A few tribute pens for a friend

[Waluy]

Three tribute pens made for a friend whose father passed away. I am not overly proud of them but hopefully she will like them. I wound up having major issues getting all the pieces to line up when turning but I couldn't use any other casings for the pens because these were three that her father had fired.

C & C welcomed

 

[SDB777]

The character from the bottom casing is awesome....I actually like all the little nicks, dings, and corrosion. Are the casings 30-30Winchester?


I think they would be more then well received!




Scott (nice thing you've done here) B

 

[Sataro]

I agree with Scott about all of the dings, etc... They really make the pens stand out.

 

[Waluy]

The character from the bottom casing is awesome....I actually like all the little nicks, dings, and corrosion. Are the casings 30-30Winchester?


I think they would be more then well received!




Scott (nice thing you've done here) B

The gun guy I work with (he used to own a gun shop) says they look like .243 so I will have to go with that. When the customer picks them up I will ask her if she knows.

 

[OZturner]

Brilliant Job, Steve,
I am sure she will be delighted with your work and the passion you have applied.
Congratulations, and Have a Great New Year.
Brian.

 

[William Menard]

very very nice

 

[longbeard]

Done a great job Steve, they look awesome. I too like the dinged up look of them.
From the pics they look to be 223.


Harry

 

[Boz]

I agree it is more the sentiment than anything else. They are not perfect but in this case it does not really matter. I wish I had been able to get some shell casings from my Dad's funeral but I was told by the Sargent that did the funeral detail that the Air Force does not do a 21 gun salute.

 

[Dustygoose]

Lot bigger than a 223. The slimline nib is very close to a .30 caliber bullet. .308/ 30.06/ 30-30. I have used them a lot before.

I like the dings and such. Very nice job

 

[SSGMEADER]

Def not .223, the primer pocket and rim are to big. I would have gone with either .243 or .270 but it's tough to tell the difference in length on a photo

 

[Lamplight66]

The character from the bottom casing is awesome....I actually like all the little nicks, dings, and corrosion. Are the casings 30-30Winchester?


I think they would be more then well received!




Scott (nice thing you've done here) B

Doesn't most shell casings have the caliber stamped on the end? Most I've seen do, but I am no expert.

 

[termitedave]

Your friend will be very proud of the work you did.
David

 

[Waluy]

Update: She came and picked them up on Friday night and was delighted with the outcome just goes to show I am far more critical of my work than anyone else.

Also she confirmed they were .243

 

[Sylvanite]

The rim shape and neck diameter are not right for 243 Win. They look like 30-30 Winchester to me.

Regards,
Eric

 

[jrap]

I'm not an expert by any means but have been around firearms for many years. Then again I'm 15 but anyway if my memory serves me correctly a .243 is a rimless round. This doesn't mean it has no rim but rather the rim is in line with the body of the case. A 30-30 is a rimless round and the rim protrudes slightly. I believe they are 30-30 or another type of rimmed round. Probably not .303 Brit but maybe 30-40 krag. Just my 2 cents.
P.S. the cartridge on the left is the 30-30 the one on the right is .243.

 

[Waluy]

I am going to have to stick with the opinion of the guy who sold guns and ammo for 20+ years in his store that these were .243 casings especially since he had them in hand to look at and since it was confirmed by the recipient (who was the one that gave me the casings) that all her dad ever fired was .243.

 

[Sylvanite]

Good job. You turned some pretty rough looking shellcases into interesting pens. I like how you matched the "worthless wood" to the beaten up case.

Anybody who actually shoots 243 Win or 30-30 Win caliber should be able to distinguish between the two readily. I shoot and handload both calibers, and I also make pen kits out of 243 Win (why I don't make kits from 30-30 is a different topic).

Here is another photo which I hope proves illuminating. A fired 243 Win shellcase is on top; a fired 30-30 case is on the bottom.

As Jacob mentioned, 30-30 has a rim whereas 243 does not (it has an extractor groove instead). Note that the case head on the 243 is the same diameter as the case body. On the 30-30, the case head is larger in diameter than the case body.

Also, the case mouth inside diameter of the 243 Win shellcase is smaller (0.243" or about 6.1mm) than the 30-30 (0.308" or about 7.6mm). A 7mm slimline tube will fit inside the mouth of the 30-30 case with some slop, but will not slip into a 243 case mouth. A slimline nib matches the outside diameter of a 30-30 case reasonably well, but is much too big for a 243 case. In fact, you'd have to open up a 243 case mouth just to press the nib in.

The shoulder and neck lengths are also different. Note that the 30-30 case has a shorter shoulder and longer neck than the 243 case.

The shellcases you used have rims, no extractor grooves, a case mouth diameter matching a slimline nib and a long neck. They aren't 243 Winchester caliber - but again, they are nice pens.

I hope that helps,
Eric