The Passion of the Volk

So, the Ultimate Awesome Photographer Oleg Volk has recently been shooting pics of some of my refinishing work. You gotta love this guy's passion, skill, & spirit:


Education at its FINEST.

Soon-to-be Supermodel Jessica


(Probably Eli's first rifle.)

A business would have to be all kinds of dumb to not hire Oleg and one of his fantastic models.


And Eli and I have been going over new skill sets:


(Eating like a Big Boy, crawling, standing, yakking...dueling is a ways off.)




(Funny thing is, he didn't actually crawl UNTIL daddy fired up the lightsaber- THEN we had to come see what the red blade tasted like, and scoot scoot CRAWL. The kid cracks me up.)

And Finally, here is why it might take weeks over the winter to refinish a SIMPLE 1911-
You have to be able to GET to the shop! Blizzards suck.



(Parkerized & primed with first round of DuraCoat; ready for fine sanding prior to gloss black)


Also, here is a Christmas Delivery for someone:





1-9 heavy barrel, Eotech 512 (AA Battery model,) MagLevel PMAG with ranger floorplates, M4 6-position stock, Rock River 2-stage match trigger, Midwest Industries co-witness rail mount, Phantom Flah hider, Yankee Hill Diamond-style freefloat forearm, and a midlength gas system for the whole package. Not exactly what Santa wants, but it beats waiting 6 months for an RRA TASC kit to be delivered, to be sure.

The lower is from SI DEFENSE- and they are hands down the NICEST lowers I have ever seen, finish wise. Fit is pretty damn good too.

If I don't post again until after the holidays, please forgive me- plenty going on and just catching up on emails & phone calls is a challenge.

so, MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!

Hile, Gunslingers

It has been quite a while since I had a few moments to actually contemplate, let alone MAKE, any grips. While I am not the most proficient gripmaker by ANY means, I do happen to have the material, tools and persisitence to knock them out, from time to time.

I wish my favorite material were a bit "cleaner," - that is, a bit more free of what are visual defects.
It is a type of hardwood that takes 60-80 years to mature, if you want any substantial amount of wood, and even then, 90% of it (or more) is ground up, chipped, or steamed for its valuable oil. Much of the rest goes for funerary purposes. Currently, when it can be found, it goes for about what ivory does- in fact, ivory poachers have been known to give up whacking elephants in favor of obtaining this hardwood.

Of course, I am talking about the wunnerful wunnerful world of Sandalwood.

I do NOT mean the Tamboti that some folks eBay, calling sandalwood; nor do I mean the dark-streaked hedgewood that is made into grips, although it is pretty too- I mean the Australian variety (most of which gets exporeted to India, since they so tightly regulate and quickly consume their own.)

(Tamboti is awesome in its own right, but the sawdust needs a darn MSDS sheet, as the wood contains some sort of neurotoxin.)

I wanted to be able to have a set of Sandalwood grips on a nice .45 wheelgun one day- a "Big Iron," so to speak, in a "hard caliber." I am a recovering "prop nerd," and LOVED the Dark Tower series (thanks, Korey!) So when I stumbled across the chance to obtain what was probably the only substantial quantity of Yellow Australian Sandalwood inside the US, I jumped on it (although like several other decisions, it hurt financially.)

Well, until recently, nobody MADE a wheelgun I would want that I could slap my fancy (beat up, worn looking, well loved and yet to be made) gunslinger's grips on. So, a large part of one gunsafe has been (insanely?) taken up by a REALLY expensive log. It is likely 10-30 years old, as it was cured well when I got it, and the old woodsmith that had it said he had it for quite a while.

Obtaining the revolver itself, well- that is going to be a serious savings project. HERE is what I am after.

I sporadically made a few sets of grips here and there, some for eBay, some not, and old some pen blanks, and a couple of sets of grip blanks, and LOTS of sawdust for incense makers.

Well, now with S-MArt out of the picture, I managed to grab an Essex arms Commander frame, and knock out a couple of pair. There are worm tracks in the wood, from some type of butterfly larvae that love the stuff, so to prevent cracking. Neither pair is set up for extended OR Ambi safeties; one set is drilled for the cross pin for the mainspring, the other set is not.

At this point, everything has tasted like sandalwood for days. I have about 4 oz (by volume, not weight) of sandalwood dust ready to go, so if any of you Wiccans want it, make an offer.

I have more information & refernece on why I am convinced that Roland's grips would be most accurate made of the Aussie sandal, versus anything else. Link is here.

So without further adieu...
The WIDE PAIR:






No, the dark streak is NOT sharpie- it is an epoxy-fille worm track. The screw/bushing hole right there was also reinforced with a brass insert, to prevent cracking along the track.


The Skinny Pair:





All 4 screw/bushing holes on the skinny pair are brass insert & epoxy reinforced, as is the crack along the main vein in the right hand grip panel.

THIS is why I wish there was better quality sandalwood available. If I could find it, I'd get it.
Neither pair is for sale, at the moment, other than to the one fellow that has "dibs," since I have made him wait since January.

Thanks to my buddy Craig in NM & his Mrs. for the sweet photo tags.

My SON gives me the finger(s)

So we got to do the second ultrasound the other day, and lo & behold- it is a BOY.
One would think that I could now cease stockpiling weapons and ammunition; in reality, I now have to buy TWO of everything.
Dammit.

Sucky old Iowa here is expecting 10-12 inches of snow on Friday, which will keep me out of the shop Saturday; pisses me off as I wanted to knock out a couple of sets of grips and redo my parkerizing setup. (in case anyone wonders why gunsmiths seem to take forever to get stuff done...)
At least tomorrow I'll be able to finish the grips I started 2 weeks ago, and get some sweet pics of a .17 Marlin being done in Signature Snow (plus.)
Perhaps the TimMeister shall even learn AK disassembly...
The newest family member needs a tan. Mwahahahaha!

Veteran's Day 2008

Back during WWII, a young man in the US Marine Corps, Bill, was one of thousands tasked with taking the island of Iwo Jima. Operation Detachment, as the battle for Iwo Jima was called, was the only recorded USMC land battle of WWII where American casualties exceeded those of the Japanese. During one round of particularly heavy fighting, Bill had to use his empty .45 Colt (not an 1911A1, but a reissued and arsenal refinished M1911 from WWI) as a club, cracking the grips over some unfortunate Japanese fellow's noggin. Obviously, this M1911 had signifigant sentimental value for Bill.

None of this mattered to the thieves a few years ago that cleaned out his home of his .45 and his medals, amongst other valuables.

Being the cool old-fashioned guy he is, Sgt. Bill, even at age 82, tends to draw people close to him that are of similar morals and character. So it was not too surprising (to me, anyway) when one of his younger coworkers acquired a "bring-back" M1911 that had been "fixed up," and wanted it restored to its 1945 appearance (minus the rust that Bill's had from waterloggings during the landing.) The group that formed around this .45 decided to contact me for some input, as it became a small band of coworkers that would kick in on this project.



While not the exact same weapon, participation in this brewing sentimental gesture was too much for me to pass up. The collector's value of this gun was already ruined.

Our guest of honor for this post was born sometime between May and October of 1918.

Initial evaluation and discussion showed that the hideous target sights HAD to go. The pistol had also been "reblued," and while the chemical portion of the blue job was not terrible, the rounded corners and nearly invisible Colt prancing pony were NOT cool. Calling it overpolished is an understatement.



The supplier of the .45 (and friend of Sgt. Bill) included an era-appropriate rear sight with the pistol. How hard could it be to find a front sight that is the right size for a 1911? Enough that I ended up fabricating one.)

Rumour has it that in the 1940s, as the war was ramping up, several 1911s were put back into service after a nice black or gray parkerizing and arsenal refinish. These were issued to Marines, while Army guys recieved new production 1911a1s. Bill's, according to him during some (sneaky!) converstaions with his co-workers, was in fact, black phosphate coated.

So with clear goals in mind, I proceeded to remove the rear Millet-type sight, and the SOLDERED-ON ($^*%#@$#) front target sight. The frame and exposed parts (hammer, trigger, pins etc.) received a nice even sandblasting, and went directly into Mr. Park tank.
The slide got the kid glove treatment around the pony, and masking was destined to leave a shadow around it after inital stripping. Air on the blasting rig was turned down to 40 PSI from the normal 95, and our pretty pony got a couple of light licks. Masking ensued, and then the rest of the slide got blasting#1, followed by an acid bath to try to even up and deepen things a bit.
Blasting # 2 (Colt logo masked again) proceeded without a hitch, and then Mr. Slide took a steam 140 degree black manganese bath as well.



Being of a slightly different steel stock, the controls for the Colt came out a much deeper grey/black than the slide and frame did, which is ok, as I 'm sure that this was the case with many of the originals. the park went very light on the barrel hood, partly due to lockup and partly due to future work that will need done if this gets shot very much.

Where this pistol goes off on a "non-original process" tangent is right here.


I pulled an old (Brtitish?) trick that I read about somehwere here on da intergunwebz a while back (thank you to whomever it was that mentioned this.)

I commenced ta slather the slide and frame with a liberal application of gun grease, and said parts were then gently heated with a torch to open up the "pores' in the finish, allowing said grease to enter. Gradual heating continued until the grease was actually smoking, and evaporating off the surfaces of the parts. the parts darkened noticeably, and the phosphate coating took on a more smooth and even appearance.

The original 1911 that Sgt. Bill would have carried saw time underwater and rusted because of it.
As this is bound to be a piece with sentimental value as well, there is no need for this Colt to EVER see a new bit of rust. As long as someone can manage to oil the barrel and exposed trigger surfaces from time to time, it never will, either. A nice layer of FX7 inside the slide rails and back of the controls saw to the protection of the internals. The newly-fabbed front sight joint was sealed with a couple of small drops of matte black DuraCoat after installation.

Reassembly was followed up with a nice oil rubdown. The shadow around Pony was not as prominent after the grease/smoking, but there is a shadow. the goal was to leave the Pony visible, and it can still be seen. The front sight may not be 100% accurate, but it is darn close, and I did not have time to try and get Colt to install one off of their current 1911 production run (send in the slide. RIGHT.)



This was by FAR my favorite "rush-job," EVER.
I hope the grips that were located for it are similar to what he had, and that the overall feel is and appearance are as they should be.



Thank you, Sgt. Bill, God Bless and keep you, and happy Veteran's Day.

Thanks to the rest of you as well.

Even a short day at the shop...

...beats no shop time at all.



Had to duck out early Saturday due to Ms. Jazzy's birthday, and it was worth every second.
But while there, a 96D Got a dose of FN Green (final coat pending) and a very nice scope got Coyoted up to match the Winchester 70 it is going to live on.



While I skipped the cake (as IF I need it- I look like I ate Michael Moore already!) I did enjoy the post-cake training session for Ms. Jazz:



What a cool family. I am blessed.



First ya practice with the electronic lever action, then you can practice with the Red Ryder (not pictured, but redone in a pink & silver finish that dad did that would give me a run for my money!)

Once you have the Red Ryder down, THEN comes the Crickett.

The targets you can't see are her daddy's deer mounts on the far wall. And the pheasants. And the remote-controlled My Little Pony scooter that mom was driving around.

I bet she's a Riflewoman by age 12.

Rabbits beware.

Cocktails for Two

Me & a firearm, of course!

I can't do yummy recipes like Brigid does, but I can make a list.
So here is a PARTIAL list of the chemical goodness that goes around on an average shop day:

1) Simple Green.
Its stinging stinkyness is a refreshing smell that means grease and grime are going on vacation.

2) Kroil, like Simple Green for rust and elderly loc-tite.

3) CLP Breakfree- when you absolutely, positively have to decrudify something leadded and powdered, and don't want to wreck nickel (ammonia BAD on nickel substrates.)

4) Sulfuric acid-to remove that annoying blue color some guns have.

5) phosphoric acid-part of the wonderful Parker family of recipes!

6)Aluminum Oxide- either glued to paper, or @ 125 PSI, it stays crunchy in milk.

7) Acetone- great thinner, hygroscopic, and FLAMMABLE!

8) Xylene and Tolulene- the Wonder Twins! Wanna wreck plastic? Shop here!

9) Campbell Hausfield Compressor Oil- DO NOT MIX with aluminum oxide. Compressors no likey.

10) Mineral spirits- gooey tape residue, you are OUTTA HERE!

11) DuraCoat and hardener (DUH!)

12) Various pigments (adds color!)

13) u-235 ( I have a vaseline glass marble on the counter.)

14) Coffee

15) Arturo Fuente 8-5-8 Maduro smoke (does that count?)

16) "extra" lead

17) brass

18) green or blue loc-tite

19) 2-ton epoxy

20) Flitz! It rocks, and maketh dullness SHINY!

Optional Chemistry (task dependent) may include, but is not limited to:

a) Oil of Santalaum Album

b) lignum vitae resin

c) Outers gun oil

d) various cold blues

e) brass black

f) aluminum black

g) gold

h) nickel

i) silver

Tomorrow will be an easy day. Just need to clean up and ACU an 870 slug barrel for resale, and polish some new S&W lignum vitae grips. Piece'o' carrotcake.

ACU Remington 870 Blast-O-Tron

I had fun on this one. I've done dozens of 870s, but this one was just, well, special.



It got micro-abrasive blasted end to end (the non-parked bits, anyway,) and redone in the most frequent pattern I get any more, that wacky US Army ACU. Topped off the front sight with a blaze orange DuraCoat dot; impossible to miss from the user's perspective, and it was ringed with glow-in-the dark phosphorescent. Kinda tricky on a bead sight, but it works.



The colors will be WAAAAY off from the actual fabric unless you hand mix and adjust them, and for those of you who are foolishly ignoring the DuraCoat Mythbusters and "trying this at home," make sure you use only UV-resistant hardener with your matte clearcoat, so that the colors never fade, and make any final adjustments to color by mixing DROPS (not buckets or spoonfuls) of Coyote or MagPul FDE to your final UV-proof clearcoat.



Air-cure for a couple of days, lube, and fire liberally to taste.



As this was a brand new shotty, I was kinda disappointed that Remington QC did not catch the GIANT burr (about 1/16th of an inch!) that was sticking out of the ejection port, off of the right slide rail. God bless the guy that invented diamond bits and files.
Guess I can't fault Remington too much; the dealer hadn't caught it, and neither had the distributor that got it to the dealer, or the customer that sent it in. Woulda been a nasty skin snag the first time a finger went in the port for anything, and at the very least a partial FTE.

Still, I kinda wanted to keep this one, with the snazzy little 3-rail fore arm. Needs a side-saddle and red dot, though, really, to be mo-funner.

I really need to get a Saiga.

US DOJ / BATFE Response to my li'l letter

HERE is my original reaction to their 8-15-08 Brouhaha, er, Ruling:
And below, the response:

Fantastic Tips On Cold Blue Touch Up-

-Personally, I hate using it on anything more than a hammer or other control unless it is the only option, and would rather parkerize & clear-coat a part, or park &  oil-soak it, then smoke off the grease or oil.

However, if you have to use the stuff, Brigid is right on the money.

Suck it, Ike.

For days now, I have been trying to decide if I would post this or not, as I have no excessive cash (I abhor using credit) nor excessive time to spare, but here goes:

For the balance of 2008, anyone who sends me a rusty, muddy, crudded up gun that was damaged by flooding from either Gustav or Ike will get a hell of a deal.

(If you tell anyone I'm nice, I will make you suffer.)

Your cost for an oxide blasting (de-rusting) and single color (either matte black or gun blue) DuraCoat  refinish/salvage job on any handgun or long gun will be $20. The weapon will need to be from a flood victim, not just some pawnshop/truck gun. I cannot and will not attempt to salvage a damaged bore or chamber, and if you have let the springs get so bad that they are unserviceable, I will not replace them without charging for it. I may even opt to send it back tagged "unsafe to fire," (and I take and keep photos.) I am not a wood guy, but will do what I can, or can skip it.

If you had no insurance on your guns, or you have one that you are not willing to turn in to insurance for replacement, or if your insurance people are just a nightmare to deal with, then shoot me an email. I rarely answer the phone, but will return messages left in voicemail.

Keep in mind it is cheaper for me to receive and return a handgun from another FFL than it is a non-licensee. You will pay me $20 to cover materials, and you will pay the actual return shipping. (A $20 bill is acceptable, so is one ounce of silver, in lieu of US Federal Play Money.)

If you no longer have a physical address for a firearm to come FROM, find a dealer to ship it from, so I can ship it back when done.

(FFLS-Enclose a copy, and you get one back when the item is returned.)

As long as your firearm is still serviceable when I get it, the action will be clean and mostly waterproof when you get it back, and oiled or greased where it is not.

I reserve the right to cut this offer off at any point, especially if I get overwhelmed.  Existing customers will come first, as will any that pay the bills, and I reserve the right (at this price) to turn these around as I see fit. (I have a life, too.)

This is NOT charity, screw you if you would consider it such. 

Each weapon will be returned with a stack of business cards that I expect to be handed out.

I do you a solid; you do me a solid. That's how it works. 

Send referrals, folks, or "real" work once your life is back in order and you want fun stuff done.

Anyone trying to pull a fast one and take advantage will find their name and contact information posted everywhere online I can post it, so scammers beware. I may offer other options on a case-by-case basis, as I see/handle each item. If you have other metal gear that needs help, like stacks of magazines, ask me.

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