Diamonds in the Rough

[BrownBear]

No pics yet, but I'm signing onto a discovery already made by many others here on the site:

Keep your eyes open for kit guns someone basically screwed together and finished with more or less woodwork or metalwork. Some are beyond redemption, but some are in such good shape you can "refinish" them and turn out a really nice gun for very little money.

I just picked up an Investarms 58 cal Hawken made for Cabelas. The previous owner used a paint brush to slap a single coat of cold blue onto the barrel, painted a single coat of something on the stock, and kinda sanded the brass and coated that with a heavy dose of what might be marine spar varnish. Looking at the bore, he stuck it on the wall without ever firing it.

The price was definitely right, but it was based more on the crappy finish job than true condition. Thankfully all he really managed to do was protect the unfinished kit from deterioration and put it away.

I kinda figured this one was going to be a loaner or trading stock till I took it out and shot it. Dang! I tried both 80 and 100 grains of Goex 2f, .570 ball and ticking with TOW mink oil grease. Both loads delivered under 2" at 50 yards from a very improvised rest!

This is an older version with a 15/16" barrel rather than the 1" you see on 58's these days. It's a delight to handle, weighing as much as a pound less than a Lyman GPR 54 cal. Being so light it's a bit of a biter with 100 grains of powder, but it could well become my principal hunting gun.

Now that it's got my attention I'm going to put some real effort into finishing it right. Thankfully the previous owner left me plenty to work with.

Only reason I'm spouting off, you see lots of used "kit guns" for sale. Most guys turn away, but I for one will be taking a closer look. Heck, I've paid more for a lock than I paid for this one.

 

[hoochiepapa]

Thanks, BB, I'll be looking.

 

[mazo kid]

You are right about being able to buy a "screwed together" kit gun cheaply. I bought a CVA Mtn. Rifle several years ago at a garage sale that had been basically stuck together as the parts came out of the box....inlays,lock, etc, setting 1/16"+ below the stock surface. I took off what I thought was a lot of wood, but a friend told me I should have taken off more! Cost was $65, 'course that was 35 years ago.

 

[BrownBear]

Cost was $65, 'course that was 35 years ago.

Gotta watch out for inflation! :grin:

Last year a pard found a TC Hawken kit gun in about the same shape with an asking price of $150. After much dickering the guy dropped it to $125, then threw in a shooting bag, horn, powder measure, capper, two cans of powder, a bunch of patches, and 6 boxes of Hornady balls. Dang.

 

[21b o3]

This is exactly what I am doing now. Got bit by the bug to build a rifle and / or a pistol couple of weeks ago and don't want to jump right in to an expensive kit. I remember as a kid there was an old CVA flintlock Kentucky pistol kit floating around the house that never got completed and has since been lost...... I figured someone else out there has to have one in a similar condition. On a whim I checked Craig's List and found a .50 cal CVA percussion pistol kit that was somewhat "completed" , fired a few times, and put up. $40 later it was mine, minus the rear sight, nose cap, and ramrod. Figured this would be a good way to practice my woodworking and metalworking skills before I attacked a nicer kit or built one from scratch and really loused things up. broke out the chisels last night and sharpened them up and will start cleaning her up in next day or two. Heck, for $40, what do you have to lose with so much to gain?!

 

[bjmac]

I found a .45 Kentucky rifle at a flea market and paid $25.00 for it. It was missing some parts, but had the basics. Figured that I couldn't lose, so I went and tried everything that I could think of to learn. Turned out to be a tack driver and I learned alot. you can see the process on my site. www.blackpowdersmoke.com/buildercollector under the heading Building percussion -.45 Kentucky pile of parts