RE: Single shot rifles
There are a lot of interesting single shot actions available and a person could have almost anything built on one or the other. One of the most fun rifles I ever had was a little .357 Magnum built on the small Martini action. It made into a beautiful rifle in both function and looks and although mine was only for short range varmint hunting, it was a blast. I deserve a sound thrashing for ever getting rid of it.[:@]
Anyway, I mention all this to show you your options for this project may be much broader than you first thought.