When it came to me about 50 years ago there was no finish on the metal, the butt stock was scorched from a fire (I've preserved it for historical purposes), and the forestock was missing. The rifling in the barrel was barely visible. Looking down the barrel was like looking down an old sewer pipe. Somewhere along the way it had been converted from it's original .38 caliber rimfire cartridges to center fire cartridges, probably .38 special. The only thing in good shape was the action.
I did a lot of research over the years trying to identify the rifle, and eventually decided that the best thing to do was restore it. Another year or two was spent looking for a custom rifle builder that I trusted. I finally found the guy I could trust to do the job right at Delta Gun Shop in Colville, WA. Jim Dubell is a master gun maker who has built modern and vintage rifles from scratch and restored many Remington rolling block rifles like his one.
Here's what we did over the course of 16 months:
1. I ordered new wood from Treebone Carving in NM. It's quarter-sawn American walnut, similar to what was originally on the rifle. Jim did the final fitting. The details on the sides of the buttstock are not what you see on most RRBs, but match what was left of the old stock that was removed.
2. Jim repaired an "aftermarket" dovetail in the barrel and reworked the breech block to clean it up and make it a real centerfire rifle with a new firing pin.
3. Jim bored out the barrel, installed a .38 caliber rifled liner made of 4160 steel from TJ's, and chambered it for .357 Magnum. That caliber was as close as we could get to the original .38 rimfire cartridge in a modern cartridge.
4. The receiver, butt plate, and trigger guard were case colored, as they were originally. Everything else was re-blued.
5. Along the way Jim repaired or replaced all the damaged screws and other minor items. He used a manual draw file on the entire rifle to sharpen all the corners and remove any pitting without removing any manufacturing markings and patent stampings.
I can't say enough good stuff about Jim Dubell as a gunmaker and as a human being. He understood and honored the fact that I wanted this to be as close to original as possible and still be usable. The price was in line with replica rolling blocks you will see advertised these days. The cost didn't matter to me anyway. I just wanted to honor my ancestors and be able to shoot my grandfather's rifle. I waited 50 years for the day I finally took this rifle to the woods to fire it. I was not disappointed. It is a joy to shoot and very accurate. I just thought you folks might be interested.
