Red Ryder 3 is done (ish)

Red Ryder #3 is Daisy Model 94 Red Ryder Carbine that got rode hard and put up wet. A number of times. This one survived a crushed receiver, a failed mainspring support that was replaced by a 16 penny nail that over time bent into a pleasant "U" shape and the worst pitting I've seen so far.

It's also missing the signature latigo loop and supporting hardware as well as the the flip over peep sight/v-notch rear sight. The existing rear sight bracket does have a notch filed into it for your convenience, not a factory solution but it does work. There are also two small holes drilled into the rear of the receiver to aid in butt retention or something. This photo gives some clues as to the abuse this Red Ryder has endured.

The stocks are glue-up curly (ish) maple. They are not as vibrant as I had hoped but that is the nature of wood. This side shows some more of the waffly nature of the receiver. Still and all, the little gun shoots and has enough power for range events but does not fare well in a "Cut to Can" match.

This is the bottle cap after filing and fire bluing. An excellent example of why you're supposed to wipe everything down before making photos.

Here's a group shot of the Red Ryder gang. From the top, a Model 94 Red Ryder Carbine missing a few bits, #2 is a #111 Model 40 Rest-o-mod Red Ryder and #3 a complete Model 94 Red Ryder Carbine.

I've got a Model 111 on the bench at the moment and rustled up yet another Model 94 receiver  with no internals as well. That'll top the Red Ryder Bottlecap gang out at 5.

Until I happen upon number 6.

Red Ryder #2 is done

Red Ryder #2 is off the bench and in the rack. Here are some pictures of the effort.

As you can see this is sporting my new Martini style cocking lever, it's also got a .250 thick all steel trigger that is finished bright but due to my deplorable 'Photo Stand' it looks blue. It's not, it's silvery shiny. The stock on #2 is a two piece glue up from roughly 1" thick curly maple. I like this style stock because it adds heft to these little guns and helps them really stand out.

I also hand file the bottlecaps to remove dents and dings and highlight the bronze ring around the bore. Not needed but much better appearance.

This is a view of the buttplate. All my Daisy rest-o-mods have buttplates. They're fire blued like all the other bits and do help keep the guns from getting damaged.

Here's the roll stamp lightly highlighted by some gold stick.

Red Ryder #3 is in process and should be finished by the weekend. I'll post when it's done.

Building better mousetraps or at least a old school Daisy lever

What do you do when you want an old school Daisy lever that's not curved? Make one.
 
I have a preference for straight grip musket style stocks on the the Daisy's I rest-o-mod and they are not common on the Red Ryder platform in any vintage. Nor are they readily available on any of the internet parts sites.

Since all the cast aluminum levers I've come across are a pretty uniform 1/4" thick I decided to head over to the local big box and pick up some 1/4" x 2" steel. It's plenty strong enough to fabricate a BB gun lever.

I've also had misgivings about the traditional lever shape on the Daisy's because during a speed shooting event like 'Cut the Can' you never get back to a full grip as you're blasting BB's as fast as humanly possible to reduce that aluminum soda can to two chunks. The top of the lever gets in the way. I've also wondered what increasing the lever length might do for improving the reload cycle.
So I found out.

Pretty damn jazzy. The lack of a traditional loop gets my hand back into firing position after reloading and cocking the beast. The Martini style loop gets kicked out by my firing hand thumb and then palmed as I rock the muzzle to cock the beast and then on to the next shot. Nice and fluid.

And unique.

Next post is all about triggers. Well not all about them, just the ones I make on occasion.

Red Ryder Done

My first Red Ryder restock is done. Due to the thinness of the receiver I opted to add some "Palm Swell" strips to the grip area to fill it out. The next one will be done with two pieces of fiddleback maple and then shaped. I'll also go with a slender forearm and see how my Martini lever project looks on it.

 

This gun is an older bottlecap Model 94 that had leather seals. Well, the remnants of them anyway. That and the missing plunger tube compelled me to modify the newer rubber/poly seals and new plunger tube to get it to shoot. Real fiddly-bits, but it'll knock cans and toy soldiers off the garage range so it's all good.

This is a close up of the "palm swells" I opted for to improve the grip and you can see some of the color play on the receiver from the fire blue process I use. I go with a satin look because  these old Daisy's all have rust and pits and dents and dings.

Found an old stick of Birchwood Casey Gold Stick in a cupboard and had at it. I like it.

That's all or now, by the end of the week I should have Red Ryder #2 done with a Martini style lever and billet trigger. It'll also be sporting a full glue up stock and maybe a cheek rest. Then it's on to Red Ryder #3,

Custom Daisy's

As far as I can tell, these custom Daisy model 99's, 98, 96 and 95's are unique on planet earth.

It's amazing the kind of transformation you can achieve with a propane torch and some wittlin' time on salvaged Fiddleback Maple. These old daisy wide frames are an absolute pleasure to shoot now that they fit like custom guns ought to and have enough weight to make the firing cycle pretty effortless. There's nothing like dumping 500+ bb's down the loading hatch and shooting these guns dry. Takes a while.

They're all yard sale survivors and I wish I'd taken more before and after shots but here's the few I have.

And here's one before fire bluing the receiver on a Model 25 parts gun that came with a shoe box but no stocks.

I started my first Red Ryder this week and should have some photo's after the week end.

Later!