Starting a project

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ROMAC
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Re: Starting a project

Post by ROMAC »

Model stock stage.

I was planning on going up in the next few weeks but now I am doing (my wife told me so) final tours with my son before he makes his college choice over the next 2 weeks.

So it is down to visit Willam and Mary in Virginia this weekend then Boston College the week after. Two good choices for him so we shall see.

Life keeps getting in the way of my Fox addiction!
"Somehow, the sound of a shotgun tends to cheer one up" -- Robert Ruark
Goldenfox
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Re: Starting a project

Post by Goldenfox »

So, where does your project stand now? Any pics of the progress?
[img]file:///C:/Users/Charlie/Pictures/2014-03-21/Hunting/856.jpg[/img]
ROMAC
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Re: Starting a project

Post by ROMAC »

No pictures.

Dan Rositer has everything and I have to check on the progress. You have to forget about these projects for a while or you would go crazy waiting..
"Somehow, the sound of a shotgun tends to cheer one up" -- Robert Ruark
ROMAC
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Re: Starting a project

Post by ROMAC »

It has been a while since I had any progress to report but I made the 8 hour round trip yesterday from Bucks County up to Athens for my shooting board / stock fitting session with Dan Rossiter before he puts my blank in his pantograph. I also had 3 other guns with him that needed attention which were finished and need to be picked up.

Dan had taken my measurements at the NE SXS shoot back in June and it has really been my fault that I have not been able to get back to him sooner. He is a perfectionist and wanted to have me shoot the board while he made adjustments on the cast on for a lefty like me. The stock wrist was also given some fine adjustments as well given the size of my mitts.
We settled on 15 1/8" length of pull, with cast on, etc...

I gave him final instructions for all the metal work and decided to go with an XE style splinter forend for the 30 inch barrels and a very petite semi-beavertail for the 28 inch barrels. Barrels will be well struck for weight with balance calculated for the 28 inch tubes with some slight forward weight on the 30 inch tubes. I splurged for a skeleton Buttplate. After alot of deliberation concerning the grain flow of my blank Dan will hugging the feather crotch side which will give me more uniform grain flow than the side with marbleization.

All in all a great day and it is always fun to see other projects in progress to get ideas.

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Working on the cast with shims in the wrist. Once we settled on the proper amount the shim was trimmed and epoxy was used to fill the gap:

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Getting the wrist just so:

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Dan and his dad who is doing less farrier work these days and more wood work with Dan.

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My ugly mug after the shooting board session with Dan.

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Last edited by ROMAC on Sat Dec 20, 2014 12:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Somehow, the sound of a shotgun tends to cheer one up" -- Robert Ruark
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Re: Starting a project

Post by fox-admin »

Thanks for the update----really neat and fun project. That will be some beautiful XE when it is complete.
vaturkey
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Re: Starting a project

Post by vaturkey »

Geez,
Dan's dad is going native. Pa winter thing I'm thinking.

Nice to see your project moving along. I've got one in que as well, but I'm guessing Dan and I have already figured out the measurements already. Hoping its complete and ready for the engraver in June.
Goldenfox
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Re: Starting a project

Post by Goldenfox »

ROMAC,
After seeing your picture with Dan, I see why you need 15-1/8"LOP. Dan goes through the same process as my gunsmith, Steve Bertram. Steve is nearly finished with my restocked 12 ga extractor. I'll post pictures of the progress soon.
[img]file:///C:/Users/Charlie/Pictures/2014-03-21/Hunting/856.jpg[/img]
ROMAC
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Re: Starting a project

Post by ROMAC »

I thought I'd update this old post and hijack my own thread at the same time.

Dan is getting started on my project. Per his email last week he started to fit the ejectors for the extra barrel set and forend. So far so good!

Secondly, about a year ago i bought a partially finished LC Smith 16 FW "In the White" that had the receiver polished and had been restocked all the way back in the 90's. I was lucky enough to contact the smith who did the work but unfortunately he wanted no part in taking the project on to finish the job. All it really needed in my opinion was some extra engraving and then case coloring.

So I showed the gun to Geoffroy Gournet at the NE SXS and he and I came up with a budget and he agreed to finish the job while we wait for my Fox to get done by Dan.

Here are the results before it goes off to get case colored. My apologies in advance to my Fox brethren and probably more to LC Smith purists bacaue I know it is a conglomeration of different styles and also a good deal of creative license, but it fit the budget. I like it and I hope you do too.

I am purposely only showing the work by Geoffroy, the side plates had a pheasant on one side and a duck on the other by the previous owner.

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Last edited by ROMAC on Sat Oct 03, 2015 7:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Somehow, the sound of a shotgun tends to cheer one up" -- Robert Ruark
vaturkey
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Re: Starting a project

Post by vaturkey »

I'm not a Smith guy, but that looks lovely. GG is one heck of an engraver for sure. My 2 barrel Fox was handed to him in June, but he won't start it till March. Makes me very sad. Will be worth it in the end. BTW, Dan is working on restocking a Mannlicher for me and his brother is going to do some rather simple scroll engraving on the buttplate/gripcap and screws to dress it up a bit. Dan had never restocked a mannlicher before. Quite a challenge for sure.
ROMAC
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Re: Starting a project

Post by ROMAC »

Good luck with the mannlicher. I have one that is plain, but the wood is nice.

It's a lefty like me.


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vaturkey
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Re: Starting a project

Post by vaturkey »

ROMAC wrote:Good luck with the mannlicher. I have one that is plain, but the wood is nice.

It's a lefty like me.


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Very nice. I assume that was restocked at some point because that wood isn't normal factory wood for sure. :D

Mine was restocked with fiddleback Claro. I'm not much of a fan of Claro, but this piece looked more like Bastogne then Claro and was dense to say the least. Caliber is .257 Roberts, so it will become my Va deer rifle when all is said and done. Hard to find a long straight piece of walnut but this one had it. 42" long with zero twist.

One side

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Other side

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ROMAC
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Re: Starting a project

Post by ROMAC »

I have no idea who did the restock. I bought it of the internet as new and unfired and it came with no information and there were no identification marks on it anywhere.

It is a first year Savage 110 barrel and and action based upon the serial number. I was told Savage was one of the only lefty actions available and custom 110's show up from time to time that were done in that period. It is a .270
"Somehow, the sound of a shotgun tends to cheer one up" -- Robert Ruark
eightbore
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Re: Starting a project

Post by eightbore »

I have seen Tom's Mannlicher .257 in almost finished form and the fiddleback is outrageous. I am not a fan of fiddleback, but this gun was love at first sight for me.
ROMAC
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Re: Starting a project

Post by ROMAC »

I am supposed to see some metalwork sculpting in the next few weeks so it looks like my Fox project will start to inch forward.

In the interim, I had a scratch that needed itching so I got the L C Smith finished up that Geoffroy Gournet engraved for me.

This is it after getting case colored.

I'm very pleased, and the pictures do not do it justice.

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vaturkey
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Re: Starting a project

Post by vaturkey »

Very very nice. I got an email from Gournet this week advising he was well into my project. Enough into it to send him the remaining balance I owed him (Gulp). Well you can't take it with you. With a bit of luck I'll have it 100 percent done in time to shoot some clays at the NE/SXS this year.
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