- Joined
- Nov 27, 2012
- Messages
- 84
- Reaction score
- 63
I've been wanting to put together a deer rifle. Something compact, lightweight and kinda' modern in styling. I' built an underhammer awhile back and I've taken a few deer with it but it's long, somewhat heavy and I baby her. I don't take her out on rainy days. I don't hoist her up into the treetops when I hunt from treestands. Here's a pic of her after a successful hunt last year.
I wanted an everyday gun that I can carry all day long without a lot of fatigue. Something compact, lightweight and fast handling.
I decided to go with .45 cal. and to stick with the underhammer action due to it's sheltered nipple and it's aesthetics. A musket cap rather than a #11 percussion cap will all but eliminate the chance of a misfire.
The rifle pictured above incorporates the Allen Foundry's Underhammer action which I really like. For this new gun, I chose Allen's underhammer action without the heavy, cast receiver which looks like this:
=
From there I found a cheap stock blank at Numrich Arms (Gun Parts Corp). They advertised it as walnut but I think it may be cherry. Either way, it doesn't matter. This will be a knock around rifle and so looks, although a consideration, aren't a top priority. Whatever the wood is, it's lightweight and hard, machines well and has tight grain:
I picked up a fluted, 1:28" twist, .45 cal. barrel from a Winchester branded Rifle on Ebay for a song:
Cut her off at the breech, cut her back at the muzzle and recrowned:
At this point I tried using a conventional breech plug but it didn't lend itself to the action design very well. It would've forced me to push the tang too far forward in the stock. I needed to design my own breech plug, something that would actually house some of the action components:
So I came up with this idea...I turned down and then threaded a piece of round stock that matched the O.D. of the breech end of the barrel. Then I hogged out a recess in the underside of the new breech plug which would accept the upper portion of the action. Now we're talkin'.....:
I wanted an everyday gun that I can carry all day long without a lot of fatigue. Something compact, lightweight and fast handling.
I decided to go with .45 cal. and to stick with the underhammer action due to it's sheltered nipple and it's aesthetics. A musket cap rather than a #11 percussion cap will all but eliminate the chance of a misfire.
The rifle pictured above incorporates the Allen Foundry's Underhammer action which I really like. For this new gun, I chose Allen's underhammer action without the heavy, cast receiver which looks like this:
=
From there I found a cheap stock blank at Numrich Arms (Gun Parts Corp). They advertised it as walnut but I think it may be cherry. Either way, it doesn't matter. This will be a knock around rifle and so looks, although a consideration, aren't a top priority. Whatever the wood is, it's lightweight and hard, machines well and has tight grain:
I picked up a fluted, 1:28" twist, .45 cal. barrel from a Winchester branded Rifle on Ebay for a song:
Cut her off at the breech, cut her back at the muzzle and recrowned:
At this point I tried using a conventional breech plug but it didn't lend itself to the action design very well. It would've forced me to push the tang too far forward in the stock. I needed to design my own breech plug, something that would actually house some of the action components:
So I came up with this idea...I turned down and then threaded a piece of round stock that matched the O.D. of the breech end of the barrel. Then I hogged out a recess in the underside of the new breech plug which would accept the upper portion of the action. Now we're talkin'.....: