how to make a hybrid

thanks don, the completed gun is made from lacewood and it's one of my favorites.

jeff, thanks for catching the typo. i read and reread the text before i posted but i missed it, yes the abs is .375'' thick and not .0375''.

steve

yah lacewood is really nice, i built a euro early on with what i though was also lace but it was really dense and the gun was not buoyant even with the shaft out. that piece was really heavy compared with later pieces and i suspect it was a different species but had the same grain pattern. now i make sure and float the wood in my ballast tank before i start if it feels a bit heavy. i'll post pic of my mexican ebony (katalox) hybrid when it's done, it probably wont float either with a specific gravity rating of.93 but it looks cool and it will be my short wsb gun used with a float line only so...

the gun in the vice will be the same shape as the lace gun, i'll post some more pics in a day or so. i'm really excited about it, i was at macbeath hardwoods (in sf) recently when they were unloading a big stack of teak and i was able to buy a 2x9x130 piece that has incredible grain to it. you could see some of the curl in the pics already but when it's done it will be spectacular.

sorry for the delay in finishing this thread, my wife got tired of having the roof leak every winter so her "honey do" list got pushed to the top of my "to do" list. happy to report the leak is fixed.

next, i finish the rest of the center cuts like the handle pocket, the remote trigger and the pushrod channel. i cut the handle pocket in two steps, first i use a 1.125'' plunge bit and take a center cut for the length of the handle .125'' deep. once i take the rest of the center cuts i'll move the fence slightly to make up the exact width of the handle but before i do that i cut the the remote trigger pocket using a .250'' plunge bit 1.0'' deep. the final center cut is the pushrod channel, i do that using a .1875'' bullnose and cut .250'' deep so the .125'' pushrod will clear the bottom of the handle and the bottom of the strap. to cut the strap pocket i use my jig that allows me to cross cuts on the stock (see pics) and using a .250'' plunge bit i cut .125'' deep.

before i start shaping the stock i pin the remote trigger using the same setup on my drill press that i drilled the trigger mechs pins with and i also drill a .250'' hole in the rear of the stock so i can attach a lanyard in case i want to hang a float line to the gun. for the remote trigger i drill the pivot hole forward enough in the pocket so that the trigger sits pretty much vertically allowing enough clearance for my trigger finger to fit comfortably into the trigger guard. now is also the time to cut a couple pockets to hide the ballast, i use a .500'' plunge bit and cut the pocket 4'' long by .625'' deep. this will give me plenty of space to hide up to 10oz's of lead.

now i can shape the stock, the rear will be about 2.875'' in width and 1.875'' in hight and will tapper to 1.1875'' x 1.875'' in the front where it meets the pipe. to do this i use a band saw to take a rough cut and finish it on the same jig that i square the stock on my router table (see pics), once everything is straight i round off the corners.

i use a two piece butt pad, first i cut a piece of the same abs that i used in the front of the enclosed track and i glue it on the rear of the stock, screws are used to secure it further. a piece of high density foam is glued on top of the abs for cushion. i find that the foam glues better on the abs than it does on wood and i also like the way both pieces look together. after everything dries i use an orbital sander to smooth it all down.

next the muzzle is installed and the gun is assembled so it can be ballasted and balanced. if a reel is to be used i mount it and also install the shaft and bands. i like to balance the gun so it sinks slowly and completely level with the shaft and bands loaded. lead is added to the rear of the stock till the desired results are achieved (contrary to what some may think, a hybrid can be perfectly balanced just like an all wood gun). i cover the lead with matching wood and once the glue is set i trim and start the sanding and finishing process.

"bristol finish" is used as a finish coat, i like this product because you can put on several coats while wet. usually i put on 3 coats and sand with 220 grit sandpaper and 0000 steel wool when dry, once smooth i put on 3 more coats.

i will do another thread soon to show how the line release is installed so that it operates correctly and if there are any questions on anything that i may have missed please ask.

at this point have to take the standard disclaimer. if you use any of this info you assume all liability. please use caution and follow all safety instruction, take light cuts even if that means you have to make several passes to achieve the desired results.

have fun.

more...

and more...

i epoxy everything.

Quote from Don Paul

Beautiful work Steve, I like to see a wool shop with planes and chisels. I want to do a fun gun next year,
2-band, wood and Lexon tube with clear, light oil and large glitter flakes. A west coast version of a shake
up Christmas Ball.

Cheers, Don

how cool would that be, maybe include a couple small plastic fish in there.

Quote from rich vandusen

Sorry to get in on this one late in the game, but all I can say is WOW!! Amazingly detailed and documented thread Steve. Best I've ever seen, and thank you for taking the time to post it.

I've been wanting to do a hybrid build of my own for quite some time, and with the info you've provided I think I may just give it a go. I recently happened upon roughly 46" of 1.250" carbon fiber tubing with a wall thickness of 0.065" from some old surveying equipment.

I must say though, my favorite hybrid ever is the 36" custom you did for a guy a couple years back.
That was a cute little gun, but I'm having problems finding the pictures of it.

the 1.250'' pipe would work but you'll need to make the wood stock a little thicker just to make sure you have enough wood around the pipe. the other thing is, you're going to have to make your own muzzle because most are made for 1.0'' id tubes. also, don't be surprised if you have to add some lead in the front of the gun to get it to balance properly. a thicker od means more air volume and a lighter tube in the water but it's no big deal to put some lead in the tube in front of the muzzle.

thanks for the kind word, is this the gun you mean?