Just picked up a Pope Barreled Ballard.  It had a couple small issues which I finished up today.  This is the best picture I have at this point.

But, I think my main project is well documented already in the post a couple line away from this one.

My current project is my Ballard #3f Fine Gallery scheutzen rifle in .22LR. It is getting the very lightweight 24" full octagon barrel replaced with a heavy 1.21" Green Mountain full round barrel, and should be at Al Springer's place now getting the receiver color cased and barrel rust blued! 
Hoping to see it here some time in January when I'll fit the buttstock, and a new forearm to the barreled action. This was before it shipped off:

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I just finished up a long project that started with part of a Stevens small sideplate action that I picked up at Tulsa a while ago.  Just to be different, I chambered it in 22 Extra Long centerfire.  It came out pretty nice.   
Bruce

I hope to finish off two Hepburn projects this year. A DST 32/20 sitting at Al Springers that needs a forearm finished and checkered.

Theres a 25/20 WCF at John Taylors that will need the barrel rust blued and a forearm finished. 

Looking forward to playing with both. Happy New year everyone.

You guys have some neat projects in store for you next year. I’ve been working on a Winchester 1885 I bought at last Novembers Tulsa show. It has a single set trigger, 34”, number 4 Winchester barrel, rebored by Stevens-Pope to 33.-40 by Pope. Came with a false muzzle. I had to fill several holes under the scope blocks so I polished and rust blued the barrel. Also refinished the stocks &  recheckered both of them. Still have one side of the buttstock to checker.

GT, I’m curious why all your barrels are prefinished in the tenon area? Is that for a given process application? My milled octagons are all 11 1/2” long and done in an old wartime Burke #4 horizontal mill with 8” table travel. I used to do a tenon the same diameter as the large end of the finished round taper to make shimming and calculations easier. Last barrel was done completely in an 8” long vee block. I expected more finished flat location issues but was pleasantly surprised at the consistency during rotation on other than opposing flats. All flats were within a couple thousandths of barrel centerline prior to drawfiling.

Making lipfire cartridges is quite an undertaking.  I've make several rimfire cartridges with 22 blanks but the idea of a lipfire is mind blowing.  Can you use a 22 blank for the charge or do you have to make special lipfire priming versions?  I'll be interested in how you are doing this one. 
Bruce

Boomer,
I dial to the bore and turn a 1" diameter fit so it goes in the collet in my fixture.  I'm not sure what action these will end up on so a 1/2" long is enough to hold.  I used to run with two supports between the head and the tail support. I discovered one is enough.
Greg

So I had this Remington 540 single shot 22 action and a 308 barrel. A little machine work and a stock made it into a 32ACP. For those of you that don't know what a 540 is, it's a bolt action with 6 rear locking lugs. A little overkill for a 22 LR. The bolt is in two pieces so it was not to hard to make the forward portion for a center fire. The chamber was cut with a 32 S&W reamer to the desired depth and everything worked out just fine.

I must admit that this topic really hit home reminding me again that I haven't completed any of the following (rank amateur here - broken screwdrives and a rusty pipe wrench): Ballard Pacific return to shooting,  2 32-40 high walls needing stock work, at least 3 low walls to assemble and/or line .22 barrels, try to convert an AYDT to .22 rimfire and build a trapdoor sporter - something that isn't as punishing as the 45-70. 
Occurred to me that if I sell/trade all of them, I can start over fresh next year.  Happpy New Year!

I'm gaining a little ground on my projects, some barrels getting closer and the second high wall in a brace of them I have plans for - still inletting - plan is to have this shooting with loads worked up by mid month.   

Thanks everyone for sharing, nice to see others are involved.

Greg, That Low Wall looks like it may have come out of a river, like a Ballard I know of!
Bob

Finishing it “as is” will definitely make it a conversation piece.  People are always asking, “what’s wrong with that action” on my gun.
Bob

"as awkward as they look ... shoulder one offhand and they just FIT."

Couldn't agree more, I have two of them and for awful hand they don't come much better.    

When you get your's done, share pics.

Work is still getting in the way but I'm not a complete slacker.  A few late evenings and a little progress has been made.  Here's pics of this Ballard mutt, the barrel with the chamber finally cut (the 30-06 reformed cases are working as well as the originals - that long skinny reamer dealt it's fair share of issues to make)  and the guts of the breech block on display.  The self cocking mechanism may work this time around.

rnnhntr, thanks for sharing a progress report.

I adopted another wayward high wall around christmas time (that's what my son calls it anyway) I provide sanctuary for single shots that otherwise may end up in the scrap bin.  Some Parkenfarker has modified the barrel from octagon to half round  - with a hand grinder and the bore looked like it had been drilled out with a brace and bit for some form of a liner, maybe a Roebuck 22 barrel that Harlan thought he could grind with the same grinder and make fit...  The tang screws were missing but fear not, drywall screws were in place with a dab of steel putty.    More details on this later...
This will finish out as a mate for the Ballard, same caliber only in a bench configuration...
GT

Yes Scott it is.
Not for the meek and mild either but I'm getting the process sorted out.  Carnage has been substantial and there are a lot of junk pieces of 30-06 and several die bodies in my wake.  I did a brief post on it a while back with only a sliver of interest.  The swaging process I've worked through gives me a very heavy wall at the head so it'll be a substantially reduced load in this case, but it should be everlasting .
Here's pics of just a tiny bit of carnage followed by a couple of good ones next to a Peter's original.

GT

Did some more on the Ballard tonight, made a sliding extractor, the arm for it and started fitting it.  A little more to do yet.

Greg, how are you retaining the extractor on the Ballard? The Remington #7 has a screw in from the side, you doing something similar?
Bob

Looks like my year end project didn't end last year, but I did get a call from someone at C Sharps Monday to verify what type of crown I wanted on my Ballard #3F, and spacing for the scope bases! 
So should be on it's way to Al Springer by now for rust bluing and color case. Once it's here I'll fit the new forearm to the large heavy barrel and mount a spare scope for some ammo testing!

Had some wee hour free time last night, the dummy barrel stub is in and proven for the extractor.  All that's left is to fit the arm into the slot and notch the extractor (red arrow in the pic).   
Bob you had asked about retaining the slider? the tip of the arm fits into the slider and it's captured so motion is limited.  The extractor only has .180" worth of motion, enough for your finger to grab the case and remove it.

Greg, I thought that’s what you were saying.  Been thinking about this type of extractor for this Hepburn I’ve been working on, but been so tied up with all the other intricacies of the gun I haven’t spent much time thinking about it.  The owner of the original thinks I should make it with multiple barrels, which would be fun, but unless I chamber them all with the same family of cartridge I would need to completely disassemble the action to remove/install a barrel and change extractors.  The original is a 2 barrel setup, a 44 and 30-40 Krag.
Bob

It’s funny how when your writing something your mind starts thinking clearer.  After writing the above comment on the Hepburn’s extractor it got me thinking that the way the extractor is fastened into this action has me wondering, if with the breech block down, maybe the extractor can be removed.  The way this thing was designed it wouldn’t surprise me!

I try to stay on course, but fail frequently.  Here's my distraction tonight... The high wall 22 I've been competing with is kind of bland but it shoots well.  Here's spicing it up a tiny bit -  poured a pewter forend cap tonight, semi finished. 
The rifle is already heavy so I didn't want to add a lot of mass out there so I kept things small.

It's three months into the new year but last years projects are still lingering.  One project is done enough to shoot, in fact planning it's maiden voyage at a match this weekend - big bore gong match, another member/fellow shooter and I are having a "pop gun" match while the rest of the shooters will be shooting their 45's and whatnot, ours will be 38's.  Thats the HW on the left.  Next in the line-up is a Ballard.  It's in 22lr and the plan for it is to be shooting in time for a match the following weekend, not sure it will make it... The last two a LW and another Ballard need to be shooting with loads worked up by mid June.  That's a stretch as a couple more were added to that schedule.

Looks like a lot of work to do while running a full time shop and customer's work! Good luck Greg!

First off, Dave, my idea of completion is the rifle shoots, accurately is better, but showing potential is positive.  The wood... a smooth sanded grip and cheekpiece with a buttplate is good enough... having a quick coat of oil, wet sanding is optional... drives the OCD's that I shoot with absolutely nuts  .

Now the real crux here is, the repair business I'm in - just took a major turn and work load is intensifying.  Somebody is getting a lot busier than he used to be, with any luck - I can stay at my current pace - finding gun time late in the evenings...