My Highwall project... complete!

NVshooter: Crap man that's poetry right there! Thanks for sharing!
(I think we think alike)...

Ok Lets get some pics up!
the mill im using doesn't have programmable Z so cutting the texture into the hammers was tedious!
I programed each X,Y start/stop point and hand fed the quill VERY CAREFULLY to match the curvature of the hammer. It turned out pretty good actually but its further proof that I definitely WONT be buying a 2 axis machine for myself...
https://flic.kr/p/25e5enE

https://flic.kr/p/27Up3Eb

Barrel time!... I road tripped to Ron's early in this project and asked for a tour of his shop. He was happy to show me his shop and the equipment that he's made(quite the inventor!).
He went nuts when I showed him what I'm working on though, suddenly giving me his FULL attention. I convinced him to let me come back and make my rifle barrel with him!
That was super cool!!!
https://flic.kr/p/26BmXYp
The only catch is, He made me promise to finish these things before he dies so he can see them. I'm doing my best to make good on that!
https://flic.kr/p/26Bn8tr
This is where the project becomes two projects. The rifle and shotgun progressing at different rates...
Back home and milling the half octagon for the rifle.
https://flic.kr/p/27YS4E8

https://flic.kr/p/27YS4E8
I made an octagon indexing nut that threaded onto the tenon. this set up worked quite well.
https://flic.kr/p/KQUEM1

And so begins the hand polishing...
https://flic.kr/p/27Up1CA

https://flic.kr/p/27YRGJv
This is about 8hours of polishing and is 2000 grit...
https://flic.kr/p/26TrksS
 
Gain twist? It wouldn't follow conventional but, I would.

I've been in Ron's shop as well, the machine that cuts rifling for gain twist is quite the machine.
 
Doublegun: Thanks! (Ron said using one as a shotgun would be a waste of a good action! haha) To each their own. I like the idea of carrying a sweet little .410 for chickens that wasn't made in Croatia and sold for $299... I can always screw on another pipe down the road if I get bored with it...

I actually made my own blank. barrel making is part of what id like to get into. As the late great(and perhaps somewhat opinionated) Mick Mcphee advised me "the world's got plenty of gun plumbers. If you can learn to make your own barrels, you'll have done something worth while and guys'll beat a path to your door.". With few surviving Canadian barrel makers and the rising cost of State side blanks, I figure he may have been on to something... and I felt a smooth bore would be as good an education as any. I took notes watching Ron build my rifle barrel and asked many questions. Then I rigged up the coolant system on my lathe to be able to flush chips out of the 30" deep hole and away I went!
https://flic.kr/p/KT6TWd

https://flic.kr/p/KT6Rbo
basically I just made a fitting to allow me to blow shots of air into the coolant stream and installed a check valve so the air couldn't back feed into the coolant pump... Loooow tech but effective for now!
https://flic.kr/p/Jn9b2x
Next was chambering the .410. I'd already spent about $400 on tooling for this barrel and PTG wanted like $200US for a chamber reamer and 6-8week delivery time. I figured, "What the hey! The blank its self didn't cost me anything, lets see if we can make a chamber reamer!"
https://flic.kr/p/27WV2FA

https://flic.kr/p/25gnL3S
Heeeey! Whatdayaknow, it worked! (slow as all get out, I could have given it larger chip relief but it proved a point.) The dimensions are right and I've seen worse chambers on factory guns... A bit of polishing and it was mint!
https://flic.kr/p/27WUYfh
Next up, stocks...
 
How about posting some pics and specs of the machines you are using?

M
 
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Doublegun: I ordered the bore reamer with a long taper on the leading edge. I drilled the muzzle end under size and pull reamed just to the end. This left me with a fixed ~modified choke.

gnmontey: I asked boss if he'd mind, he said give'er so I'll have to take a few pics. You've more or less seen the Weiler. Its a high end German made, flat bed, single tool CNC lathe. I love it! (I want one...) This machine has about an 11 inch swing 2,500rpm spindle and I've got about 70" between centers. (It sees ALOT of use in this shop, we could really use another!)

I'll have to snag a couple pics of the slotter...
 
Ok I lied, I've got a couple of sight making pics before stocks...

Using a slitting saw to whittle down a slice of 4140 for the temporary rear sight...
https://flic.kr/p/272kGdd
My plan is to have non adjustable sights on the rifle, regulated to whatever load I land on. This sight will act as a benchmark...
https://flic.kr/p/25mJvcN
Front sight blanked out...
https://flic.kr/p/272kDq9
Front sight installed!
https://flic.kr/p/25mJs17

Alright stocks...
Wood working is far from my forte, I got a "great deal" on some really nice black walnut but figured I should practice on some 2x8s first...

https://flic.kr/p/KYLETw
 
Somewhere along the way I realized just how enjoyable this rifle was going to be and decided that I would REALY rather have a pistol gripped buttstock on it. Not having Winchester specs for the "correct" tang bend I decided to just shorten the tang to make life easy. (If anyone has specs or a sample that could be measured I'm all ears...) I'm using a draw bolt system anyway so the rear screw would be purely cosmetic.
https://flic.kr/p/287HTsH
The rifle ready for test firing! (What a good da that was!!!)
https://flic.kr/p/L1isC1
 
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