The gun show has proved to be a wonderful experience. I enjoyed meeting and getting to know all who came up to my booth to see the guns I had brought. Thank you very much for coming and meeting me in person. I, not only gained many new friends, but I have also gained many new ideas for carving. I will be very busy for months to come. I would love to hear from everyone who attended the show. What was your thoughts on the show?

There where many gun collectors at the Crossroads of the West Gun Show. Not to mention all of the gun enthusiasts. Many people where purchasing guns for the upcoming hunts. There was a man who had just returned from Alaska. He had been hunting fox. He was able to fill his tag with a fox that was over 6 feet long and weighted 120lbs +. Just wish he would have had his pictures with him. I would have loved to have seen them.

Many of the people where very interested in how I could repair scratches in their guns. They also where wanting to know if I could carve their companies logo on a gun for safety awards or for a special client. There where many people who enjoyed re-telling their hunting story. I suggested putting their story on the gun stock, thus giving them bragging rights as well as the ability of handing their story down to their children.  

The show was really fun and informative. I am looking forward to the next one. The next gun show I am planning on attending will be the Shot Arms Show in Los Vegas, Nevada in January. This show is sponsored by the NRA. I will be adding more information as I receive it.

Pictures of all my new projects will be coming soon. Thanks again to all who was able to come to the gun show last weekend. I look forward to working with you on your gun. Thanks again! Deb

As you can see the Winchester 7MM Mag I started a month ago is finally finished. The fighting elk has been custom carved on the Winchester 7mm MAG. You may remember the past posts of how I have develope this carving from start to finish. I hope you have enjoyed the process. I’m sure you can tell it is not an easy process. Still, to me it is very enjoyable.

I refinished this gun by sanding down the gun stock then resealing it. This took the majority of the scratches out of the gun. Then I carved the scene onto the gun stock. This gun has the basket weave on both sides of the grip as well as on both sides forend as well as the bottom of the forend. T0 finish the gun, I have custom painted the scene onto the gun using oil paints. It truly is a work of art. Then I have applied a coat of finish to seal everything.

I have also checked to see what year this gun was manufactured, 1970. The gun still have many years of use left. It has given me great pleasure to carve and paint this scene on this gun. Your comments are appreciated. Please feel free to leave them below.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope to see you in person at the Cross Roads of the West Gun Show this coming September 25 & 26, 2010. The show will be held at the South Towne Expo in Salt Lake City, UT. Deb L

While camping over the 4th of July weekend. I was able to play with my clay and develop yet another pattern for a really cool gun. The gun is a Winchester 7mm REM mag, model 70. After hearing the story behind the purchase of this gun and the time it took for the owner to purchase it. I know this gun will remain in his possession for the rest of his life and then be passed on to his children. Definately a family heirloom!

I have been itching to carve this picture for a long time now. I just hadn’t found the right gun for the picture. This old calendar photo of two bull elk fighting, intregues me. Finally, I get to carve this pattern on someone’s gun stock. I have come up with my own design using the picture as an inspiration. I believe this carving will go very well on this gun. The owner loves to hunt, especially elk. For this reason I have chosen this design.

After working the pattern in clay to determine the layers and depth of the carving. I will then carve the pattern on a sample piece of wood. Sometimes this process will take several sample carvings before I am satisfied with the end result. When the design has been carved to my satisfaction, as well as the design tweeked just right. Then, and only then, will I carve the pattern onto the gun stock. After completing the carving, the sanding process will begin. Hand painting the artwork is the final step, using oil paints and very small brushes (usually the brushes only have a few hairs in each brush). This bring the scene to life. 

Check back here often for pictures I will be posting of this gun as I complete this project. This will give you an even better idea of how I create the art for each gun and the process I use to carve it.

Your comments are greatly appreciated. Please leave your thoughts below. I look forward to hearing from you. Deb L

When I started carving gun stocks. My husband was very eager to show my carvings to everyone that came to our home. Even now, he will continually get the guns out of the gun safe to show people. After having to repair several nicks and scratches in the guns. I decided I needed to find some way to protect my guns without wrapping them up in blankets. Gun manufactures and dealers will tell you not to store your guns in the carrying case. The guns will sweat causing rust in the barrel and action. So, I had to find a way to protect then and still allow the guns to breath. One day the idea came to me to use old knee high athletic socks. So, I dug out my husbands old knee high socks. I slipped them on the butts of each gun in our safe. My theory was, with both guns having socks on. If one gun hit the other gun. The socks would act at a cushion. Thus protecting both gun stocks as well as the carving.

I have used this technique for about six months now. The socks have protect the butt of the guns beautifully! The socks only go up to the bolt or scope mounts of the gun. This allows the barrel and action to be open to the air preventing rust. Normally, you a hold by the barrel or forend while putting in the safe/gun cabinet. You usually only will bang the stocks of the guns together while taking the gun in and out. By putting a sock over the butt of the gun stock. The sock covered gun will bump up against the other sock covered gun. A cushion has been formed between the guns, preventing nicks and scratches. Unless you really hit the other gun stocks quite hard. There should be no damage.

IT REALLY WORKS!!!

I hope this is as helpful to you as it  has been to me. Please remember to sign up for my email notifications. By doing so, you will receive an email from me when ever I add a post to my web site. You can unsubscribe at any time. Also, your comments are greatly appreciated. Please feel free to leave yours below. Thanks again for visiting my web site. I look forward to hearing from you. Deb Lindsay

Pictures are of the gun before it is carved.

This gun will me my next project. I have been asked to carve a picture of two horses with their riders. This gun belonged to the late wife of our local saddle maker. She passed away several years ago. This carving is in memory of  their precious life together. The gun is a Winchester .30-30 Model 94 Classic. It has a medallion on one side of the gun. I will be carving leaves around the medallion to set it off and bring it to life. The other side will hold the carving of the horses and riders. The basket weave along with more leave will offset the forend to complete the gun. I will be refinishing this gun too. The bluing will be accomplished by a local gunsmith (if the owner decided to have it completed).   

History

Here is some history on this gun. Sorry for all the web links, but this gun is a very popular gun as this article will prove. You can google each link if you want more information. I was not able to copy each link that I found in the article I found.Winchester Model 1894 (also known as Winchester .30-30 rifle, Winchester 94, For The Win 94,, .30-30 Winchester, or simply .30-30) is one of the most famous and most popular hunting rifles. It was designed by John Browning in 1894, and was produced by Winchester Repeating Arms Company through 1980 and then by U.S. Repeating Arms under the Winchester brand until they ceased to manufacture rifles in 2006. In 2010 FN Herstal will reintroduce the Model ’94 as a limited production firearms. 

Overview  

The original Model 1894 was produced in .32-40 Winchester, .38-55 Winchester, .25-35 Winchester, .30-30 Winchester, and .32 Winchester Special. It was the first sporting rifle to sell over 7,000,000 units. The millionth Model 1894 was given to President Calvin Coolidge in 1927, the 1½ millionth rifle to President Harry S. Truman on May 8, 1948 and the two millionth unit was given to President Dwight Eisenhower\fs2 0plain in 1953. It was the first hunting rifle chambered for the then-new smokeless powder cartridges. The .30-30 Winchester is the cartridge that has become synonymous with the Model 1894 rifle. In 1964 the manufacturing of the 94 was changed in order to make the firearm less expensive to produce. Generally “pre-64″ rifles command a premium price over post-64 rifles.

 The Winchester 1894 was designed to permit the cycling of longer cartridges than the Winchester 1892 carbines could permit. When the lever is pulled down, it brings the bottom of the receiver with it, opening up more space and allowing a longer cartridge to feed without making the receiver longer. The mechanism is complex but very reliable. Complete stripping of the action is a multi-stage task that must be accomplished in precise sequence. However it is rarely necessary to completely strip the action. The largest cartridge that the 1894 action can accommodate is the .450 Marlin.

 Winchester vs Marlin design

The Winchester 1894 holds the record for best-selling high-powered rifle in U.S. history.

The gun stock carving article listed below was in the Uintah Basin Standard newspaper in the Basin Life section. It is an article on me and how I do my carvings. As well as how I got started in this business. The article came out on Wednesday, June 2, 2010. I have included it here in its entirety so everyone can enjoy reading it.

Your comments are greatly appreciated. Please feel free to leaving them below. Don’t forget to tell your friends and family to have a look too. Thanks again, Deb Lindsay

Boneta artist’s creativity spans from guns to glass

By Cheryl Mecham, Uintah Basin Standard

The first carving Deb Lindsay took to a gun show happened to be on a stock for a sub-machine gun. She didn’t know that until a security man stopped her just inside the front doors.

“He said ‘I’ve gotta check that gun,’” she recalled with a laugh. “He didn’t know that there wasn’t a gun attached, it was just the stock.”

Lindsay explained her mistake. She’d ordered a few gunstocks from a website.

“They were about the right size and they were cheap. I didn’t know what they were,” she confessed, her laughter filling the kitchen of the home she shares with her husband, Allen.

Her rhinestone cowgirl belt and jeans say she’s country. Warm hazel eyes and a quick smile say she’s hospitable. When the conversation turns to art, a visitor finds out Lindsay is knowledgeable and passionate about whatever she sets her hand to. Currently that is carving.

Lindsay uses a unique handheld rotary tool called a Paragrave, which slices through wood and other materials at 1 million rpm. The tool was developed by Lew Jensen, a retired Vernal dentist.

Since trying her hand at gunstocks for a relatively short time, her daily practice and subsequent success resulted in top honors: best of show at the Duchesne County Fair and a first place and best of show in the professional division at the Utah State Fair. Lindsay was home in Boneta, crafting another gunstock, when she got the call about her ribbons from fellow carvers in Salt Lake City.

“All I knew was that I had done a good job,” she said with a shrug, explaining that she didn’t really understand that her carving had taken the show for a couple of minutes.

When she realized what her friends were so excited about she said her sense of satisfaction skyrocketed to exhilaration. Lindsay said the same feelings occur after she has put the final sealant over her designs – her last stroke of artistry – before handing it back to the owner.

“It’s a mixture of relief and exhilaration. I think, ‘Oh my gosh, this is the best work I’ve ever done,’” she said. “Then the next one comes along.”

Lindsay has confidence in her artistic ability, but strives for perfection in whatever she undertakes, which has made her a life-long student. She has taken classes from Jensen and is currently being tutored by Keith Hone of the Hone Studio near Spanish Fork, Utah.

Oddly, for a woman who declares that she “hates to hunt,” Lindsay finds the irony of carving gunstocks amusing. But those who see her work are lining up for a custom carved stock of their own. Like John Lyda, owner of J&P Saddle in Ballard, who has commissioned a custom carving in memory of his late wife, Pauly, on the stock of his late wife’s gun.

Lindsay has learned that no one readily parts with a gun.

“Men are very proud of their guns. They’re an extension of the person who owns them,” she explained, adding, “When I am entrusted with one, I feel it’s a privilege. Some are handed down in families for hundreds of years.”

The inspiration for each design comes long before the actual carving. Lindsay confessed that her mind must be in a relaxed state in order to be creative, which is usually after she has gone to bed. “I lay awake at night I do my best designing,” she said.

To fortify her imagination, Lindsay and her husband take weekend trips to the Uinta Mountains in a vehicle they call their “Army jeep car,” a Polaris ATV with a cab. While they explore, her camera is snapping photos of the landscapes and, if she’s lucky, the wildlife who call the mountain their home.

With an image in her mind, her fingers itch to sketch it out. Once it’s down on paper Lindsay searches the Internet for a photo of the object she wants. She uses the photo as a realistic cross reference.

When she gets her paper design just right, Lindsay carves the figures in clay. This ensures that she’ll be able to make it fit on the gunstock. It also tells her how many layers she’ll have to carve into the wood.

Once she’s satisfied with the clay carving she begins carving in wood, typically alder that she buys as a plank and cuts stock-sized lengths. Lindsay may practice a dozen or more times on a design before she actually sinks her tool into a gun stock. She does her work in a re-purposed shipping container complete with a wide window and steel door. Inside an air system removes sawdust while air conditioners keep the building cool as she works.

“I have to get the nerve up before I can cut into that nice high-gloss finish,” she admitted.

If her unique wildlife carvings don’t set her apart on their own, it’s the next step that makes it a Deb Lindsay design — she often oil paints the intricate image. The result is breathtaking.

It’s critical that a carver knows what type of wood they’re working, Lindsay said.

“Most gunstocks are walnut, which is a hardwood,” she said. “There are other woods out there in gunstocks, tiger wood. It’s an exotic. There are a lot of exotics. The harder the wood, the easier it is to carve.”

Her natural love for wood has also led Lindsay into gunstock restoration. She will completely sand old finishes and light scratches out of the stock. If there are deep scratches and marks, she works them into the design until they are no longer visible. Other restoration work, such as work on the barrel or mechanics, must be done by a gunsmith, she said.

Although carving gunstocks is her current passion, it follows a steady flow of artistic pursuits. Lindsay began with knitting and confessed, “it didn’t go fast enough.” Then she began crocheting and took on intricate projects until she was creating elaborate historical ball gowns for dolls. Then in the early ’80s she discovered tole painting and created piece after piece, most of which she’s given away. Then oil painting landscapes and wildlife and then her interest fell from the canvas to mural painting.

Lindsay said she found videos or instructors to help with each step in her artistic endeavors, even if it meant traveling great distances for training. She kept learning and challenging herself artistically and finally she tried her hand at a childhood fascination — the art of glass blowing.

She gathered equipment and bought training DVDs by a glass sculptor who worked for Walt Disney. When she learned the artist on the DVDs lived in Idaho, she called his studio and asked if he was still teaching. His wife told Lindsay that depended on how serious she was. Lindsay assured the woman that she was serious.

“It was one of the most marvelous experiences I could have ever had.” Lindsay said, adding that after a few classes her new instructor told her she was a natural.

“He said, ‘Now go home, practice, and do,’” Lindsay recalled.

Part of Lindsay’s shop is filled with glass rod, equipment and a kiln. She has completed numerous glass art projects which can be viewed on her website, deblindsaystudios.com, along with the Ostrich eggs she carved when she first learned to use the Paragrave carving tool. One of those egg carvings took first place at the Duchesne County Fair.

Each artistic endeavor has built Lindsay’s experience and her confidence. Her diligent work in each medium has pushed her on to the next. What is next? She smiled and her eyes lit up.

“I don’t know,” she said.

It has come to my attention that my web site does not indicate the fact that many of the items listed here are for sale. Yes, I do custom gunstock carving and engraving. I also carve/engrave egg shells with customers choice of patterns, as well as, my own designes. There are many guns and eggs listed on here that are for sale. Like the ones listed about. If you see a gun or egg shell listed on my web site and are interested in purchasing it. Please do not hesitate in contacting me. I will get back with you as soon as possible. I would love carve your gunstock, an egg shell, or I can find the calibur of gun you desire and carve it for you. The sky is the limit!

Please feel free to leave your comments below. I enjoy the feed back I am receiving. I look forward to working with you. Deb

Update March 7, 2010: I have had a hard time finishing this gun. The burs I use have been back ordered for the past three weeks.  Pictures will be put on here either Monday or Tuesday. Thanks for waiting so patiently!

 Today I have started another gun. It is a Ruger .243 Model M77. This Ruger gunstock carving has been inspired after finding a mount from a taxidermist. It is of a mountain lion attacking a mule deer. The image that formed in my mind helped me develop this custom carving on this gunstock. (Pictures will be forth coming). To bring some of the old west into this century has been a wonderful experience. This gun has been carved and painted to show the detail even more.

Just a little history of the M77 Ruger rifles. They where first produced in 1968.

Design details

From the beginning, the Ruger M77 was intended as a modernized Mauser 98, though numerous changes were made. Bill Ruger wanted to use investment casting in place of a forged receiver. The Sullivan-designed bolt dispensed with controlled-round feeding and instead used the simpler plunger style of ejector. A two-position tang safety and redesigned trigger system were also designed from scratch.

Perhaps the most novel feature of the M77 is the only one that has not been redesigned, the angled action screw. The front action screw of traditional bolt-action rifles draws the receiver directly down against the stock. The M77 uses an angled screw that draws the action down and to the rear, tightly bedding it against the stock.

Variants

The M77 has undergone one minor and two major redesigns. The first change involved incorporating a proprietary scope mount milled integral with the receiver. The first rifles had simple rounded-top receivers drilled and tapped for separate scope mounts.

M77 Mark II

The M77 was retooled almost entirely and reintroduced in 1991 as the Mark II. The safety, bolt, and trigger were completely redesigned. The claw extractor was retained, but the bolt face was opened up to allow controlled-round feeding. The plunger ejector was replaced with a Mauser style blade ejector. Finally, a three-position safety allowed the bolt to be operated while the gun was still on safe, making unloading of the rifle less hazardous. Ruger also eliminated the adjustable trigger that came stock on the original M77.

Hawkeye

In 2006, Ruger introduced new features and a new name for their rifle, the Hawkeye. Major changes were made to the trigger system and the stock was recontoured, but otherwise the rifle remained unchanged.^{[citation needed]} The LC6 trigger addressed complaints from consumers that the Mark II trigger, though safer than the earlier one, was poorly designed for accurate shooting.^{[citation needed]} The LC6 trigger is lighter and smoother. Despite the listed improvements of the LC-6 trigger there still seems to be nagging complaints about it

Sorry to say, this gun will not be carved. The pattern the customer had choosen would not fit on the gun. So we have elected not to carve the gun. We’ll wait and carve a rifle for their anniversary instead. This will give the customer time to design a custom gunstock carving.

With the snow here and more to come, I’m glad I can stay in out of the cold and enjoy another custom gunstock carving. The gun I am building a pattern for is an Thompson Center Encore pistol. This gun will be a christmas gift from his wife and children.

Thompson/Center Arms Company is an American firearms company based in Rochester, New Hampshire. The company is best known for its line of interchangeable barrel single-shot pistols and rifles. Thompson Center manufactures muzzleloading rifles and is credited with creating the resurgance of their use in the 1970′s. They manufacture guns like the Encore, Contender, and the Contender G2. These guns not only have interchangable barrels. They also are capable of being used as a rifle.  

My husband has two of their guns. He likes the idea of the interchangable barrels and the opportunity of having a rifle stock or a pistol stock. Still he tells me they are not as easy to change as they claim they are.

Have you ever wondered what kind of gun they use to carry on the Wells Fargo stagecoaches? After being asked to carve a stagecoach on a W. W.  Greener shotgun replica. I was intrigued to find out how the gun came about.

Wells Fargo stagecoaches where equipped with the W.W. Greener shotgun after the stagecoaches where repeatly robbed. These guns where made by W.W. Greener. The gun was an unmistakable icon of Wells Fargo stage lines. There was always a driver and a gunmen sitting on top of the stagecoaches to protect their passangers and the cargo they carried. The gun  usually was a double barrel 10 gauge shotgun with a double pull. It has a short barrel of only 20 inch in length. The gun is very heavy compared to other shot guns I have held.

After much research, I have found this gun is one of the most reproduced guns in the world. Even gun authenticators have a hard time proving the gun is authentic. Even if a gun marked “Wells Fargo & Co. Express” does not mean it is in fact a W. W. Greener gun. Having the symbols marked on the gun does not mean it is an authentic Greener gun either. The history shows many gun manufactures built this type of gun and would mark it in hopes of fooling the buyer into believing the gun was a real W. W. Greener shotgun. Unless you have paperwork proving complete authenticity and proven by history experts. It is highly likely you do have a authentic W. W. Greener shotgun.

Although the legend lived on in this gun. A authentic W. W. Greener shotgun is one of the most sot after guns today by gun collectors.