Building an Alexander Henry Target Rifle from a Rod England Kit

[Curtis]

After some off-post conversation with Westbj2 I decided to make a few checkering tools to help with achieving a period look of the checkering.

The first tool is an 80 degree double cut. I started out with a spring steel wire form a source you will never guess... times up! About 10 years ago I burned an early 20th century spring mattress on a brush-pile, and harvested several feet up different size pieces of spring wire, high carbon stuff. After the fire the wire was all nicely annealed. I forged one end to a square-ish head and bent it in a vise:



Next I shaped the head by filing, then cut a slot down the center, then cut teeth with a knife edge file:



I hardened the head by heating red hot and quenched in kerosene, a trick I learned from George Suiter - the kerosene leave very little slag to clean off. I polished the head and drew it back to a light straw.











Put a handle on it and it was ready to use.



Forgot to mention - I first made an 80 degree template from a scrap of German silver to use as a guide.



The next tool was a single cut 80 deg tool, made from some W1 tool steel I got from a friend for another project. I filed the head area to 80 deg and bent it using a vice and finger pressure. Then I cut teeth and heat treated the tool.







Last, I made a high-quality handle for the tool.



Then I got the bright idea to put a hard maple handle on the tool for the added mass, and managed to break the cutter by careless pressure in a vice when I was pounding the new handle on it!

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade! So I made a new 80 deg tool, then annealed the broken one, re-bent the shape and made a small tool for getting into hard places, and back cutting next to borders. I put the corn cob back on that one....



More to come later...
Curtis

 

[Curtis]

Here is the second 80 degree single cut tool, I didn't break this one putting the handle on.



The next and last tool (I think) for the project is a mullering tool for creating mullered borders. I started with another section of bedspring wire, forged and filed the head into and oval-ish shape, cold bent it and cut slots with a jeweler's saw.



The next step I did was cut the slots larger with a knife edge file, then used a three cornered file to shape the teeth.







I hardened and heat treated it to straw, then touched up the teeth with a diamond tool and tested it on my practice block.







A couple of pics using the double cut and single cut tools.





Thanks for looking, Curtis

 

[Idaholewis]

Awesome Skills you Have Curtis!! That is some Fine attention to Detail. I really enjoy your in Depth Pics of this Build, Keep up the Good Work!

 

[BuckDoeHunter]

Very nice! Gives me some ideas, thank you.

 

[jims]

I am indeed impressed. Good skills.

 

[Curtis]

Thanks guys! Hope to have another update soon.

Curtis

 

[Curtis]

Had a little shop time today, made some progress. Getting close to finished with the checks on one side!





Curtis

 

[jims]

They look sharp and crisp

 

[Curtis]

Thanks Jims!

 

[Curtis]

Got all the wrist checkering cut to depth, then I marked up my border layout.







Next I used an 18th century style checkering tool I made a couple years ago to mark layout lines. The tool cuts lines at about 9 lpi, or twice the 18 lpi the gun is checkered with.





I then used some pinstripe tape as a guide to extend out the lines, and cut them with a 60 deg cutter:



Made a rough 80 deg "float" to rapidly cut the border lines to depth.





I chased the borderlines with a smoother 80 deg tool, then switched to my mullering tool. "Hey Ma, look at me, I'm mullering!

Had just enough time to cut a small amount to provide "proof of concept", looks like the tool will dork out well.





More in a few days, thanks for looking.

Curtis

 

[wildcat2]

Very nice work, going to try this on my interchangeable rigby,amazing how some checkering does for a rifle.

 

[Curtis]

Wildcat, it does seem to really transform a gun!

I worked some more on the borders today, here is what I came up with so far:











Westbj2 had sent me some images of original period checkering, below is a particularly good example:



Upon close examination it appeared to me that there was a tiny flat line in the valleys between the rows of checks. Jim agreed, and thought perhaps resulted from using a burnishing tool. It could also be caused by the shape of the checkering tool used. I decided to use a flat bottom checkering tool, made .015 wide - I think it helped make the checkering look more like the original in the photo.













Thanks for looking,
Curtis

 

[ENCORE50A]

Outstanding skills!

 

[jims]

That really came out well.

 

[52Bore]

Looking good Curtis. I assume you’ll slightly darken the checkering with a little bone black?
Ask Jim.
Also, Jim asked me to send him something that I’m afraid to ship! Ha.

 

[Curtis]

Thanks guys!

Looking good Curtis. I assume you’ll slightly darken the checkering with a little bone black?
Ask Jim.
Also, Jim asked me to send him something that I’m afraid to ship! Ha.

I will shoot Jim a note inquiring about the bone black. I have plenty of it, but would like some guidance on using it with checkering! So he is wanting you to send him some contraband, eh?

Curtis

 

[Curtis]

Put a light coat of LMF sealer (with a few drops of LMF maple stain in it) on to seal it, then hit it repeatedly with a toothbrush after it soaked in a bit. I can see a couple of spots on the borders that need a bit of touch up now that is has a bit of shine to it. Next I will be moving on to the forestock.....











Curtis

 

[wildcat2]

Love your photography your giving us. Will be rereading this when I get on mine. Thanks.

 

[52Bore]

Hmmm, too late now as you’ll be fine.
Notice anything?

 

[45-70]

maybe he wanted it in there