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diggerdanh

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About diggerdanh

  • Birthday August 2

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    http://www.danhounshell.com

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    23 miles north of Cincinnati, OH

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  1. Filling the barrel channel with expanding foam and then covering it with epoxy is exactly what I'm doing at this moment - the stock is hanging in my garage. I had not thought about filling the grooves in the butt and forearm, that is a pretty good idea. I did not replace the butt pad in my previous build and I probably won't consider doing so for this build either. My first one weighs in at somewhere around 15 pounds (I don't have an exact number because I haven't weighed since adding scope). I built for heavier weight because I new it would be a target shooting rifle. With that kind of weight shooting a .308 it just barely pushes my shoulder back a little, definitely no "kick". It wouldn't matter if the original butt bad was a metal butt plate. Of course 300 win mag might be a little different.
  2. I was thinking the same thing after the ATI stock / duracoat comment. I just finished one of those last fall and working on a second one right now. Of course I don't want to sell either one, but those might actually be something you could make some money on. Probably not $10K each but maybe closer to $2000 especially if you have a nice target to show with a very small grouping. I saw a Rem 700 in a similar style stock (forget what it was, but it wasn't really high end) with the typical blueprinting done on it asking $2000 on GB a couple days ago. I can't remember if it had any bids or not. If a guy had purchased a bunch of the PH sniper barrels from Sarco a couple years ago when they were originally selling for $35/ea he'd be in really good shape to do something like that (unfortunately I only purchased 2). Might be able to get away with around $500 in parts (minus scope) if you stick to inexpensive stuff (bold trigger w/safety, redfield jr one-piece mount, etc.) and you could do all the hand/machine work yourself. If you had 40-60 hours of work into it and could make around $1000 that wouldn't be too bad. Not good enough to do full-time, but pretty nice for a hobby. All that said, I don't know the legalities/technicalities/differences between a guy selling off a couple of his guns that he customized/modified and a "firearm manufacturer" - where you draw that line. The above definitely pushes the limits of the intent of a C&R (buying for your collection). Common sense-wise, I think that once I went beyond selling a couple I'd worry about being perceived as a manufacturer.
  3. Sorry to bring up an old thread, but I haven't been around in quite a while. That looks great, FC. I've been thinking about doing the same for quite a while now. My brother and I bought a pair several years ago as well from AIM. He bought a $99 very good condition and I bought a $119 excellent condition. I swear mine looks like it had never been fired - stock even looks brand new without a ding in it. The only reason I haven't put it in a Tapco stock is because it is so nice. I always figured I would just buy another one and customize it, but then the prices started going up. I didn't want to buy one for $150 when my first was only $119, then it went to $199, then $249 and now $249. I've seen them for sale on Armslist and Gunbroker for well over $300 recently (just checked and a couple on GB asking over $400). Century has them right now in good condition for $299.99 and good condition with cracked stock for $279.99. With the prices they are going for I've thought hard about selling mine and gaining a nice profit, but then I wouldn't have one and it would cost me the same to replace it. I really should have bought a couple at the time! Currently I'm thinking that when they get to be the price of an AK then I'll trade it straight up for one. I guess I should just go ahead and do the Tapco stock and larger mag. It requires no alterations, right? So I could keep the original stock to put it back to original later if I wanted?
  4. Thanks. Close up pictures look even better!
  5. Do you have a post on here with the specs for that rifle that you could point me to? If not you should definitely post one. Stainless barrel? Looks like you used some type of spray on finish for the receiver and bottom metal? What about the bolt shroud? I'm curios because I have a pretty nice .30-06 stainless barrel waiting for a build and I wondered what type of finish would look nice on the receiver and all the other parts. And yours looks rather nice. Thanks, Dan
  6. That rifle sure is piling up victims! And she's not bad looking either. Nice job and congratulations.
  7. I have a very similar rifle that I finished recently (well, at least enough to take to the range). I'm using a forged bolt, too, and was thinking that a longer tactical style handle would look and perform great. Thanks for posting your experience - can't wait to try myself.
  8. I'm looking forward to seeing another Carcano project. I'd like to build a pistol-caliber round rifle based on your previous experience and what you discover this time through.
  9. Same here - pipe wrench to remove military or junk barrels. I use a similar setup as Don showed but then put the pipe wrench on the barrel with the handle underneath the vise so it won't turn as I turn the action wrench. A blow with a heavy hammer helps a lot.
  10. diggerdanh

    New Vz 24

    Yup - "non matching". Go ahead and have at it then. The sporterizing Gods and the collecting Gods will both approve Hogue stock, Timney trigger are both great in my book. I'm not too hip on the shorter barrels, but it all depends on what you want to do with it - and it's yours so do with it what you want. I've never owned anything in the 18" range - I bet it would make a handy little rifle. With the short barrel and synthetic stock that old 8mm mauser might have a little kick to it
  11. diggerdanh

    New Vz 24

    @Jeff H - that describes my outlook exactly. I'm no collector - simply a Mauser sporter enthusiast. Every mauser that I buy is destined to be taken apart and built into a sporter. So like you in most cases I'm only looking for a good action. The barrel can be pitted and look like a sewer pipe. The wood can be dented and broken, etc. All I'm looking for is a good action. I, too, look for the previously sporterized or bubba'd rifles. Those seem to go quite a bit cheaper, at least in online auctions if not at the gun shows.
  12. diggerdanh

    New Vz 24

    This is a sporterizing forum and to each his own, but my personal typical "line in the sand" is ... If the numbers all match and there is no obvious damage or defacing (like crest being scrubbed or a Russian capture) and it is in good or better shape then I lean towards leaving it as-is. Condition and the type of Mauser plays a big part, too. If it has a moderately pitted barrel (exterior) or it's a Turk K.Kale it won't normally be much of a collectible piece unless it's some super rare variant. In your case you know it is a VZ24 - not very rare (though getting harder to find). If it is in excellent shape and numbers match then consider trading or selling it to a collector if you don't want to become a collector yourself. You may be able to get enough money to buy two beat up Vz24 or Brazilian 1910 mausers to use as donor rifles. If the VZ24's numbers don't match or it's a little banged up itself then go ahead and use it for your sporter - they make a great platform to build on.
  13. That's a great story and some nice storytelling, too. Thanks for sharing.
  14. The thought of pulling that thing out at the indoor range makes me laugh. That would be awesome.
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