.458 winchester silk purse from a sows ear project

[ChrisG]

So I got the stock in and the 3 position safety from Pacific Tool and Gauge. I have been slowly whittling away at the stock, but I am also finishing up my masters and building a house... so I haven't had a whole lot of time to devote to this. I will say that Richard's microfit stocks are AWESOME if you want to shape the stock yourself to your liking. I got a really nice piece of wood with a majority of the shaping and inletting done for $170 shipped.

I will upload some pictures later tonight of the progress. Still have to rust blue the bottom metal and the safety, but so far so good. I can't wait to start shaping the outside of the stock. That's where the end is in sight and the whole thing starts coming together.

 

[IvW]

In Afrikaans we have a saying...."Al dra n aap n goue ring bly dit n lelike ding"

 

[ChrisG]

In Afrikaans we have a saying...."Al dra n aap n goue ring bly dit n lelike ding"

roughly translated to: Silk purse from a sows ear. It will definitely never be a Westley Richards, that's for sure. But I am hoping I can still make it more a silk purse than sows ear at the end of this... or more gold ring than monkey

 

[IvW]

roughly translated to: Silk purse from a sows ear.

Not quite.....

Even if a monkey wears a golden ring it is still a ugly thing.......for me it relates to cal rather than rifle....

 

[ChrisG]

Not quite.....

Even if a monkey wears a golden ring it is still a ugly thing.......for me it relates to cal rather than rifle....

I figured. I know you don't like the .458 Win. If the gun was a 9.3x62 or .375 H&H it would have been more "classic". Yeah I can't dress it up into anything other than a .458 Win., but odds that it will ever see an elephant are pretty slim. I think short of any of the 4,000lb+ animals that are routinely hunted as dangerous game in Africa, it is a good caliber. Definitely a step up from the .45-70. It has a great reputation in Alaska for stopping 1,300 lb brown bears.

Anyway, this thread isn't about the merits of the .458, it is more of a "can I rescue a rifle that was fit to be dumped in the trash"

 

[IvW]

I sure hope you can and enjoy it but yes I just cannot like the 458 WM....

 

[nztimb]

roughly translated to: Silk purse from a sows ear. It will definitely never be a Westley Richards, that's for sure. But I am hoping I can still make it more a silk purse than sows ear at the end of this... or more gold ring than monkey

There is another aspect to that saying Chris.
While you may not make a silk purse from a sows ear, you can make very good pigskin wallet

 

[Aaron N]

I sure hope you can and enjoy it but yes I just cannot like the 458 WM....

You could have not said anything……

 

[IvW]

I know but I chose not to......

 

[Aaron N]

I know but I chose not to......

Do you feel better now for letting the forum know you dislike the 458WM for the hundredth time?

 

[IvW]

Do you?

 

[Aaron N]

Personally, I hope the OP’s rifle turns out to be a work of art, and with the help of @Badboymelvin he finds a good load for it. Then he takes that rifle to Africa and makes lifelong memories with it.

I see no need to criticize this endeavour

 

[TSIBINDI]

This discussion is about "Bringing a firearm back to life" so to speak. The calibre happens to be .458WM. It isn't a discussion about the caliber of the project.

If a poster has a dislike for a particular caliber...It is within one's purview to initiate his/her own thread of likes/dislikes.

Just my take...

 

[ChrisG]

There is another aspect to that saying Chris.
While you may not make a silk purse from a sows ear, you can make very good pigskin wallet

I have read almost all of your project rifle threads and my hope is always that I can produce rifles that will look even half as good as the ones you have worked on. Coincidentally, when I comes to shaping this stock, I may need to pick your brain on some of your dimensions, because yours always come out looking so elegant and old-world. I need some Von Gruff pigskin wallet training.

 

[Aaron N]

@ChrisG Can we see what the stock looks like?

 

[ChrisG]

Here is the stock and the finished bolt handle. I may still blue the back of the bolt and the handle when I blue the rest of the small parts. But it is winter here so i have break out the humidity cabinet

 

[Aaron N]

Here is the stock and the finished bolt handle. I may still blue the back of the bolt and the handle when I blue the rest of the small parts. But it is winter here so i have break out the humidity cabinet

View attachment 441635

Can’t wait to see how this turns out for you!

 

[degoins]

That is really coming along nicely! I like everything about it so far. And by all means hunt with it when it's finished.

 

[nztimb]

I have read almost all of your project rifle threads and my hope is always that I can produce rifles that will look even half as good as the ones you have worked on. Coincidentally, when I comes to shaping this stock, I may need to pick your brain on some of your dimensions, because yours always come out looking so elegant and old-world. I need some Von Gruff pigskin wallet training.

Thank you Chris. Happy to have a yarn any time you want or need.

 

[ChrisG]

Not sure why the other photos didnt upload