Journal
How things work, how to look after them yourself, and some Texas history with the sources shown. Nothing here is a trade secret.
Start hereTexas history4 min read
In June 1844 a whole Ranger company fought with Colt revolvers for the first time, in what is now Boerne’s own county. What the record says, and what it doesn’t.
Sources: 9
At the bench4 min read
Slow rust bluing is the slowest finish on the price list, and the one people most often ask to have hurried. It can’t be. Here is what is actually happening.
At the bench5 min read
Start with the cheap things. Loose screws and scope mounts cause more misses than bad barrels, and you can check most of them at your kitchen table.
Texas history3 min read
Ad Toepperwein was born in Boerne, a gunsmith’s son. In ten December days in 1907 he shot at 72,500 wooden blocks and missed nine. A note on practice.
Sources: 5
Texas history4 min read
The Walker Colt exists because a man who had used the tool hard told its maker what was wrong with it, and the maker listened.
Sources: 6
No dates promised. They’ll be here when they’re right.
At the bench
One is the old finish and needs a little oil now and then; the other is tougher and looks nothing like it. What each is good at, what each costs, and how to choose for the rifle you actually carry.
Texas history
German settlers brought the shooting club to Texas with them, and Boerne’s was formed in 1864. What a Schuetzen Verein was, and the dates that can be stood behind: New Braunfels in 1849, Boerne in 1864, Gillespie County’s first Schuetzenfest in 1887.
Texas history
In December 1875 a Texas Ranger on state pay spent forty dollars of his own on a better rifle, and carried it for six years. A note on buying once and buying right, from his own memoir.
Field notes
Rust starts the night you come home tired and lean the rifle in the corner. Twenty minutes with a dry cloth, an oily one and a cleaning rod, in the right order.