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A Noob’s Venture into Firearms

Prine

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Like what everyone else has said learning safery is paramount, and it sounds like you have a great teacher who will guide you through all you need to know.
One other thing to look into later down the road is the concealed carry laws in your area. Knowing when and where you can carry is important, as well as knowing when you can use your firearm to defend yourself. Look forward to following your journey.
 
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Brandon, sounds like you and Mrs. B are in good hands. I am a novice, so will only learningly agree with the suggestions given.

I mostly shoot .22lr mostly because it's cheap and allows me to practice more. I love shooting and recently joined a local range.
 
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Brandon, sounds like you and Mrs. B are in good hands. I am a novice, so will only learningly agree with the suggestions given.

I mostly shoot .22lr mostly because it's cheap and allows me to practice more. I love shooting and recently joined a local range.
Got a 10-22 lr when i was a kid. I bought another a few years ago because they are great and cheap to practice with.
 

bwhite220

Brandon | BotM Jan 2038
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Best thing to do is just start shooting, you can always take time to learn safety when you're bored on a rainy day. Also nothing steadies your aim like a pint of Jim beam....and ear protection will throw off your equilibrium, so don't bother with them. Enjoy!
Please teach me everything you know! :sneaky:
 

mdwest

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Plus, you will never want multiple guns. All guns are good for every purpose. Squirrel? Methhead? Moose? No problem! Double Tap of 25 acp and dinner is on the table. The world is your smorgasbord.
Dont reveal all the secrets to him too early!

I like it when guys think early on that they need 1 of everything.. then a year later realize that they want to purge their safe of all the stuff they never shoot...

Thats how I end up getting great deals on guns.. (and cigars!) :D
 

Fozgate

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@bwhite220

Pistols are fun, but the real fun begins when you start getting into rifles. Every man needs a good reliable pistol, 22lr rifle (10/22, CZ455, etc), an AR-15 of some sort (that he built himself as a right of passage) and finally a precision bolt gun for reaching out far.

I can't wait to watch this journey of yours progress, feel free to reach out and ask questions, I've built about 11 AR's at this point and have started reloading for precision rifles.

Cheers,

Pete
 

mdwest

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@bwhite220
Pistols are fun, but the real fun begins when you start getting into rifles.
The REAL fun begins when you start BUILDING your own rifles.... :D

Heading out to the garage now to finish the rebarrel and chambering on a custom mauser build I've been working on...

Took an old pre-WWII VZ-24 rifle that had seen better days (bore completely shot out, stock cracked, hand guard missing, etc..etc..) and have turned it into what I believe is going to be a first class hunting rifle for very large game..

It will have a new start on life as a .35 Whelen..

I installed a timney sportsmans trigger, fit it with a boyds laminate stock, threw on a green mountain F34 profile barrel, tapped the action for scope mounts and have a set of warne maxima bases and rings as well as a zeiss 3-9x42 optic I'm going to mount on it.. installed a timney low profile safety.. re-forged the bolt handle and completely polished the entire bolt (internal and external components)...

All thats left is to finish cutting the chamber (should be done in no more than a couple of hours).. then take it to the range and make sure she feeds well, shoots reliably, etc..

If that happens, then I'll give her a nice duracoat finish.. and then have the wife start shooting shit with it (this will be her mid-bore rifle.. I've got a .375 H&H that I use on the "big" stuff)..


After I knock this project out I've got another mauser action (the next one is a 93 small ring) that Im going to turn into a 7x57...

And when thats done, I've got 2 stripped AR lowers that need to grow up and become .300 BLK's..

For me building guns is as much or more fun than shooting them these days.. There's something pretty cool about taking something to the range or to the woods that you built with your own hands, to your own specs.. loading it with ammo that you also built with your own hands to your own specs.. and then getting to see the results of your labor (whether we're talking a .5" group @ 100 yards.. or a nice, fat 10pt whitetail occupying your freezer)..
 
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The REAL fun begins when you start BUILDING your own rifles.... :D

Heading out to the garage now to finish the rebarrel and chambering on a custom mauser build I've been working on...

Took an old pre-WWII VZ-24 rifle that had seen better days (bore completely shot out, stock cracked, hand guard missing, etc..etc..) and have turned it into what I believe is going to be a first class hunting rifle for very large game..

It will have a new start on life as a .35 Whelen..

I installed a timney sportsmans trigger, fit it with a boyds laminate stock, threw on a green mountain F34 profile barrel, tapped the action for scope mounts and have a set of warne maxima bases and rings as well as a zeiss 3-9x42 optic I'm going to mount on it.. installed a timney low profile safety.. re-forged the bolt handle and completely polished the entire bolt (internal and external components)...

All thats left is to finish cutting the chamber (should be done in no more than a couple of hours).. then take it to the range and make sure she feeds well, shoots reliably, etc..

If that happens, then I'll give her a nice duracoat finish.. and then have the wife start shooting shit with it (this will be her mid-bore rifle.. I've got a .375 H&H that I use on the "big" stuff)..


After I knock this project out I've got another mauser action (the next one is a 93 small ring) that Im going to turn into a 7x57...

And when thats done, I've got 2 stripped AR lowers that need to grow up and become .300 BLK's..

For me building guns is as much or more fun than shooting them these days.. There's something pretty cool about taking something to the range or to the woods that you built with your own hands, to your own specs.. loading it with ammo that you also built with your own hands to your own specs.. and then getting to see the results of your labor (whether we're talking a .5" group @ 100 yards.. or a nice, fat 10pt whitetail occupying your freezer)..
So your sayin it's a highly progressive disease?
 
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The REAL fun begins when you start BUILDING your own rifles.... :D

Heading out to the garage now to finish the rebarrel and chambering on a custom mauser build I've been working on...

Took an old pre-WWII VZ-24 rifle that had seen better days (bore completely shot out, stock cracked, hand guard missing, etc..etc..) and have turned it into what I believe is going to be a first class hunting rifle for very large game..

It will have a new start on life as a .35 Whelen..

I installed a timney sportsmans trigger, fit it with a boyds laminate stock, threw on a green mountain F34 profile barrel, tapped the action for scope mounts and have a set of warne maxima bases and rings as well as a zeiss 3-9x42 optic I'm going to mount on it.. installed a timney low profile safety.. re-forged the bolt handle and completely polished the entire bolt (internal and external components)...

All thats left is to finish cutting the chamber (should be done in no more than a couple of hours).. then take it to the range and make sure she feeds well, shoots reliably, etc..

If that happens, then I'll give her a nice duracoat finish.. and then have the wife start shooting shit with it (this will be her mid-bore rifle.. I've got a .375 H&H that I use on the "big" stuff)..


After I knock this project out I've got another mauser action (the next one is a 93 small ring) that Im going to turn into a 7x57...

And when thats done, I've got 2 stripped AR lowers that need to grow up and become .300 BLK's..

For me building guns is as much or more fun than shooting them these days.. There's something pretty cool about taking something to the range or to the woods that you built with your own hands, to your own specs.. loading it with ammo that you also built with your own hands to your own specs.. and then getting to see the results of your labor (whether we're talking a .5" group @ 100 yards.. or a nice, fat 10pt whitetail occupying your freezer)..
I like you
 

Fozgate

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@mdwest Please share some pics of the rifle when you're finished, I love and really appreciate the craftsmanship and skill that goes into custom rifle smithing. Also, I'd love to hear about your tools, etc. From one amateur craftsman to another, you know how we are with tools :) .
 

mdwest

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just finished the chamber about 30 mins ago.... Im really happy with how it turned out.. it locks up tight as a drum on the go-gauge, and the bolt doesnt close on the no-go gauge.. it SHOULD shoot very well with a chamber that tight...

Ill start a new thread tomorrow (sorry I have hi-jacked this one).. and show all the disassembled parts, and walk through putting a finish on the gun (I think Im going to go with duracoat.. but am not 100% decided yet..) and then walk through everything that has happened from beginning to end..

Im more of a hobbyist smith than anything.. Im certainly not a professional.. I took some gunsmithing classes probably 25 years ago, and took several armorers classes between 15-20 years ago.. and over the past couple of decades have built maybe a dozen rifles (not including AR's) from the ground up..

If you want something really pretty looking.. Im not your guy.. checkering, hot bluing, jeweling, engraving, etc.. isnt my thing..

But I can usually build something that functions well and is reliable at least.. and can usually repair "typical" problems with the more common firearms..
 

Prine

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@mdwest Please share some pics of the rifle when you're finished, I love and really appreciate the craftsmanship and skill that goes into custom rifle smithing. Also, I'd love to hear about your tools, etc. From one amateur craftsman to another, you know how we are with tools :) .
Would love to see pictures of your pet project and your shop/tools as well. Always wanted to get more into assembly/smithing but time is something I don’t really have an abundance of at the moment
 

mdwest

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So your sayin it's a highly progressive disease?
Its a horribly progressive disease, with no known cure :D

I caught myself surfing gunbroker last night looking for another large ring mauser action (would love another Czech built VZ24, or a pre-war german K98).

Its not like I dont have enough gun builds already in the que between the small ring mauser action and the 2 stripped AR lowers I already have sitting in the safe...

But after the chambering of the .35 whelen went so well last night.. and remembering how much "fun" all of this is... and decided I need to build a .458 Win Mag on a mauser action next..

My .375 H&H will pretty much kill anything on the planet.. I dont NEED another "big" gun...

But anything a .375 will kill.. a 458 will kill better... so... I MUST have one.... :D
 
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