The custom rifle project is completed. Here are the specs:
Hand carved curly maple stock. Finish is aqua fortis “stain” which is a nearly 200 year old recipe of iron shavings dissolved in nitric acid. This finish is brushed onto the wood and warmed with a heat gun until it turns dark brown. Then approximately 20 coats of hand rubbed oil is applied and polished. The action is pillar bedded to the stock. The action is a Winchester 70 push feed controlled round model. The barrel was made from a Douglas Ultrarifled blank, then threaded and chambered for .308 Winchester. The bolt knob was hand forged in the blacksmith section of the shop and welded Ontario the end of the handle. All metalwork was bead blasted and sprayed with Cerakote ceramic in Crushed Silver color. The scope rings and one piece base are made by Leupold, and the scope is a Vortex Diamond 3x9x40 with a bullet drop compensator reticle.