Not in this game for profit or loss, do have to do the math sometimes.

700 dollars you get a new barrel that's going to produce top results.  New you can go to faster twist and get better results. Some say a well done drill and tap won't hurt the value, I don't agree and most of us can spot Steve Earl's bocks on old rifles, find factory blocks it may be possible to fool buyers. Any noticeable alteration will hinder if not hurt re-sale.

Might not be absolutely equal new CPA barrel vs drilling original barrel cost vs value. Depends on how nice your 44 1/2 is. & Factoring in how much more the unaltered rifle with a 2nd new barrel would sell for.

Too many Stevens have been changed, they are not making any more better to leave nice Original alone

Boats

boats wrote on Nov 17^th, 2013 at 7:34am:


Point of using Earl's blocks wouldn't be to "fool buyers" (who said anything about selling?) but to avoid using--for one's personal satisfaction--blocks that were obviously "foreign" to Stevens rifles.  Not that most potential buyers would even be aware of the difference--and there was a time when I wasn't either: a block was a block.   

The problem with gaining knowledge about anything is that it usually makes life "harder."  Once I was happy to have new Unertl scopes on all my SS, & thought nothing of the inconsistency between an old rifle & a new scope.  But over time that inconsistency began to worry me, until eventually (over about 20 yrs) I replaced every Unertl with a Stevens scope--5 of them at present.  (On Winchesters went Winchester scopes.) No, the optics aren't as bright, but they're plenty good enough.  And since I plan to be buried with all these guns, I'm certainly not concerned about "fooling" anybody.

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Also taking my 1980 Land Cruiser (purchased new) with me--can't live OR die without it.  Looking now for suitable abandoned iron ore mine shaft, which are numerous around here.

This fix is on a my Rem 33 bolt action 22 but, is simular to Marlinguy's advice. I used a front sight dovetail mount for a Olympic type front sight, in the 33's rear dovetail. Aligned the rear scope block with one of my scope adaptors and clamped it in place. Then let the expoy set over night.

You don't get the freedom for placement, fore and aft or spacing of the blocks this way but, there is no modification and a solid front block mount. The front block is the one that takes what recoil there is.

Frank

I took a piece of flat stock, welded a block on to one end, dovetailed it and slid it in to the sight dovetail. The other end I drilled a hole in and threaded it 6-48 and used a set screw in it to stabilize that end. This worked great for a 25-20 low wall, was very accurate and did no harm to the barrel. The dovetailed block also had a set screw in it to keep it from moving. Higher power cartridges might not make it with this set up, but it sure worked well for the 25-20 low wall Winchester 1885.   Jerry Andrews

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Jeeze, this sounds exactly like the gizmo I illustrated with a photo some time ago.  Can't remember what thread it was placed it, so I don't know how to retrieve the photo.

John value is what the gun will bring.    I would like to have a nice 44 1/2. Have passed on more than one with alterations.  Everybody won't see it the same way, however I think most dealers will confirm drilling and reproduction blocks will make it much more difficult to sell

Name maker well documeted period blocks perhaps not.

Boats