Here is a pic of my latest Hepburn restoration "as received" in .22 Lovell (had been 'varmintized') and as it looks now in 38-50. Barrel bored to 38cal and rifled in a 13" twist, receiver engraved & case-colored, wood redone to as close as possible to an original configuration (was an inch too short so have the extra recoil pad to lengthen the pull). Will be shooting in a couple of matches later this month (one target & one silhouette). While have the wood checkered this winter while we are shooting sporting clays.
A bit more information. Is an original 1879 Remington #3, or more commonly known as a "Hepburn", named for LLHepburn, the designer of the rifle. This was the peak of Creedmoor shooting (800, 900, 1000yd) and was named for the range, which was located near the south shore of Long Island. Shooting matches were one of the largest spectator sports of era (starting shortly after the Civil War to about WW1). This particular rifle was likely made around 1890, but Remington keep poor records and went in and out of business several times until well in the middle of the 20th century. This one is chambered in 38-50 Remington, which is one of the more accurate cartridges for shooting black powder these days. I purchase 'varmintized' old single-shot rifles and restore them to something resembling their original glory. LLHepburn was a not only a noted barrel maker (where he started), but also designed the well known line of Marlin lever-action rifles that are still being built today. He was also a crack-shot and a member of the U.S. Creedmoor team for a number of years. From the start, when we were challenged by the then world champion Irish team, we dominated the matches, though the scores were often very close. As close as a single-point win out of a total of ~1600 points.
