I can appreciate the craftsmanship. Was it built for someone on a tight budget? Looks like a commercial Mauser bolt, maybe a double trigger with the lever and door from a 1909 Argentine Mauser or some 98 commercial Mauser worked in. Nice wood to metal fit, well executed stippling and crisp checkering on the grip. Cool caliber too.
http://www.gunbroker.com/item/612103127

quote:

Originally posted by custombolt:
I can appreciate the craftsmanship. Was it built for someone on a tight budget? Looks like a commercial Mauser bolt, maybe a double trigger with the lever and door from a 1909 Argentine Mauser or some 98 commercial Mauser worked in. Nice wood to metal fit, well executed stippling and crisp checkering on the grip. Cool caliber too.


http://www.gunbroker.com/item/612103127

Rather plain stock for a rifle costing $2100.

Pre-war Teutonic execution. Prettier wood would have been nice, but that thing was made to hunt. I love it!

I think the simplicity of the rifle is a plus. Too often we see one of these "Teutonic" rifles engraved with hideous beasts and covered in oak leaf and acorn carvings. The stock looks like maple to me.

Actually that's not as plain a stock as first glance. Either the photography isn't catching the light very well or the finish just doesn't show the contraast to it's best but you can see that while it isn't exhibition grade it does have some contrast in the butt.

beautiful pre-WWII rifle, perhaps a guild gun done by a journeyman who did not want the stock figure or adornments to detract from his workmanship.

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Sharpshooter:
beautiful pre-WWII rifle, perhaps a guild gun done by a journeyman who did not want the stock figure or adornments to detract from his workmanship.

Read the description. It was "Built by Fred and Rachel Wells of Prescott, Arizona in 1990".

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Sharpshooter:
beautiful pre-WWII rifle, perhaps a guild gun done by a journeyman who did not want the stock figure or adornments to detract from his workmanship.

Nope. That's a Fred Wells (or Frank, I get the two names confused) rifle, made in the pre-war style. He used a Polish action and ERA sights. Mr Wells has passed on, but his son, Rube, still makes customs mausers.

nice work but I like my stocks darker

The stock appears to be made of cherry to my eye.

Sine the action screws are intact what is the wedge for?

Gorgeous! I love it. I visited Fred Well's shop before he passed and it was like a kid going to the candy store.

quote:

Originally posted by The Dane:
Sine the action screws are intact what is the wedge for?

The requisite "je ne sais quoi" perhaps. Stock could be cherry but it's awful light for a piece of cherry that old unless it's been sitting in a dark closet.

Well, says it's never been fired, so it probably has sat in a safe all this time.

quote:

Originally posted by Grenadier:

quote:

Originally posted by The Dane:
Sine the action screws are intact what is the wedge for?

The requisite "je ne sais quoi" perhaps. Stock could be cherry but it's awful light for a piece of cherry that old unless it's been sitting in a dark closet.

Ah i see. Like a mailbox on a submarine ;-)

It was Fred Wells and his wife Rachel who lived and worked in Prescott, AZ. Frank Wells worked in Tucson, AZ. Both men created the finest big game rifles in the classic style, both were consummate craftsmen.

Rachel, Rube and Rube's son Todd still run the shop with Rachel engraving and the father/son team making rifles and actions. Bob Szweda still carves stocks and checkers for his clients.

This stock was made from probably the absolute plainest piece of French walnut I've ever seen in Fred's shop. Fred loved wood in all its glory and as a result catered to the folks who desired the fanciest of stocks. His actions were machined to order, one at a time on a Bridgeport mill. When he couldn't find a quality part to suit him he grabbed some material and made it himself.

Great rifle.

IMHO, it needs claw mounts and a scope. (Showing the age of my eyes, I guess.)

And a prettier piece of wood, as others have mentioned.

quote:

IMHO, it needs claw mounts and a scope.

And a buxom Tyrolean target spotter with long blonde braids hanging over her lederhosen.

quote:

Originally posted by Grenadier:

quote:

IMHO, it needs claw mounts and a scope.

And a buxom Tyrolean target spotter with long blonde braids hanging over her lederhosen.

That'a some funny $#|t!

I should visit the Well's Sport shop some day. I understand it is still at the same location on a side street and barely marked. Maybe after I retire.

I've got a book somewhere with a picture of Fred Wells as he worked on his heavily customized Mauser action and stock that had to weigh like 14 pounds it had so much extra metal about the barrel and action. Eventhough it was quite cumbersome it was still a true masterpiece. The wood to metal fit was impeccable and I marveled at that photo for hours wondering how he did it.

quote:

Originally posted by LJS:
Gorgeous! I love it. I visited Fred Well's shop before he passed and it was like a kid going to the candy store.

The 'cumbersome' Fred Wells rifle is on page 426 of Speed Schmid Herrman's Original Oberndorf sporting rifles.

"QUOTE" This custom sporter rifle is truly a beautiful piece of work. Built by Fred and Rachel Wells of Prescott, Arizona in 1990. An almost exact copy of one in Mr. Wells' Mauser collection, this rifle is patterned after the Sauer rifles of 1910-1920.

The man was a master craftsman...he or someone wanted a copy.
Beautifully done and at a fair price me thinks!

Custombolt: When I visited the shop I was shown a series of actions being built for a customer from scratch. They had the slide for Griffin & Howe removable rings milled into the side of the receiver. The one thing that I found really interesting was the wooden fence running down the walkway to the shop. Apparently carving and checkering doodling was tried on this fence while taking a break. I'm glad I got to visit.
All I can tell you is it is behind the drug store. I spent an hour finding it.

Looks familiar.

LJS. I talked to Rube several months ago to see if there was anything cool in the shop there to buy. I wasn't successful in that regard. But, he seems to have "the passion". I got to make a tour one of these years while my health is on a good roll like it's been the last year or so. Ain't no guarantees ya know.
richj Even though I'm not hot on that particular style, I still can appreciate how he shaped the metal around the fore end and then kept the flow all the way to the end. That is some wild stuff right there. I love it. Is that your rifle in the picture?

yep, 9x57. it's now got a G&H side mount which was probably a mistake

It's not a mistake if you like it with the side mount. A favorite version of The golden rule is 'the man with the gold makes the rule'. Thanks for the picture.

quote:

Originally posted by AnotherAZWriter:


Rather plain stock for a rifle costing $2100.

This.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I have seen 10/22's with more appealing wood

I really like the rifle, plain wood properly laid out is best for a hunting rifle as a rule. and it takes not from the workmanship, too many folks see color and marble cake and judge the rifle by that..Like a good dog function and reliability are first and foremost. If I were to own this rifle, I would refinish it with some alkanet root and go dark as possible, for no other reason than I like dark stocks, the blacker the better.