Nebraskaland

March 2022 • Nebraskaland 43 This winter, while giving guns a routine cleaning, I decided the rifl e deserved better. I am certainly no gunsmith, but after reading message boards and watching how-to videos online, I gained enough confi dence to tackle a more thorough restoration. As a weekend do-it-your- selfer, I already had the necessary tools, and the refi nishing products were easy enough to fi nd at local retailers and online. A special cleaning solution helped remove the little bit of bluing that remained on the barrel, and a fi ne wire brush on a rotary tool helped clean the tight spots. After getting that maltreated steel to shine, I was amazed at how a liquid cold-bluing solution returned it to an attractive black in a matter of seconds. A hot iron over a damp rag lifted many of the dents from the stock, and deeper gouges and scratches were fi lled with a putty of wood glue and sawdust, the latter of which was harvested by drilling a hole under the butt plate. After sanding the surface smooth, multiple coats of gun stock fi nish made the wood shine. Below the glossy fi nish is evidence of all those dents and dings, but they somehow add a richness and beauty to its one-of- a-kind appearance that only decades of abuse can provide. The rifl e is not only a conversation piece, but also a fi rearm I am proud to carry. What's more, I have found it to fi re as reliably as it did when aimed at those hordes of jackrabbits of the '40s. Advertisements from when the rifl e was new boast not only of its craftsmanship and aff ordability, but also its speed and three-in-one design. It will fi re as not only a semi-automatic, but also a single-shot and bolt action. I became familiar with each part of its action throughout the refi nishing process. With the stamping of "Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, USA" on top of the barrel, the Stevens Springfi eld 87A was born in a diff erent era of the American economy. Even though it was one of the least expensive rifl es available, it has a quality of construction present only on high-end fi rearms of today — a collection of sturdy, machined, U.S. steel parts assembled on a bed of birch, presumably harvested in New England. I did have to replace the stock's butt plate, the only piece of plastic on the entire rifl e. Extremely brittle, it shattered when I fumbled it to the hard basement fl oor. Thankfully, I located a replica from an online retailer. Perhaps I would have been better off hiring a professional gunsmith, who surely would have done a better job returning the rifl e to near mint condition, without dropping any pieces. That is not my style, though. Nor my grandpa's. There is much reward in doing the project myself, and I am glad there are still a few remnants of the rifl e's many battle scars. While I consider the rifl e a treasure, I will not be hocking it to embark on a lavish lifestyle. Rusty relics in this one's previous state often sell for a low bid at farm auctions. Even in pristine condition, they do not fetch much more than $150. To me, though, it is invaluable. It is an heirloom that bridges generations and honors the past. Every time I shoulder it, my hands grip the same places my grandfather's did. Also relatable, my eyesight has degraded to where I complain about the rear sight being a little blurry — just as I remember him lamenting at that prairie dog town in the '80s. Sadly, Grandpa and the old Ford are gone, the gas station's closed, and the old house and other farm buildings are in disrepair. The state's jackrabbit population is scarce. The rifl e, however, endures. Surely many modern .22 ri fl es are much more highly regarded than this one, but, lacking American artisanship from the 1930s and '40s, I wonder if they will stand up to decades of such use and abuse. If the objectives are durability and reliability, I will place bets on Grandpa's timeworn, but reborn, American-made Stevens Springfi eld. N Above: The author carries the rifl e on a small-game hunt in thePine Ridge. JUSTIN HAAG, NEBRASKALAND Opposite: A 1946 advertisement for the rifl e targets jackrabbit hunters.

• Cover