BLINGED PRE-WAR

[edbear2]

What would be the reaction in most peoples eyes to polishing/plating/hydrographics (delete process not required) on say a BSA improved model D.......assuming the doner gun was in a poor,rusted all over condition, but sound and complete....IMHO, once this far gone, a refinish is needed as its well past the "even patina" stage, but there are 100's of these about, they are not a super rare gun, and I fancy doing something different as a project..possibly fitting a period scope with a wards/lyman type mount and brass plating the whole caboodle...would I be banished forever to collectors hell???????????????????????

[Kingplinker]

Its yours so do what you like with it ! I can just here the restorers screaming ' NO ' when reading this though . lol

atvb

Dave

[njaw]

Go for it. If it really is past it's 'sell by date', have some fun with it.

[Jerry Cornelius]

I say do it, if its not a rare gun and it's in poor shape to start with.

Remeber, we'll want pictures

[mowerman]

Go on Eddie, give it a go mate!
I've got a 'basket-case' of an Imp Mod D I've been umming & ahhing over whether to chrome plate!
I might just do it now......
Paul.

[Hsing-ee]

Yeah, do it. Fit it with a modern scope though, and give it a raised cheek-piece with butt-hook.

[edbear2]

Have filed all the barnacles and pitting off the main tube thing, and given it a sanding up.....also filed up a block to go between the tube and Ward scope mtg....just updating this as posted a couple of pics on the thread about the airsporter repair .....as I said on there, will probably end up blueing it after all, but will do a dry build in its present finish and photo to see how it looks all shiny, or maybe half and half like a militia

http://www.flickr.com/photos/3122848...7612482184171/


Have set claymores, wire and new trip lighting all around the house in case I get a visit from the farnham posse!!!!! (you know who you are)

[Paddy_SP]

Jeez - never mind the Webley (which looks lovely by the way ), judging by the other photos on there - especially the F1 exhaust system, you are clearly a master of your art!

[Gareth W-B]

Jeez - never mind the Webley (which looks lovely by the way ), judging by the other photos on there - especially the F1 exhaust system, you are clearly a master of your art!

As an articled and apprenticeship served engineer and fitter/toolmaker in a previous life (which came to an abrupt end in 1985), ditto wot Paddy (another accomplished engineer) has said ... On the subject of polishing/plating a tired old rifle however, I would just like to say that I'm from Essex, so to me a bit of bling can be just the thing . Please keep this thread up-dated for us right to the very end (then sell the finished product to me ). Ha ha. Atb: G.

[Prewar]

I remember an article in an old 80's AGW where an American guy had a scoped prewar BSA with tyrolean stock will try to find which issue it was in, looked cool

[Prewar]

Here's a couple of pics of that rifle

http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q.../misc/bsa1.jpg

http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q.../misc/bsa2.jpg

[MarcDV]

Nice work Edbear. Anyone who has welded up a Spitfire and a Vincent and the other lovely stuff in your photos has indeed 'been there, done that'! Since I sometimes despair in finding a craftsman for a special job, you have cheered me up no end. Please keep your Improved Model D as close to standard as possible. You are one of the few of us collectors who has the skill and facilities to rebuild almost anything back to stock specification. Thanks for the warm and fuzzy feeling.

[edbear2]

Well, its less rusty now and I have just pieced it together enough to get an idea of what it will look like....am now thinking maybe blue after all!....have a few other ideas, ie. antique brass, mix of blue/nickle, browning (the scope tube is brass, so would match) but what do you guys think.....the missus says the lord mtg is "pig ugly"...but I quite like it....The spotters out there will see that its actually a std. no2, not a D!.as for the airgun world gun, its certainly different, and the bipod on one of those must be a first!.......it reminds me of a degtyarev 28 russian ww2 lmg minus its drum mag!......as I have said before, this was a wreck of a gun, a £70 tops bit of kit, I have others in the light rust, even patina state, they look fine and show their age well, and I would not dream of changing them.Refinishing is always a hot topic for collectors of anything, but if we all did and liked the same stuff, how boring would that be........pics here;

http://www.flickr.com/photos/3122848...7612687471706/

P.S. thanks for the nice compliments, but I dont consider myself to be a patch on some of the guys even I have met through the years....anybody who has done a few years in a machine shop could easily make a complete airgun from scratch with the exception of the barrel....its just getting it to look "right"

[mowerman]

Eddie mate that is stunning!
As contraversial as this may be to collectors I've now decided the next run of the mill mid twenties L pat I get is getting the 'treatment'!
So there!
Paul.

[t-10]

That is beautiful. You've done a great job on that rifle. I've got a 1924 standard. Its just begining to rust, it is in need of a new seal and spring and a bit of tlc. Im going to have it re-blued. I want to fit a modern scope to it. Where did you find the mounts and what could i expect to pay for a pair that would take a scope with a 25mm tube?

Thanks, tom