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This is the kind of blank dreams are made of-if you asked me!

Nope, it's gonna crack for sure.

This is to be my last hunting rifle.This is a blank that I like very much,without a doubt.It has a Holland and Holland simple but elegant look.My gunmaker used the word "WOW" to describe it and he has seen many stocks.I feel like I know I have something good!

I've looked at this a few times.....can the layout be jockeyed around a bit to straighten the grain flow in the fore end?

quote:

Originally posted by ForrestB:
Nope, it's gonna crack for sure.

I agree with Duane....you really want the grain flow to be parallel to the barrel in the forend section......this blank has a lot of drop to it.

You could salvage it for a two-piece blank.

I got one that must have been cut from the same tree, looks to be its twin...I had to give a $125.00 for it, only gave that much because I liked it.

I would also like to see pictures of the top and bottom of the blank to see how straight the grain flow is.

465H&H

I contacted my gunmaker and cleared some things up.It was his assistant who sent me the images and Ralf did not yet see the blank I chose.Ralf later saw the blank and did not like the layout for the Lott and did not like the top part of the blank-the part that we cannot see here.I asked that he suggest one for me and he sent this picture. [URL= ]1[/URL]
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Didn't you just build one last year?

My Martini Gunmakers Vektor 458 lott nearing completion-pics

This whole custom lott thing started with the purchase of a Satterlee barreled action around 6 or so years ago-around the time when Winchester shut down production of the model 70.I wanted a reliable bolt action rifle to hunt Africa with.Uncertain as to when or if I would get the action may have caused me to start a project with Ralf Martini-at that time Martini and Hagn.This project was finished this year. Satterlee came through with the barreled action and importation was succesful and we are now going to stock the second project.It was suggested that I do a 375 or something else with it or sell it.I chose to do another 458 lott and keep it.Hanging out on AR for awhile and learning more about rifles and what I liked has led me here.I am proud of the rifle Ralf built for me on the Vektor action and I think this one might even be better.

The blank suggested by Ralf is dark and dense.I don`t think it is the most beautiful blank.I`ll have to see if we can improve on the looks.This is not a bad looking blank,BTW.

What kind of wood is it. Hard to tell from the pictures.

turkish

quote:

Originally posted by shootaway:
The blank suggested by Ralf is dark and dense.

Quite nice, I think.

quote:

Originally posted by shootaway:
The blank suggested by Ralf is dark and dense.I don`t think it is the most beautiful blank.I`ll have to see if we can improve on the looks.This is not a bad looking blank,BTW.

You and I disagree a lot(especially on wood), so it should be no surprise.... But I think the blank you say "isn't the most beautiful" is 20 times better than that gawd-awful mess you first posted.

Seriously, that first blank was terrible.

Agreed, the first blank posted is very underwhelming.

A big MEH from me.

So what happened with the mauser you had finished recently, a big bore as well?

Did it crack?

quote:

Originally posted by xile84:
So what happened with the mauser you had finished recently, a big bore as well?

Did it crack?

xile,fact is I never had a rifle crack on me.I see you like Dorleac rifles.They are too feminine looking for me.Are you a memeber of the opposite sex?

He he.
They are small handy rifles, I like em personally!

Any pictures of your martini rifle, Id love to see how it looks now!

quote:

Originally posted by JBrown:

quote:

Originally posted by shootaway:
The blank suggested by Ralf is dark and dense.I don`t think it is the most beautiful blank.I`ll have to see if we can improve on the looks.This is not a bad looking blank,BTW.

You and I disagree a lot(especially on wood), so it should be no surprise.... But I think the blank you say "isn't the most beautiful" is 20 times better than that gawd-awful mess you first posted.

Seriously, that first blank was terrible.

Why was it so terrible? Aside from the layout issue,it is a beautiful blank,IMO.

I am a little biased between the two.
The second blank came from us. I know it and it is a very nice blank. Not nearly as dark as you may think from the photos.
It is caramel and black marble with a great layout and good density.
At the end of the day, DENSITY plays a Huge role is selecting a stock for a big bore such as the almighty 458 Lott. Even more so than todays current opinion of proper layout for a big bore, which changes with the generations. Just look at the British guns 100 years ago.

Anyway, to be completely fair to the first blank, it is really not that bad. I have never seen nor handled it and so can say nothing about the density.

It can have a good layout (by doing as Duane suggested, see the photo) if the guy turning pays attention. BUT!!!!...As Ralph stated, he seen something on the top of the blank he did not like. Perhaps is crosses up in the wrist. He seen something and that is all I would need to go by, his word counts in my book.

All that said....I would go with what Ralph said. He knows his business as does Duane.

Me? Well, I am just a wood seller, but I also know wood as good or better than anyone. We play with it a LOT and we also turn about 3 to 5 stocks daily for our guns.
I would still pick the second blank.
Especially if the price on the first one is what I am reading on the blank. That is a bit high for the blank.

quote:

Originally posted by shootaway:

quote:

Originally posted by xile84:
So what happened with the mauser you had finished recently, a big bore as well?

Did it crack?

xile,fact is I never had a rifle crack on me.I see you like Dorleac rifles.They are too feminine looking for me.Are you a memeber of the opposite sex?

I have not seen every rifle that Dorleac has ever made but the ones I have seen looked very much OK and show a level of craftsmanship missing on many custom guns. Can you post a pic or a link to the guns you thought were feminine looking?

I have a Dorleac on order, probably why he is flinging poo

Im okay with opinions though, not everyone has to like what I like!

I see, so the post has little to do with Dorleac guns and just another AR personal attack

quote:

This is to be my last hunting rifle.

To update this thread,I contacted my gunmaker and he pulled out a special blank he has been saving. It is old and extremely dense.The blank is very beautiful and I bought it from him to use for this project.Since it is a special blank I will not post it here and subject it to all kinds of crap.If anyone wants to see a picture of it they can PM me.

quote:

Originally posted by shootaway:
To update this thread,I contacted my gunmaker and he pulled out a special blank that is old and extremely dense.The blank is very beautiful and I bought it from him to use for this project.Since it is a special blank I will not post it here and subject it to all kinds of crap.If anyone wants to see a picture of it they can PM me.

I would like to see it. I liked your first blank, I do not know about the grain flow and its stability. But I thought that it had nice figure and would look really nice finished.

Please reconsider posting it. I would like to see it as I am sure others would.

I have posted my project here and I am sure that many think that I am a hack and that is fine with me. If one person enjoys what I have posted I feel it is worth it. Don’t let some ruin it for everyone.

quote:

Originally posted by shootaway:

quote:

Originally posted by JBrown:

quote:

Originally posted by shootaway:
The blank suggested by Ralf is dark and dense.I don`t think it is the most beautiful blank.I`ll have to see if we can improve on the looks.This is not a bad looking blank,BTW.

You and I disagree a lot(especially on wood), so it should be no surprise.... But I think the blank you say "isn't the most beautiful" is 20 times better than that gawd-awful mess you first posted.

Seriously, that first blank was terrible.

Why was it so terrible? Aside from the layout issue,it is a beautiful blank,IMO.

Layout is the most important factor in a stock blank, so I don't think that you can leave it out of a discussion regarding a blank.

But if we set layout aside.... I really hate a blank that is dark and fancy in the butt, then lacks color and figure in the forend. I just can't see using such a blank on an expensive rifle. Sometimes people say, "but the butstock is SOOO fancy!" But to me that exacerbates the problem of the unbalanced blank.

I would rather have a blank that was nice from one end to the other rather than a blank that in fancy in the butt and plain in the forend.

Having said all that, I think the first blank is a bit jumbled in the butt and pedestrian in the forend. It just doesn't do it for me in at all.

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wow...

That is stunning! Thanks for posting

That's purdy.

Thanks! One of the things I like about it is that there is no figure in the forearm.I like it this way on a bolt action rife.If it would have been a shotgun or single-shot then that would be different.I think I once sent my gun-maker a picture of a rifle made out of a similar blank but much lighter in color.Here is a blank I found on another web site with the same style.
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My opinion on blanks is a bit like beer.There is a beer that is my favorite and it is the only one I drink when I drink beer which is not that often.The first time I tried it I thought it tasted like glue and did not try it again for years later.I then tried it again and again and it became my favorite.It just won a competition over 600 beers tested some where in the world.
Perfect mineral line pattern and perfect layout are not the things that I now look for in a beautiful blank.I looked for this when I first started looking at blanks.The biggest turn off is when I see wood that has a cork screw texture-if I described it right.I have never been able to accept that.It looks like the whole blank is out of focus or fog has found its way into the wood.

Ive always preferred dark wood myself, with a red pad.

It just looks more exclusive to me, with a depth of character not found in brighter shades..

quote:

Originally posted by shootaway:
My opinion on blanks is a bit like beer.There is a beer that is my favorite and it is the only one I drink when I drink beer which is not that often.The first time I tried it I thought it tasted like glue and did not try it again for years later.I then tried it again and again and it became my favorite.It just won a competition over 600 beers tested some where in the world.
Perfect mineral line pattern and perfect layout are not the things that I now look for in a beautiful blank.I looked for this when I first started looking at blanks.The biggest turn off is when I see wood that has a cork screw texture-if I described it right.I have never been able to accept that.It looks like the whole blank is out of focus or fog has found its way into the wood.

Is it?