hoof hearted is the man

[buckskin billy]

got my 2nd generation colt navy back from hoof hearted the other day. it had a minor issue and he did a action job on it. i must say its top notch work. the parts move like they're greesed glass or something. i will admit this gun shot good before sending it to him but with the silky smooth action job and trigger pull its all the better now.
left target is first cylinder full shot through a clean barrel. right target is second cylinder full dirty barrel

[dusty texian]

Mighty fine shootin there Pard. Sound's like HH done you good job......Dusty

[rifle]

Nice picture. Still life. Nice gun....nice black leather rig......nice possibles bag.......nice targets. Nice shootin. I like that picture.
I like the 1851 Navy Colt too. They's nice lookin guns. The aestetics of that design make it one of the nicest lookin revs of all time.
Looks like that gun shoots close to the point of aim. You Kentucky windin it or does the gun actually shoot to the point ofaim? Hoof Hearted did it as part of the tune up?
You know.....I'm a big proponent of the "Lube Pills" or ,as some call them, "grease cookies". Not slightin yer targets, but using the lube pills on yer powder under the balls the second target would be as good as the first. The barrel would stay clean enough to stay shootin like the first target. The cylinder would stay turnin good too since melted lube pill would get splashed down around where the cylinder and arbor meet. Keeps more fouling out of the hole there.
A basic recipie fer lube pills can start at equal parts bees wax,paraffin wax, and lube(Crisco,tallow,olive oil ect ect ) and if need be be softened with more lube or hardened with more paraffin wax. Like in summer ....you'd want a harder less meltable lube pill and in winter a softer lube pill.
Melt the recipie and pour  it on a pan of really hot water and let it sit and cool and harden. That way the recipie floats and ends up a uniform thickness to the sheet of lube/wax. Then make a punch tube from brass tube from the hardware or whatever and punch out the pills from the sheet of wax/lube. I make the punches from brass tubing and use a short "right diameter" piece soldered into the end of a next size larger tube sos the pills aren't restricted in the tube and gettin squashed before they come out the top. The sizes of brass tube come with the next size bigger lets the size under it slide a perfect fit in the larger. Makes it easy to solder a piece of small one into the end of the next size bigger. Try it you'll ,maybe, like it.
The lube pills can improve even the first cylinder full thru the barrel since it cuts way down on the fouling. The pills let me shoot a hundred or more balls without cleanin the barrel and keep the accuracy.
The lube pills can stick to the backs of the balls but...doesn't seem to make a whole lot of difference.
What did Hoof Hearted do to the trigger to spiff it up? Get rid of the creep? Make it break like a glass rod? Just polish it up to make it smooth? Change the angle of the notch on the tumbler(hammer) and/or the sear(trigger)?
There are different ways to improve triggers and not all gunsmiths to it the same. Sometimes it can be like........a small breeze can make the hammer fall. 
What it feels like has a lot to do with the trigger squeeze.......slow or fast. Slow squeeze like a target competition person or faster like a regular ole shooter. Even a trigger with a lot of creep can seem good to a person that squeezes faster.
I know....for quite awhile Uberti triggers were the safest since the trigger actually moved the hammer backwards a small amount because of a lot of positive angle to the sear and tumbler and the main springs used to be stiff. How the newer ones are or how all the 2nd Gens(a lot like Ubertis I'd guess) are I couldn't say really. The one Second Generation I have has a really good trigger(to me anyhow) and I won't change it probably.

[Slowhand Bob]

He is doing some work on a pair of my guns also and action work is a part of it.  It is also going to a conversion job for them.  Hope to have photos to post soon.  I have to turn my attention to some leather for them also, thinking along a fast draw Slim Jim style since the guns are already a bit on the gamy side.     

[rifle]

May as well go whole hog Slowhand. Get what you want.
I can't imagine a quick draw slimjim rig. What......just opened up at the top sos the gun can be grabbed faster?
Is  ....or does..... Hoof Heart gonna do the action work and do a point of aim/point of impact job on it as part of the action job......or is that poa/poi a separate job?

[Tornado]

Hoof worked on my 1860 Pietta/Kirst last year and he has my '58 Remington right now,  he does fine work! 

[Slowhand Bob]

Rifle, they wil be cut down slightly at the top to allow the guns to sit a bit higher and the front will drop a bit lower than normal for period.  They will be lined and have a stainless skeleton reaching to the bottom of the cylinder and the belt loop sewn to the back will be two layers that also enclose stainless that can be shaped to place the grip a bit father out than normal.  I am thinking black with nickel spots, perhaps a shiny concho and fringe.

The holster on the bottom of the linked page was made earlier and will be a prototype for the new ones. A better photo of the actual pair of guns Hoof Hearted is working on for me can be seen about mid way on the page.

http://home.comcast.net/~gakracker/site/?/page/MY_PERSONAL_LEATHER_/&PHPSESSID=6be3b8d0a9d40a6c5235905df939dbc6

[buckskin billy]

h.h just did the action/trigger job and tighten up the arbor which had gotten loose. the gun shot point of aim before sending it to him, but after his work i was able to tighten up my grouping a good bit.
i got two more colts i'm gonna let him work on as well, im saving my pennies now.
slowhand bob that is some fine leather work. i really like that knife sheath

[Harley Starr]

He's working on my Cimarron Old Model P right now.

[rifle]

Slowhand Bob, with a holster like yer gettin you will need a new handle. Maybe like Blitzhand Bob or Lightning Grip or something akin to that. Man, lined,stainless reinforcement and all that. That will be "custom" gear  fer sure. Better watch out,,,,,,bandits might get to eyin those engraved guns and holsters and try to call you out. You'd have those short barreled guns out,fired and backin before those bandits could blink.  On the shootin range.....your times would improve just from being able to get the guns out QUICK.
I bet you even practice the draw don'tcha?
I like that Walker holster. I got one almost as nice years ago from El Paso Saddlery. I like it. use it all the time. Looks antique already after about 20 years.
Buckskin Billy, After the "work" you tightened up yer groups even more? That is always a satisfying gift.
Is it the good trigger that did the trick or did HH do other things like....perfect the alignment of the chambers to the bore? Maybe bottom yer arbor? Spiff up the forcing cone or the crown? Percussion?,,,,,,,ream the chambers to groove diameter in the barrel?
Tightening the arbor would be a good thing fer sure. That could improve the groups fer sure.
What was done to the arbor to tighten it? What was done to the trigger to get it breakin good? Did ya ask bout it?
When I would spiff up a gun fer someone a lot of times I'd make a list of what was done but not the exact details. Most never asked what the exact proceedure was in each aspect. I never got exactly detailed unless someone would ask bout a certain thing done. Ifin the gun was so bad,like in the arbor area, and it needed welded I let the person know the arbor wasn't going to come out anymore. An example would be a Belgian Colt I had to position the arbor and get it welded since....a prior gunsmith(a pro too) had not been able to find the lock pin(Belgians got them on top and not at the rear) and wrenched the arbor out without taking the lock pin out. The end of the arbor and the frame threads were annilated. The end of the arbor was like a chewed up nubbin. The frame hole enlarged a good bit too.
I did a Dragoon,an old Replica Arms gun. It was much like the Belgian. It had wood screws stuck in the rear arbor hole and pins driven in and punch marks on punch marks ect.ect. Worse case I ever saw. I enjoyed rebuilding that gun just because I felt sorry for it. Came out real well and pretty again.
I put curly maple grips on it. The originals were ruined by someones attempt to checker the grips with a screw driver.
Anywhoooo....I'd tell the folks their arbor wouldn't come out very easily anymore if it got welded.
I hardly ever explained exactly what I did to improve triggers though and was always surprised no one  hardly ever asked what I actually did to their guns trigger.
Anywhooooo...it's a good thing you Hombres have somewhere to go to get yer shootin irons tuned up. Hoof Hearted must do real good work. Makes fer happy Hombres and Hombrettes. 

[Hargrave]

Hello all ...

I wanted to make sure to chime in on old Hoof Hearted as well. He is working on a colt 2nd generation 1860 army conversion for me right now. I am very eager to get a chance to take it out to the range when it comes back.

I have another project in the works I plan on having him tackle very soon too.

I will of course post pictures when I get it in hand.

[rifle]

It's all interesting......gettin the guns done up as the owners want them and what people want.
Seems HH is busy gettin down and gettin it done.
Where's the mention about the other Gunsmiths on this site? There's at least four or five people workin guns here right?
It would be cool ifin the Gunsmiths shared some of their processes in some detail so people might learn more.
Well....over the eons the Masters usually guarded the secrets about their art/craftsmanship. Took them to where they's pushun up daiseys for their new vocation.

[Major 2]

HH seems to be a bit more open ... certainly he will take the time to both explain the work, and the time to do the quality.

I had a idea for a hide out pocket gun, I discussed it with Gary and the gun I got was exactly as I had invisioned.
I was very please with the fit & finish & Hot Blue.
He is working on my next project 

His lastest Project is the Thuer conversion , the prototypes & photos are EXTREMELY neat !

[Hoof Hearted]

Normally I would not chime in on a thread like this

But I feel the need to explain why my lead times are all out of whack............

Kirst has been out of product for over three months and two weeks ago I was told "two weeks". Now there is another production issue and I have been told "two more weeks".

I just had my first customer go "belly up" (first one ever) because of the wait and it does not make me happy to be stuck in the middle but I can only do two things: wait or send back guns and money
My order of go will remain the same, this is not in my control and I am embarassed for the situation.

Ya'll know that I always do more than I ask to be paid for but this is what happens when you are middle manning someone else's product.

Of course I can still fulfill requests for other work until Kirst gets the inventory issues ironed out.

Respectfully
HH

[Slowhand Bob]

HH, for my part I am always willing to listen and try to understand the issues of craftsmen, as well as those of manufacturers.  It is when honest communication breaks down that most problems arise.  Never be embarrassed for things beyond your control, for my part I feel that you are empowering me with understanding, just by keeping me in the loop on this.  Last thing I want is someone feeling a need to hurry up when it is my guns they are working on, and besides, I am almost out of loading supplies to shoot with anyway!

Anyone been hearing anything on the now defunct Cowboy 45 Special?  I have considered this to be the ideal big bore Conversion cartridge ever since it came out.  A full load of BP under a moderate to light weight bullet and we had a round that was easy on the shooter and easier on the old open top frame guns.  I sure hate to see it go away, even though I accept that it was always a speciality item.  I never did get t try that new ultra-light .45 bullet that AJ had started casting either! Based on something he mentioned to me on our last conversation, I got the impression that he thought it might even be a better idea to just market the mold.  It seemed that casting those little boogers was an extremely time intensive proposition for any attempt at mass production.  Just what I was reading into a general conversation, so do not go quoting me.     

[Hoof Hearted]

Bob

I will ship these to you on Monday!

[Slamfire]

Holy, Moly, i'm having my name changed as we speak( type),,,to BOB,,. Nice,Nice,Nice,.








Hootmix.

[Slowhand Bob]

NOT

[Graveyard Jack]

Those are sweet! 

[Coffinmaker]

I really like those guns.  Anybody notice the shoulder stock "cut" in the grip frame???  Serious authenticity that 
Seriously,  those are really neat guns.  I just ordered a set myself.  Now, where am I gonna get the shoulder stock??  No !!!! Wait, after I convert 'em,  a shoulder stock will get me jail time.   . Skip it

Coffinmaker