Thanks for the link and I certainly do appreciate the condescending chuckle[emoji6]. I saved that and printed it several years and barrels ago. Lots of good stuff. Please keep the helpful tips coming, plenty to learn yet.
If you have success running through the headstock then please do so. As the PDF suggests, there are many ways to skin a cat. I’ve got a long, 1.30 diameter headstock...oddly enough a high tail stock and the quill runs about .002 out at full extension. I did build a spider for it.
Old import Enterprise out of a prison workshop[emoji41]. Used an spare concrete slump cone for the sheet metal work. There’s a thou to thou and a half play in the headstock bearings as best I can measure depending on if it’s warmed up or not. That’s about as worn out as I want to get working near the headstock, I prefer to spread the error out down to the other end but that’s just me. I’ve done 25” and longer barrels “chucked” in the headstock with this store bought spider I believe is intended for the other end.
. Turned out to be a damned nice .35 Whelen even though I did have to mail it off to the lower United States for Cerakote :
. No doubt they’d all be in the same hole with better machining practices but that’s the best I can do at my current level.
I’ve built pushers and even tried a Bald Eagle. Didn’t like either much but the barrels still somehow shoot well. For my situation, between centers works best. I think that way is included in the 130+ pages?
Here’s the last one I did, wrong handed again but it does shoot even though I cheated with a Borden action (makes even me look good). No glorious group pics for the bragging board, unfortunately it was still raining the day I put it on paper and ruined my target in the back of the truck before I got home. Dog ate my homework [emoji1].
Wonder how the OP is coming along anyway...