Henry Big Boy Steel .44 Magnum Journey

[Goodbye Middle Class]

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Dressing the rifle with the RLO leather was super easy, then kind of a pain in the behind......


The strap and bandolier were a snap. The swivels, with a drop of oil, fit perfectly into the Henry factory swivel studs


The stock cover took a little more patience. The leather laces will break if pulled too hard. The challenge is getting it tight enough pull/stretching the leather a bit to get a tight fit. The sleeve, naturally, wants to ride forward to the narrower end of the stock. The swivel stud gives an anchor point to prevent this. I did, however, adjust it once I had it on. I pulled one of the laces, stretching back even further back over the stud to add additional tension. This looks a little less symmetrical but prevents any slide forward or rotation around the wood stock.

The real pain in the butt was the lever loop wrap. This is what took the real patience. My pictures show my solution. I would recommend DO NOT do it this way with the lever still on the rifle and the rifle in the gun vise. Lesson learned!

Next time, definitely use the clamps, but I will remove the lever from the rifle, wrap the internal end of the lever loop in scrap leather and lock it in a traditional vise. This would have made it so much easier for me to work the leather around the loop. Don't be a dummy like me the first time I tried this.

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I would also recommend having clamps. I have small ones from other hobbies and woodworking. They helped keep each few laces tight while I threaded the next 4 or 5. Then moved the clamps along as I went. Definitely have some type of a leather work needle. I made my own using some scrap electrical wire. This will be necessary to thread the laces which is made from some type of sinew or intestine? It is super strong, has a small amount of stretch, and is a little greasy.

I think the contrast looks nice on the brown leather but on the black it was a little much for my preference. So I touched up the loop laces with a sharpie to black them out. The sinew absorbed it nicely. I gave it some time to dry then wiped with a paper towel to make sure it didn't transfer off. I think next time I will blacken the sinew before threading for a better uniformity of appearance.

Overall, I'm very pleased with how it turned out!

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Enjoy!

.....more to come..........

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[JEBar]

well thought out and executed .... nice work indeed .... the thought of using clamps like that would have never crossed my mind ..

[markiver54]

Congrats on a job well done!
Looks great too!

[Jerrysea]

That really looks good. Enjoy.

[Goodbye Middle Class]

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Last post for the day.....

Around the same time I purchased the Rifle I also picked up a little partner for it in the same caliber.......

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A sweet compliment to the rifle and handy "Bear Repellent".

It's an Awesome Performer, Wicked accurate, reasonable recoil, and a pleasure to shoot.

.

[markiver54]

Very very nice!!
Love wheel guns. Especially S&W's I have two. A 6" 686 and an 8 3/8 500 mag.

[Goodbye Middle Class]

Having had some time to pop off several brands I've settled on the Hornady Custom XTP 240gr JHPs.

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Plenty of other sources for ballistics info. I just decided what I liked. I figure the Hornady factory rounds are hot enough and consistent loads. I won't be loading any of my own so for the price I'm happy with these. They seem to be cleaner firing as well. (I went through a cheapie box of cowboy loads, forget which brand. They were fun plinkers, but some dirty barrel-puffers for sure.)

The jacketed rounds also cycled smoothly and I managed decent accuracy with them too.

More out of curiosity, than anything, I tried the Leverevolution .225gr also from Hornady.

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I didn't find much difference other than the lighter bullet kick. I'll use up what I have at the range and then stick with the XTP 240gr for both the Henry and S&W.

I picked up a .30 cal steel man-purse to carry my "stuff".

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The boxes fit nicely inside.....

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That's all for now.

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Next couple of posts will have a lot more, being a tale of trial and error as I finally worked out my scope and rail situation...

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[220]

It is amazing just how many additional purchases a new rifle leads to.
I have had a BB brass my son purchased in March sitting in the safe unfired, with covid and restrictions in place he hasnt been able to get home from his posting. Waiting for him to home and be the first to fire it.

So far I have added
200 factory ammo
200 starline brass
2k LP primers
310gr 6 cavity mould
210gr 2 cavity mould
4 MTM ammo boxes
240, 270 & 300gr jacketed bullets
shot capsuals
base & rings
2-7x scope

With him on standby for deployment overseas it could be a while before he is home. The way I am going I will have spent more than he did on the rifle

[Goodbye Middle Class]

It is amazing just how many additional purchases a new rifle leads to.
I have had a BB brass my son purchased in March sitting in the safe unfired, with covid and restrictions in place he hasnt been able to get home from his posting. Waiting for him to home and be the first to fire it.

So far I have added
200 factory ammo
200 starline brass
2k LP primers
310gr 6 cavity mould
210gr 2 cavity mould
4 MTM ammo boxes
240, 270 & 300gr jacketed bullets
shot capsuals
base & rings
2-7x scope

With him on standby for deployment overseas it could be a while before he is home. The way I am going I will have spent more than he did on the rifle

I agree. Hilarious because it is so true!

Not to mention all the never used accessories I'll have to resell somewhere. I experimented with a lot of different options when I was trying to figure out how to mount the scout scope I wanted. Often with comedic results.

I even tried an AR style cantilever mount which absurdly resulted in this Horror Show!!!

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Hahahahahahaha! I laugh out loud every time I think about how ridiculously goofy this looked!

I'll have more to come about that part of my journey in the next few posts.....

[Goodbye Middle Class]

I decided I definitely wanted a scout scope. I figured with a pistol cartridge rifle I would not be comfortable taking more than a 100-150 yard maximum shot. No desire to be dropping Al-Qaeda at 700 yards so no need for a high powered scope.

I just wanted a fixed power, quick acquisition scope that I could ready-raise for an accurate shot that also had comfortable eye relief. After research and reviews I decided on the

Leupold FX-II Scout IER 2.5x28mm Scope.

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So here's the rub....how the heck am I supposed to mount a scout scope when nobody (and I mean nobody) makes a manufacturer ready scout rail for a Henry Big Boy Steel??!!

Well that's when picked up more than a few rail/ring/mount options to experiment with.....

Also picked up some Leupold lense covers.

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These are correct, but a word of warning: some sites don't have accurate info on part number compatibility based on scope model. The first time ordered I discovered the front lense cover they said was a match...was not. Had to send back, do research and order the right one. Annoying!

I would recommend going to Leupold's site for accurate part numbers before you order.

[Goodbye Middle Class]

Well I tried a ton of different options...

Henry mount.....

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Talley single piece mount for Henry.....

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Then I tried the Ranger Precision Rhino Rail which is very nice and low, figuring I would try a one-piece cantilever AR style.....

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With HIDEOUS results,

Vortex......

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And Leupold.....

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I didn't like any of them. I will say. The Talley One-piece and the Rhino Rail we're both very easy to install. They would be a great option for a standard eye relief scope.

But....... I want to use an IER scout scope. No one makes makes a long scout rail for a Henry.

Not Henry. Not Ranger Point Precision. Not XS Sights.

No one.

It's outrageous!!

So when I realized I basically needed a XS Lever Scout or XS Lever Rail. I figured, well, I guess I'm just going to have to do it myself...... And I picked up a


XS Sights Lever Rail for The Marlin 1894.....

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Ohhh......yeeaaahhh. you know what's coming next.....

Nothing that a hand file, a little imagination, and a stubborn will to achieve can't handle...

[JEBar]

interesting .... looking forward to following your project

[Goodbye Middle Class]

There was no way I was going to modify or tap my new Henry but I don't mind chopping up a $70 piece of aluminum.

I decided against the Lever Scout because the Henry receiver only has one screw on the front end. Since what I'd be using wasn't going to be a perfect match I wanted to make sure I could get at least two screws secured into the receiver. So I chose to go with the Lever Rail.

Having never seen one and ordering blind I decided to order one for another .44. The model 94. I just guessed that the barrel width and curvature would be closer to the Henry Big Boy's. I might order the 95 as well just because it has a longer receiver that may be more in line with the Henry's.

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I started by tapping out the buckhorn rear sight and using that as the alignment point for the rail using the XS Anchor.

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It's not a very tight fit so the grub screw, more than anything, will be holding it in place.

The first modification was to file down the tapered machined area that would cover the rounded front of the receiver. Hand file because I wanted to remove slowly as I went along as not to grind past flush on the bottom of the rail.

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Once that was done I aligned with the front anchor to see what I was up against...

[JEBar]

ours ain't nowhere near as fancy but it performs well for us .... the scope was mounted in March of 2016 .... the target shows 50 of our loads fired at 50 yards in August of 2018

[Goodbye Middle Class]

That's awesome!

[markiver54]

Sounds and looks like a whole lot of Work to achieve the desired results.

[Goodbye Middle Class]

Sounds and looks like a whole lot of Work to achieve the desired results.

I agree completely. The fact that no one makes a ready made Henry compatible scout rail is beyond me. Seems like somebody is leaving a lot of $$$ revenue on the table or just doesn't want it.

The moment one is offered, I will buy it.

[Rifletom]

ours ain't nowhere near as fancy but it performs well for us .... the scope was mounted in March of 2016 .... the target shows 50 of our loads fired at 50 yards in August of 2018

I like that kind of shooting Jim. Consistent load and shooter.

[Goodbye Middle Class]

Once I got the rail modified and aligned it up to the receiver and barrel it became necessary to lift the front end of it. The rail tipped down in the front due to the taller receiver on the Henry.

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I began with the desired result in mind and just figured it out as I went. Kind of fun actually, problem solving on the fly.

A little Sharpie black-out action.....

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I picked up some washers to lift the rail to level.

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Filed to fit. The fiber washer I used in order to file thinner as needed to adjust the height. It was also tighter than the collar so I could open it up a little until it snapped on. And the brass lock ring was to fill the gap inside the rail hole since the mount collar did not come up all the way into the rail when raised. This keeps it from wiggling laterally. I also had to temporarily use a different screw since the grub screw that came with the rail wasn't long enough after raising it. The 8-32 x 1.5 grub screw I ordered hadn't arrived yet when I was doing this part.

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Before and after....

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The trade-off is the rail doesn't hug the barrel. It actually floats above it a little. I'll find out at the range if this creates an issue or not....

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Filing and aligning....repeating until front and rear level to reciever.......

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[Goodbye Middle Class]

To drill holes for rear of rail, one existing channel lined up. So I was able to use a cap screw with washer to secure the rear end. Using the the Rhino Rail as a template on top, I was able to line up and pencil a drill mark.

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Drilled and counter sunk the front hole. (Obviously, not while it was resting in the rifle )

Touched up with black then on to the next step.....

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Moving ahead. Did a quick wipe down of the rail to rub off the excess shine from the Sharpie black-out of the logo.

Longer grub screw arrived.

It also had to be filed down a little at a time until just right for the can screw to properly fit over it.

Original came with rail on left, 8-32 x 1.5 on right, filed down finished in center....

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After being satisfied with the leveling it was time for final assembly. Also lined up before tightening down.....

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Then rail.......

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Tightened the screws with a touch of lock-tite.....

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One last check for level and true......

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And there she is fellas!

I'm really happy with how it turned out. Of course the real measure of that will be at the range later.....

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That brings me up to date with where I'm at. Next up will be scope mounting height and eye relief checks using Leupold Medium (shown) and Low scope rings. After that I'll post a few Glamor Shots before zeroing it in and range report......


-- Will

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