Jim Kibler Flintlock Rifle Maker

[titsonritz]

I was going down the rabbit hole, came across this guy's work and was pretty amazed by it. Some really nice pictures under "JIM'S CUSTOM WORK" and "OLD/ORIGINAL GUNS" tags on his web site and in an article about him and his work.

Jim Kibler Flintlock Rifle Maker

Jim Kibler Diverse Artistry in the Longrifle Culture

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[Howard1955]

Very nice!

 

[drstrangelove]

My 45cal Kibler Southern Mountain Rifle with feathered curly maple stock. I am going to blue the metal next. They shoot lights out and don't misfire.

 

[Howard1955]

My 45cal Kibler Southern Mountain Rifle with feathered curly maple stock. I am going to blue the metal next. They shoot lights out and don't misfire.

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What's the barrel length on that beauty?

 

[drstrangelove]

What's the barrel length on that beauty?

38-42", can't remember which

 

[Sbarton]

I've shot one, fine longrifle.

 

[Craig Lister]

Is there a consensus on which Manufacturers to avoid and which are worth the effort? A friend in the local area is trying to get me interested, but I'm not sure I want to go Black Powder without knowing what is good and what is garbage (or at least better avoided for a novice).
In the Early 1970's I built a T/C Hawken .50 Cap lock from a kit. Was a sweet gun, sadly I was sweet talked out of it.
I'd be interested to hear what the members think.

 

[Nosferatu]

I was looking at those a couple weeks ago. I got the urge to buy a flintlock rifle or shotgun.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

@Craig Lister
What are you looking for....?
An historically correct gun....those are few and far between.
An historically based gun but with some modern conveniences....those are fairly common.
Lots of guns are out there that ain't historical at all...but work well for hunting , shooting and playing at rendezvous.
Andy

 

[Craig Lister]

My 45cal Kibler Southern Mountain Rifle with feathered curly maple stock. I am going to blue the metal next. They shoot lights out and don't misfire.

View attachment 1291969 View attachment 1291970 View attachment 1291971 View attachment 1291974 View attachment 1291975

very nice. I like the hat too.

 

[drstrangelove]

Is there a consensus on which Manufacturers to avoid and which are worth the effort? A friend in the local area is trying to get me interested, but I'm not sure I want to go Black Powder without knowing what is good and what is garbage (or at least better avoided for a novice).
In the Early 1970's I built a T/C Hawken .50 Cap lock from a kit. Was a sweet gun, sadly I was sweet talked out of it.
I'd be interested to hear what the members think.

If it's Spanish Steel, there are reports of poor metallurgy and even barrel failure (Traditions). I've heard unkind reviews on some Italian guns (Armi) as well but nothing catastrophic. Lyman, though heavy, is a very solid option. Kibler is fantastic but not cheap. CVA and T/C are functional and if you can find a CVA Mountain Rifle with the Douglas barrel inscribed USA, you will be Astounded with patch ball accuracy.
Pedersoli is generally well built, reliable and critics only issues are that they are repro.

 

[clanhanson]

I own a Kibler Woodsrunner kit. I've been slowly building it in my spare time. Almost no shaping was required for the stock and all inlets were CNC'd and perfect. No smoothing of the lock was needed, either. Everything feels like a major step up from Pedersoli and in another galaxy when compared to Traditions or Investarms. A nice flint and leather wrap were included.

The hardest parts of the build, which really aren't that bad, are enlarging the barrel dovetails and removing the CNC machine marks from the buttplate.

I plan on using my secret rubbing varnish recipe on the gorgeous cherry stock (staining cherry is sacrilege).

 

[Craig Lister]

If it's Spanish Steel, there are reports of poor metallurgy and even barrel failure (Traditions). I've heard unkind reviews on some Italian guns (Armi) as well but nothing catastrophic. Lyman, though heavy, is a very solid option. Kibler is fantastic but not cheap. CVA and T/C are functional and if you can find a CVA Mountain Rifle with the Douglas barrel inscribed USA, you will be Astounded with patch ball accuracy.
Pedersoli is generally well built, reliable and critics only issues are that they are repro.

Thank you, this gives me enough info to start looking to see what I can afford and what I cannot. Not sure yet if I can afford to tell the wife about this, but we shall see about the time my birthday comes around in June. 70 yo this year and only my High Blood Pressure holding me back.
I love the looks of the Kibler and Southern Mountain guns, but they are on the upper edge of possibilities, I know Lyman's and they are well made (or were in the 1970's) What makes the Douglass USA barrels different?
And if this is out of line to discuss here, I'm willing to start a separate thread.

 

[clanhanson]

Thank you, this gives me enough info to start looking to see what I can afford and what I cannot. Not sure yet if I can afford to tell the wife about this, but we shall see about the time my birthday comes around in June. 70 yo this year and only my High Blood Pressure holding me back.
I love the looks of the Kibler and Southern Mountain guns, but they are on the upper edge of possibilities, I know Lyman's and they are well made (or were in the 1970's) What makes the Douglass USA barrels different?
And if this is out of line to discuss here, I'm willing to start a separate thread.

I've put together a few kits over the years, and I will say that the cheaper ones (Investarms/Lyman, Traditions) required intense amounts of work and many weeks of time, plus quite a bit of money for better files etc. The Kibler kit is more expensive but it's MUCH easier and almost complete out of the box. Anybody can build a Kibler for very little money in a weekend.

Regarding Lyman, find an older kit and not one made by Investarms. There's a reason Lyman broke ties with them (and sadly Lyman no longer makes kits).

 

[drstrangelove]

Thank you, this gives me enough info to start looking to see what I can afford and what I cannot. Not sure yet if I can afford to tell the wife about this, but we shall see about the time my birthday comes around in June. 70 yo this year and only my High Blood Pressure holding me back.
I love the looks of the Kibler and Southern Mountain guns, but they are on the upper edge of possibilities, I know Lyman's and they are well made (or were in the 1970's) What makes the Douglass USA barrels different?
And if this is out of line to discuss here, I'm willing to start a separate thread.

CVA initially barreled their Mountain Rifle from Douglas blanks, and marked them USA.
Douglas Barrels are well known for quality, finish, sharp rifling, and are on par with Shilen, Krieger, and other modern upscale barrels. Mine is subMOA with PRB, so accurate I had Velzey put Redfield Olympic sights on mine.
Due to cost, they subsequently outsourced them to Spanish steel, and the accuracy and longevity lacked. CVA does not have a high reputation outside of the USA Mountain Rifles and their newer inlines, which are remarkably accurate and powerful.