I agree....... as soon as I assembled the Sceptre I though, oh crap...... it looked better in my head. However, since this was my first of the type..... I'm willing to chalk it up to R&D.
I really like your work. The steampunk theme looks great on the bolt action but is not so suitable for the sceptre, IMO. Both blanks you made are very nice .... congrats on your success !