Get the DeHaas books. He covers all the single-shot rifles like no one else, so will give you a good overview of each. There are several kits available from foundries that require varying levels of work. High Wall, Hepburn and the Fraser(?) are three that come to mind. There are others.

Luke, keep in mind that a rimmed case like the 38 Spcl will be a lot easier than a rimless like the 9mm.

JLouis wrote on Jan 24^th, 2014 at 8:47pm:


I think that's valid. I chose those two because I reload for them currently and I mostly shoot 38 spl. Also 38 spl pressures are low so I think it will be more forgiving for a first build. Also velocities are low enough for cast boolits which is what I am tooling up to do currently.

Any other thoughts for cartridges? Perhaps a 35 remington?

Since you're building an action, the caliber is not totally relevant until you get to the point of fitting a barrel, and doing the extractor. 
I wouldn't choose the caliber right now, and instead concentrate on the receiver build. Later on after you've got lots of input you can choose a caliber. If you already reload for .38 Spl. you could also easily make it a .357 magnum and still use all the same reloading stuff. Still not my first choice in a single shot rifle, but better than .38 Spl.

This is always a fun place to look and see what these guys are building, from scratch most of the time.

Mike

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Not to discourage you, but nobody else has brought this up.

What are your skills as a machinist and metal worker?  If this is one of your first projects, building an action from scratch or even a kit might not be the way to go.  Barrelling and stocking an action like the FBW suggested is more do-able, but still a lot of work for a beginner, especially without ready access to machine tools.

I wouldn't discourage you from doing this if you have the desire and dedication to complete it.  Just know what you are getting into, and approach it as a learning experience.  Particularly if you try to hand fit one of the kits like the Hepburn that was suggested.  The process could be a valuable learning experience, be prepared to buy spare parts and remake some of the parts more than once.  A TIG welder to repair mistakes would be real valuable.  Be prepared to spend 50 to 100 quality, focused hours or more to get the action fit and finished.  Add at least another 15 to 20 for the woodwork if it's one of your first stocks.  I did a FBW stock last year from scratch, I bet I had 10 or 12 hours in it, and I've done enough stocks to get a pretty good production rate going.      

Hand filing is an art that takes a lot of practice.  If you can't take a 1/2" round rod, and file a 1/4" square out of one end of it, with that section being square, straight, centered on the round, and to dimension within .002", you cannot fit an action by hand.  You can learn that kind of filing on an expensive action, or you can learn it on less demanding projects with lower tolerances.  My suggestion would be to learn on fitting extractors, fitting screws, etc. on simpler projects.   The skills you learn will transfer and multiply as you take on more complex projects. 

Most of the guys here that have completed actions are full time machinists, some are self taught.  I'd bet all of them have 1000's of hours doing other work before they did an action.

dave

Mick B
Falling Block Works Inc.
Leo Fix 231-5907391