The aging eyes saga continues

Been working on my shooting using a CZ 452 .22lr trainer with open iron sights, shooting 50 foot NRA targets indoors. With my normal contacts it was pretty rough; contacts with reading glasses not much better; things improved a bit with bifocal contact lenses. Today, I shot with my new eyeglasses, which have progressive lenses.

Here's the target I shot. I'm pretty pleased with the results: I could see the front sight pretty well, and as I worked on a consistent sight picture, the progressive lenses helped me maintain a consistent cheek weld as I worked to put the front sight into sharpest focus (there is a sweet spot where the front sight is clearest). This is a benefit of the progressive lenses that had not occurred to me.

Now the problem will be getting shooting glasses in polycarbonate safety lenses, especially for the carbine--those caps really explode off the nipple of the Maynard. Polycarbonate won't be cheap. But I'm thinking that my musket shooting will improve pretty dramatically by switching over to eyeglasses versus sticking with contact lenses and shooting glasses.

Carbines sent off for work

Sent 1859 Sharps off today to Charlie Hahn to have the breech block made solid, chamber sleeve o-ring modification, chamber set up for using cardboard tubes, and taller front sight. Also sent Smith carbine off to Robert Hoyt for a reline, and standardize it to shoot .515. While waiting, I need to glassbed the 1863 Type II and make a couple minor adjustments to a couple of locks. If all goes according to plan, I'll spend March casting bullets for the season, and April sighting in 3 muskets and 2 carbines.

Miroku 1863 Springfield Type 1 refinish/upgrade

Removed the varnish and re-shaped slightly (could have removed more wood). Tall dove-tail front sight added by Whitacre. Trigger smoothed and lightened by Walt. Glass bedded, and refinished. I'm planning on adding an L shaped peep rear sight for 50 and 100 yards. Weighs in at 9.9 lbs, could probably have shaved another half pound of wood.

Dixie Gunworks Japanese Springfield

I had bought a repop Model 1863 type 1 Springfield several years ago, before joining the team. It was in fact the reason I became interested in shooting rifled muskets, and also the reason I was introduced to the N-SSA. As I have some time between projects (waiting on a few parts and a mould), figured I'd try to tweak it a bit. Its made by Miroku of Japan and marked by Dixie Gunworks.
I sent the crunchy heavy pull lock to Walt, and he returned it operating smoothly, with a light trigger. So far so good. I then sanded the stock to remove the varnish and reduce some of the bulkiness. I found a .578 Hodgdon used mould on the N-SSA bulletin board.
Then I hit the wall. My first attempt at bedding didn't go well. I didn't put enough epoxy, and the two piece stock separated when I removed the barrel. So I sanded down the barrel channel, reinforced the forearm, and started over. To get a full length bed, the miroku required ALOT of Acraglas Gel. Lots of voids to fill. This second attempt was successful but...
The musket now weighs a ton. Balance isn't bad, the overweight barrel is now offset by the epoxy laden breech. I could probably put wheels on it and enter the artillery competition. The musket has stand hunter written all over it. Well, its not that bad, but it is noticeably heavier than the one I built last year, and the one I'm building this year. And its a backup to the backup.
I will post some pics soon. Just need to stain the stock and it should be all set. On another note, I'll be able to do a side by side comparison of a new Whitacre barrel and a newly relined Hoyt barrel this Spring. Neither has seen a round go through it. Both are .576, both are 3 land, I think the Whitacre is 1 in 72 and the Hoyt is 1 in 56.

Iowa MONSTER buck....

After waiting 3 years for the tag I was bowhunting in Iowa with a buddy, some poacher shot this with what sounded like a rifle, and it was too close for comfort. We told the land owner where we thought the shot came from (road hunter) and we both even heard the impact when the bullet hit the deer. Three days later after we left the land owner found the buck in a creek bed. He tagged it and gave it to my buddy when he went back out for shotgun season. What a deer, saw several even bigger than this guy during our week there...they just never came within bow range. Will be eagerly waiting another three years before I get another chance at one of these Iowa monsters. Unofficial score by a guy who knows what he is doing is 199 1/2" What a bruiser, what amazing whitetails that state has. ENJOY