I am a little bit hesitant to share this here, as there are many people here who are far better than me.

I am not a trained gunsmith, nor even a particularly talented amateur.

But every component except the barrel and the scope and the odd screw on this was designed and made by me (although I didn't do the engraving). As you can see, I couldn't really aford a nice piece of wood either...



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I would say that you would have to be very talented to have built such a nice rifle. Very well done Peter !!

Nice work !

Very nice. Very good work.

.

I agree. Take pride in your work Peter, I think you did just fine!

Thanks gentlemen

Don't get me wrong, I am very proud of it. Although more proud of the design than the fit and finish. Fit and finish is far below work frequently seen on this forum, but the design of the action is to me quite satisfactory. Not perfect, it does have a couple of small aspects which are less than ideal, but it is after all effectively a prototype.

Some detail: it is a striker-fired rather than hammer-fired design, with a 2-way adjustable compound-sear-type trigger. The safety catch does more than simply blocking the trigger, and when applied it blocks the striker effectively.
The striker has a pretty short stroke and moves virtually in line with the bore (about 10 degrees off), so (although I have no way of measuring it) it should have a pretty short lock-time and shouldn't impart any torque to the rifle.

The mechanism to open and close the block is unique as far as I know, and the block stops level with the loading trough in the receiver, not dropping further during extraction like some others. And the extractor (a traditional weakness of falling-block designs) is pretty powerful, with far more leverage than a typical bolt action.

With it's 22" medium-weight barrel it is lively and well balanced, weighing bout 3kg excluding the scope. Action weight is about 900gr.

As for accuracy, I have one load that shot three successive 5-round groups of less than 0.7MOA. More than good enough for it's intended purpose.

Allow me to congratulate you as well!

I marvel at so many persons on this forum who possess the skills to make firearms, as well as the gunsmiths.

You all have my sincerest respect.

When will you take this rifle hunting, as you live in Africa?

Thank you very much Surefire

The rifle is actually about 20 years old, and I have hunted with it almost exclusively since it was finished (I use an old modified F-class .308 for the long-range stuff, but I don't do much of that).

However, over the last decade hunting (and shooting sadly) has had to take a bit of a back seat for financial reasons. Starting to get back into the game now though.

Very pleasant and you have the right to be proud of your creation. I would apologize to no one for that rifle! Your action looks very cool and functional. Well done man!

I too have build a few (stocks only) that I'm proud of but they certainly wouldn't stack up to what the masters do yet most of the masters on this site lend encouragement!

Zeke

Thank you very much Zeke

You did good.

Dave

Thank you very much Nopride2

Very nice

Thank you very much P Dog shooter.

I just saw this, that is a great job Peter!

Thank you very much Frank

That's an amazing accomplishment, Peter. You have every right to be proud. I'd be happy to carry that myself. Sounds like you've really put a lot of thought into it. Do you have any plans to market your design?

Thank you very much CDSX

Shortly after making this rifle, the laws here in South Africa changed. It is now illegal to do any "home gunsmithing". To do any work on existing firearms one has to be registered as a gunsmith, for which one firstly has to have a relevant qualification, and secondly one has to have a suitable, secure premises, neither of which I have.

To actually manufacture a firearm, one has to have an even higher qualification and registration.

The above is impossible for me, both due to time and financial constraints. It needs to be pointed out that there is no organisation in the country that can train one to the standard required, thus the only way to get the necessary qualification would be to work and study overseas.

However, since there are no laws against designing, I have continued doing that. Since then, I have improved the design, and come up with some (I think) interesting alternatives (such as a side-lever action, and a specialist target version).

However, if there were any gunsmiths or manufacturers who would like to try manufacturing them, I would be very open to negotiation!

I understand your situation completely, Peter. I suggest you look into copyrighting your design, if possible. If no luck finding an interested gun-maker, you might think about publishing the drawings. Just consult legal counsel with regard to your liability laws. If they're anything like those over here, it might be too risky.

Whatever the outcome, I still applaud you for having the determination to do what many only dream of doing.

Thank you very much CDSX

Beautifully executed concept.
I hope someone will find it of commercial interest.
I fear the main diciding factor in commercial interest will be in ease/cost of manufacture.

Thank you very much TCLouis

I guess, but the problem is that I can't really show that without giving enough information that anybody with the necessary skill to make it could copy it pretty easily.

What I can say is that the number of parts is roughly similar to the Hagn (I actually have a couple more parts because my action has an adjustable trigger, but that could be omitted if desired), and the machining processes are mostly relatively straight-forward.

It was designed to be made in very small numbers, (in other words all parts were made from flat or bar stock), but of course if one were planning to make a number of them, more efficient processes and raw materials could be used.

It was never intended to be a bargain basement action though, and I have thus far assumed that anybody planning to make an action like this would be putting it on a high-end full-custom rifle, in which the cost of the action would be a relatively minor component?

In addition to the above, it may be worth stating that (unlike the Hagn and the Ruger) no part of the action extends into the fore-end, and thus it would be reasonably easy to build a take-down rifle on this action.

Also, on the side-lever version, the bottom of the action is closed, and nothing drops out when the action is opened.

It sounds more and more interesting all the time!

If it does contain new and unique features (and it sounds as if it does), you need to obtain a patent. Then you are able to show it to prospective makers and they would be prevented by law from using your design without your consent.

I have had just two ideas patented in my career.

On neither did we make our money back.

One of the two was in production in China by a competitor almost before the patent was even granted. I think we were sold out by somebody from within the company, but the fact is that those countries currently used for most manufacturing are not signatories to the patent laws.

Both the above was done through companies that I worked for at the time, and the cost was way more than I can afford in my private capacity.

I would be willing to share the designs on the basis that the maker promises to send me one barrelled action of each type that he makes. Even the prototype is fine, as long as it is suitable for use.

quote:

Originally posted by Peter Connan:
I have had just two ideas patented in my career.

On neither did we make our money back.

One of the two was in production in China by a competitor almost before the patent was even granted. I think we were sold out by somebody from within the company, but the fact is that those countries currently used for most manufacturing are not signatories to the patent laws.

Both the above was done through companies that I worked for at the time, and the cost was way more than I can afford in my private capacity.

I would be willing to share the designs on the basis that the maker promises to send me one barrelled action of each type that he makes. Even the prototype is fine, as long as it is suitable for use.

The more I see of people, the more I prefer rats. And I hate rats.

Peter,
Yes I wish the world and people were better. It is, and they are not.
However you sir, and what you have done, is an example of greatness, freedom and hope! That needs no copyright. Sharing it with us spreads it.
My thanks.
Sincerely,
Fury01

Thasnk you very much CDSX and Fury01

Nice gun..congrats. INteresting scope rings? I like them, what are they, commercial of some kind or custom.

Thanks Ray

Scope rings were also hand-made.
Laser-cut 12mm thick mild-steel plate, bored out on the lathe, dove-tails and bolt holes in the mill and then filed and shaped by hand.

Peter, are you using the 7x57 rimmed?

I am using a "hybrid" cartridge.

The chamber was cut with a rimless reamer, and a rim-groove was cut on the lathe.

I use 7x57R cases (and a few 7x64R cut down), but could in an emergency fit and chamber rimless ammo, although I would then have to resort to extraction via cleaning rod. Reloading is done with rimless dies. The reason I did this is that here in SA, there is no chance of buying 7x57R ammo off the shelf. Not that I expect ever to need to buy ammo off the shelf, but just in case.

I have designed a rimless extractor, but for the sake of traditionalism (and reliability) I decided to keep this one simple.

Long-winded, sorry.

We are on the same page! I recently made a rimless extractor for a single shot and will try to avoid that in the future! I cannot tell you how interred I am by your design comments and hope at some time to be able know more. However, judging by the pins through your receiver I expect you used a separate 'kicker' for your extractor, like a farquharson. A very good idea.

It seems to me that we have here a new talented gunsmith. Nice work, the wood is fine, BTW the design is to my liking. I would add a bit longer barrel but that is a matter of taste. Congratulations!

Thank you very much CZ

As you say, barrel length is a matter of taste but also to my mind should be tailored to the job the rifle is built to do.

This one is primarily a walk-and-stalk rifle for relatively dense bush, so the short barrel makes sense.

I would love to one day do another, on a slightly different action, chambered in a flatter-shooting caliber for "plains game", maybe a .270 or similar, and that would probably have a 24-26" barrel.

peter...very nice rifle....i really like singleshots...but, the idea of making one from scratch just amazes me.....realizing my own limitations, it's really good to see what others can create...one of the reasons i like...accurate reloading so much, is the opportunity to share/enjoy such creations...regards, john

Thanks John, I appreciate the compliment.

Smart move, all single shot and double rifles should have a rimmed case, and yes its argueable, but thats my story and Im sticking to it!

BTW 7x57R cases are still available as far as I know..I recently saw some for sale, but can't recall who was offering them..the hard stuff to find is more available today than the common varity of brass, bullets and components, the horders bought up all the common varity!

Thanks Ray

Peter, did you make your breechblock harder than your receiver?

Good Job! That is a good looking rifle. Brian