe maybe I'll have one of my own someday. I've taken nice gobblers with both bow and shotgun, love to add airgun to that list.
Hey Gary what are the chances of sliding a 45 caliber smooth barrel in that Chameleon box when it ships hehehehe.

Good luck to you. Your off to a promising start.

And yeah, i too think Jerry should send you his 62. It would be a good sign of some good luck on your hunt...lol



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/03/2011 04:22AM by Tofazfou.

Just make sure your bird is DRT (dead right there, a medical term) before you reach down to pick it up. My grandpa got an interesting facial scar and just about lost an eye to a gobbler that wasn't quite dead enough yet. Those spurs can do some damage if you put yourself in range unwisely.

No problem Joe. Any old pipe will do. ;?)

You want the handmade turkey call and gillie suit too? That's part number 60243 IIRC ...

Go ahead ... heap hot coals of guilt on my head. I can take it.

hahah.

How about I just send you a frozen turkey?


Gary

Sorry Joe, you've got a much higher chance of getting that frozen turkey from Gary than my Woodsman!

Then again, you're not that far away. Maybe it's time to load up some shot shells and take a little drive? With the price of diesel, I should be able to make it on one extra mortgage!

Thanks guys I appreciate the luck, we will need it. Turkeys are not smart as birds go, but boy can they see. Keeping Wiley and the gun absolutely still after he has seen a bird has been a hit an miss thing in the past. He was using a 12ga shotgun with 2 3/4 inch high brass shells in the past and I wanted the bird with in 25 yards before taking the shot. We have been trying to get him one since he was 8 years old, he finally got a nice jake last season.
He has never been recoil sensitive, I would let him practice using low power dove loads and slip a 2 3/4 high power shell with a 1 7/8 ounce of shot in the gun for hunting, he never knew the difference. This year I am going to slide 3 inch turkey load in and hopefully we can extend the range out to 35 yards.
I have called in probably 12 to 15 birds trying to get him a shot and we've been busted everytime but once. His main problem was his breathing, I could see his chest start to rise up and down when he spoted the turkey and of course the gun barrel was doing the same, thats about all it takes to spook a tom.

Now Gary, no guilt intended, and any old pipe will do, just as long as it is shiny inside and out with hand made gold plated middle and end beads for sights, other than that,really just anything will do.

Jerry your welcome to come down anytime you like dude, but spring is absolutely the best time of year to travel, that is if you have that .62 smoothie with you. I've tried my best to get Gary down here to kill a deer, but his plans just wouldn't allow it. Guess I'm going to have to just kill one for him and send him some tenderloin biscuits.

Hi Joe,

Yeah ... my "plans" were to stay here, take pills, and complain. haha. Although, I do like to sing loudly, while hunting deer. ;?) With these new super pills, I just might get all young again. Seems they are helping alot. Maybe I can come down and sing to a deer this year. hahah.

I see you'll settle for "gold plated" beads. Gosh ... I only have 24k bar stock .... I'll think of something.

Hope you guys have a great turkey hunt. Wow ... ya can't even breath ... tough act. I might have to stick with the frozen kind.

Gary

Hi Joe,

Was working on your Chameleon a while ago. Realized something again, that I'd forgotten. The aluminum extrusion which makes the core frame of this gun, allows for a 1/2" diameter total OD of the barrel. The largest caliber I can make with a 1/2" OD is 38 caliber. So; the pc. could have a 38 smooth bore ... but to try to get a 45 (with it's 5/8" OD) would be an entirely different gun. It's lighter rear hammer design is not the same as a heavy slide hammer.

Besides ... remember the specs of this design. .177, .25, and .32. A 45 shotgun would be wanting to move more along the lines of a Woodsman format.

Contact me if you are hoping to do something different than you first thought.

Gary

I answered your PM Joe.

Gary

Joe,

Be sure to post a picture, it'll be nice to see you guys. I'll bet Wiley has grown quite a bit since I saw him.

Lon

I will Gary, regardless of how we do, but a nice big Tom in the picture will definitely take some of the sting off me, hehehehe.
Yes Wiley has grown considerably, he will become a teenager this year. Seems like it was just last week that we brought him home from the hospital, amazing how time slips by. I have a feeling he will jump some more very soon, he has out grown three pairs of shoes in 6 months, size 12 now, and keeping the shelves stocked with food is a joke.

So nice to hear that finally maybe you might find some relief. I only know one other person besides you that has what you describe. That individual was a deputy here in Rockingham county. He was an outgoing friendly person involved in the church and his community. His chronic pain forced him to retire on disability. and he rarely leaves the house now.
I very much enjoyed our conversation.
Joe

Hello Joe,

Thank you very much. I appreciate your friendship.

Hey ... I have some good news. As I mentioned in my PM .. I woke up thinking about you and your project. The light was on, in the back room of my brain, and they seemed to be working on ideas for your gun. Looking over the drawings, and the parts, it became clear. Let me see how this afternoon goes, before I get ahead of myself.

I'll be back.

Gary

OK Joe,

I'm back. Bottom line ... you'll have your shotgun barrel, and the power to drive it. Compliments of Barnes Pneumatic ...

The idea I woke with, panned out. By replicating the front extruded sector from oversized billet, I am able to gain material to fit a larger OD barrel. I know I have the 46 caliber material, and I think I might be able to obtain a thinner wall 50 (with the same OD) for your shotgun barrel. And, I've tossed another log on the fire. With some alterations, I can boost the power plant.

Ya see ... if I'd been on the ball ... you would have only had what you ordered!

I know you will enjoy it with your Son.

Gary

Gary, I don't know what to say except thank you, and that just doesn't feel sufficient for what I am feeling. I am truly at a loss for words.
You have always been on the ball, getting out the guns, honoring your obligations.Some that were accepted and others that were forced upon you. You have never hid from any of it, you met it head on. I greatly admire your dogged determination to overcome all that has been added to your already full plate. I never doubted that you were doing all you could do. There are many here that feel the same.

Your right we will definitely enjoy it, and put it to use. This gun will not be a safe queen, it is going to get used a lot. With just a little planning on my part so will you and other readers here on the forum.

Hello Joe,

You are very welcome. Thanks my friend.

Hey - how long is Turkey season in? I was just wondering if it were even possible to consider getting it to you - in the white - functional but unfinished ... for such a maiden voyage.

Gary

Hey Gary it ends the first Saturday in May, only runs for a month in the spring, With both our work schedules it might be to much to ask for this season.

Hi Joe,



Hey - I have your barrel material. Barrel is cut, turned, and threaded. It's.495" bore. I also have made the hard mount female socket to go inside the billet aluminum tower.

Nice long barrel there. Designed to give you the most power, and to still bring the gun in around 51 - 52" OAL with the shotgun barrel mounted.



Gary



And ... the fish I made for my grandson, Caden, last night. The boy's parents are back from Fla. Found their house to rent there, and have it approved already. Now, our Son will go back to Korea, and the family will move to Fla, and await his return, where he will then be stationed.

Nice fish and a barrel...

Groan .....

Neat toy, it's great that you can make stuff like that for the grandkids. I'm glad that your son will be able to PCS back stateside again, hope his unaccompanied tour goes quickly.

Thanks Sean,

Our Son has been one of the lucky ones. We pray for all those Sons and Daughters who are in harm's way. Hope they all come home soon.

Caden was drawing, Using a stencil kit. One of the things he showed me, was a fish. It was sort of segmented, and it popped into my head, to make him a big segmented fish, that was wired together. Later, Kelly said ... I wondered if you had the paper to go by. I said, "no, didn't know where it was". Turns out I'd drawn out a fish with five segments like the drawing was. Kelly was amazed. Funny ... that's the sort of things that amaze. Not all the hundred things I've learned to do. hahaha. Things like the little ammo compartment. hahahah. And drawing five segment fish ... ...

Gary

Sweet Gary, and that's 50 caliber too!! It should handle a good shot load. I've got extra 10ga. shells laying around that have 2 ounces of #4 shot in them that I'm going to cut down today.
I need to figure out what to use for a shot wad, maybe a dime will work, I need to measure one.
They make a wool felt black powder wads too, wonder if they will work.

Neat fish by the way, love that haircut he has.

Hi Joe,

I'll check about the wads too. Thought Sand off a few thousandths ... cut a half inch dowel into wooden nickels. Might work. Well, it does work. I used a 9/16th dowel for the 62 smoothy for wads, IIRC.

Have to see what power we can develop. I can't get way up there, with the rear hammer mechanism. We'll see.



Gary

Didn't think about using a dowell but that certainly sounds like the way to go and easy to find too. Definitely need to go get some post cards and a dowell or two. Thanks

Hi Joe,

Ya have to experiment a bit, to get the right diameter on your forming tool. You have to allow for twice the paper thickness, and a bit more, so you don't make something that's too fiddly to load. Crimping the ends can't be done perfectly, although doing it while the shell is in an over sleeve helps very much.

You will really need a section of the tubing from which the barrel is made. Finding something else the perfect size would be rare. I suppose I could be persuaded to sell you a two or three inch pc.

Do you have a lathe? Only real way to make a nice inside core, with a step flange to work to, so you don't get the whole thing "racked".

Gary

Joe,

Have been working on your hammer, trigger, trigger sear bar, trigger block. It's a big unit of compact things on this design. The mainspring is inside the pistol grip, if you recall. Very interesting, works great, but I had to be nuts to design it. hahaha.

Gary

Hey Gary, I have access to a lathe, although I'm not quite following what your talking about. I understand needing the shell the right diameter, but the step flange is where you lost me.

I hear you about the design, I'm always amazed at what you come up with Gary, guess there are not to many Chameleons floating around huh.

Hello Joe,

Step at the bottom, to placde the edge of the card against. So that you wrap it with a square bottom ... and get the correct square length. Otherwise, you will crimp it all funky, and not have a square shell to load.

;?)

Gary

Ok I got you now, for a while it was flying around the room but it just smacked me in the forehead.

Hi Joe,

This might be what you need.

[www.trackofthewolf.com]

I have found that muzzle loading the Chief Justice is easy and the only accessories needed are a shot flask and ramrod. I grease the "over powder" wad with Crisco push it into the barrel a finger depth and then load 2 oz of shot via the flask. The top card goes on without grease. Then the ramrod shoves it to the closed bolt face. I think you might want to consider a shot size larger than what you'd use with powder as the velocity will be lower.

Muzzle loading also eliminates the slug effect if the wrapped shot shell doesn't open.

Kent

Thanks Kent, that seems like a much simpler process. Just need to keep a ram rod handy.

That is a sharp looking young man. Not to mention the cool looking fish. If i could ask, where will they be stationed in florida? And yes i think the haicut is perfect for this weather.........

Good looking young man, and a good looking fish, though i am kind of partial to Moose.!

Rick G.

Thank you Gentlemen,

Caden and his folks are now in Florida. Well, Dad is still in South Korea ... but has less than a month now. There's a huge base near Fort Walton Beach, Fla. Eglin USAF Base ... they're living near Navarre, Fla.

One of our other military families just moved to San Antonio ... near Lackland AFBase. Our Son-in-law is stationed at Randolf USAF Base. Our Daughter Dana was going great guns in the AF, until natural triplets made their appearance about 6 years ago.

Then, our third military family is in NC. Daughter-in-law is Special Ops and Son is out of AF now, and doing security at a nearby base. Just made Corporal within his service.

We're proud of their service. We are also fully aware that most of them have been lucky with duty stations. And, I do pray for the families of all our military families here.

God Bless,
Gary