For those of you who like to hunt / shoot

[TritonGlenn]

When it comes to fishing lately, I've been so bored and frustrated! Heat kills me. It was well over 100 in San Antonio for weeks. Last week, we saw 110. Fish ain't biting. Water levels low. It's not even worth making the trip, as it's just a hot, steamy boat ride when I get there, and I'm not enjoying myself. I can't wait for cooler weather. It's coming, and the fishing rods are ready!



In the meantime, I've been catching up on some gunsmithing work. A little $5 part (magazine catch) got a very old Glenfield .22 bolt action working again, and she's a sweet little rifle. A bit of blueing touch-up's were necessary on some firearms, and I also polished a lot of barrel feed ramps on a some pistols I own.



I was also able to get into refinishing, and purchased a media blasting cabinet and rebuilt my old crankbait airbrush gun so I'd have something to use for Duracoating. I've been putting together a centerfire rifle for my son to use this year, and finally have it back together. For those of you who enjoy Encore's (or just firearms in general), here she is:

 

[Greg Meyer]

Sweet....I am sure many would like details

 

[TritonGlenn]

Thanks Greg. I figured you might like it. I've been building this for my son, knowing that I wanted something that would "grow" with him. The stock and caliber choice were chosen with that in mind.



Specs:



Used Encore receiver (that was in dire need of refinishing), media blasted, Duracoated HK black with a slight bit of extra hardener. Came out a little glossier than the stock and forearm.



Stock is made by Choate Machine. It's an M-4 style collapsible stock that will enable this rifle to grow with him as his LOP increases with age. I added a Sims recoil pad to it.



Barrel is a T/C Custom Shop .357 Maximum bull barrel. I'm going to start him out shooting .38 specials and hopefully we can eventually move up to .357 Magnum and finally .357 Maximum. Again - something for him to grow with.



Forearm was a custom job. A gentleman I met was kind enough to donate a forearm for this project. I had to increase the barrel channel for the bull barrel, and then I used bedding compound to make a super snug fit. After the woodwork and bedding were done, I put several coats of Duracoat HK black on it with the exact amount of hardener (12:1 ratio).



Bipod is a Harris BRM.



Scope is a Bushnell Trophy Red Dot 1x28 with selectable displays. I put it on the red crosshairs, just like his .22 Henry Mini-Bolt, as he likes that setup.



All the best,

Glenn

 

[Max Neathamer2]

Nice work. I myself, cant hunt and fish all the time as well so I am picking up a new hobby myself. Just purchased a metal detector. Something to do. Might find something nice. Good excercise.. Once again Glenn, Nice work..



Max

 

[TritonGlenn]

Max,

That is good exercise. I thought about doing that myself. Nice way to get out and enjoy nature. I hope you enjoy it! Let us know what kind of detector you get, and how it works out for you.

All the best,

Glenn

 

[Greg Meyer]

Glenn,

You're right. I do like. And, I think your choice of caliber was excellent. The .357 Maximum should be an effective deer caliber out to 100-125 yards (maybe even a bit more). I would think a load in the 120-140 grain range would be a good one. You got any ideas?

 

[TritonGlenn]

Since he has never fired anything larger than a .22, I bought a box of .38 specials to start with. Nothing fancy, just some Winchester 125 grain jacketed hollow point +P rounds. Winchester claims a muzzle velocity of 945, but I'm not sure what I'll get out of this 24" barrel. I want to get him used to it, and see how he reacts to the noise and recoil.



If he does well, then we move on up to some .357 Magnum's. I was thinking of trying a box of Winchester's 158 grain Soft Points. Claimed muzzle velocity of 1235. They are marked as a hunting round, and they may be just the ticket for what we will be doing with them. I was also looking at Hornady's offerings in the 125 and 140 grain flex-tip or their 140 grain XTP rounds. There is a ton of .357 magnum's to choose from, so I'll probably run through quite a few different boxes to see what shoots best. Heck... just more range time, right?!!



I don't think he will be in for the .357 Maximum anytime soon, although I will be ordering a box of ammo to try out myself. The only one I see at Midway is "Grizzly" ammo, and I don't know squat about that company. Never used them before. I'm having a hard time finding anyone else that carries the Maximum's. Able's doesn't have any, and none of my normal ammo suppliers can get it either. I did find a few other brands I had never heard of. Might try them as well.



We are going to start him off with pigs as his first live animal to shoot. My buddies property has quite a few, and he wants them gone. Perfect opportunity. My son gets to shoot his first live animal, and we help rid my buddies property of pigs. I'm going to have him shoot some little ones for the BBQ pit first, and then as he gets more time behind the trigger, we will move him up to the bigger ones. I won't let him hunt deer with it until I'm confident of his shot placement and continued gun safety practice. We also have a lot of testing to do before we head out after his first deer. Maybe next season for deer. This year is practice and piggies.



All the best,

Glenn

 

[Randy Sutton2]

Very cool!