The Marlin model 25M Project

[TINCANBANDIT]

I picked up another project gun, a 1986 vintage Marlin 25M in .22 Mag

It is in pretty rough shape, but appears to be complete





I will of course polish and reblue the metal, The stock is beech wood, I will attempt to dye it using the leather dye like I did on the Lil' Buckeroo Project

[TINCANBANDIT]

I performed a function test (after checking the bore, which was dirty, but unobstructed) and found the gun has a very nice trigger pull. Which means someone either did some work to it or shot a lot of rounds through it.

The gun fired just fine and left a nice dent on the rim, I measured the trigger pull and it came out to just over 2lbs

[TINCANBANDIT]

Time to get the project started

Disassembly of course comes first, this thing is filthy



Here is what the rear of the recoil pad looks like.....Bubba was here....



I found ten holes, but only two screws and a couple of brads holding it on



Time to strip the "Marshield" finish off

[TINCANBANDIT]

I cut and prepped some dowel material to go into the holes



Then glued them in, I used some glue and sawdust to fill the other, smaller holes



after curing overnight, I cut and sanded them flush



then I started to fit the recoil pad, I found this one at a gun show for a dollar

[TINCANBANDIT]

then put it on the belt sanded and made it look like it belonged there



I always liked the look of stocks that have flutes at the front of the comb and a more defined pistol grip, sometimes it is the little things that make a difference. So I marked out some flutes, angling them towards the toe





I also flattened the grip cap, the factory left it rounded



Next I steamed out the dents with a hobby iron and a wet rag

[Pablo]

Something satisfying about filling a hole with a wood plug.

[TINCANBANDIT]

funny, jokes aside, there is work to be done

I was planning on installing a bi-pod that came on a rifle I bought a while back, to do that I needed to install a sling swivel stud, so I drilled the original hole to the proper size, then drilled all the way through the stock and counter sunk the top side for the nut





Then tapped the nut into place



I then sanded the stock to 400 grit and raised the grain and de-whiskered several times

[TINCANBANDIT]

I decided to dye the stock with Fiebings Dark Brown leather dye. I have used it before and it provides a nice reddish brown, "Tobacco" type of shade





You can see some spots do look darker, mostly the end grain as the top of the comb, the pistol grip and end of the fore-tip.



Here it is after the first coat of Tru-Oil



I hand rubbed in 4 coats of Tru-Oil, letting it cure for 24 hrs between coats and using 0000 steel wool to clean the surface before applying the next coat





The grain has a nice iridescence to it, it shifts from light to dark as you move it in and out of the light.

[tannardog]

Awesome work Casey! I can't wait to see the finished rifle.

[Pablo]

I was only half kidding. I bought a NEW Fender (Jazz) Bass and it had a hidden factory defect. A screw holding the bridge (5 screws total as I recall) was snapped and they just put a piece of screw on top (wow). I didn't want to fight with Fender because it was a few years old. So I rigged the body carefully under my drill press and drilled it out and plugged it with a hardwood dowel. Then after the glue cured, drilled a new pilot hole, better than new - used 5 new matching screws!

Anyway - love your work!!

[TINCANBANDIT]

I was only half kidding. I bought a NEW Fender (Jazz) Bass and it had a hidden factory defect. A screw holding the bridge (5 screws total as I recall) was snapped and they just put a piece of screw on top (wow). I didn't want to fight with Fender because it was a few years old. So I rigged the body carefully under my drill press and drilled it out and plugged it with a hardwood dowel. Then after the glue cured, drilled a new pilot hole, better than new - used 5 new matching screws!

Anyway - love your work!!

thanks, you are right when it comes to warranty work, often it is just easier and faster to fix it yourself, especially when the repair is going to be the same or better than what the monkeys at the factory might perform

[TINCANBANDIT]

now that the wood is ready, time to start on the metal parts


I start with the bolt. The bolt was very sticky and gummed up, took some persuasion to get it apart



Next come the trigger and magazine parts



The nose of the bolt which houses the firing pin and extractor is not aluminum, it is steel, but must be stainless. A magnet will stick to it, but it has no signs of corrosion like every other part has. Either way I will polish it to a high shine.

[TINCANBANDIT]

I just happen to have a new take off stainless trigger from a 882 or 982 rifle, I may end up using it, but I will reblue the old one just in case



Getting started on the barrel/receiver. This is where the front sight was, you can see what the bluing looked like before.



Starting with 100 grit I use a block of wood to sand lengthwise, then cross ways in a show shine motion. After 99% of the pits are removed I step up to 150, then 220, 280, 320, 400 and finish with 600 grit.

I stay away from the roll marks until I get past the 320 grit mark.

[TINCANBANDIT]

I finished polishing the bolt, now onto the small parts



Mag well bezel

before


after


Screws before




Screws After



I also gave the bolt end/cocking piece a high polish shine

[TINCANBANDIT]

Now we wait for good weather to blue the metal parts, got my fingers crossed for this afternoon or this weekend

in the meantime I ordered up some new magazines, got a good deal on a two pack for $26 including shipping on ebay