Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing Hairline Stock Crack Fix ????

How hard would you think it would be to repair this cracked stock? And how would you go about it? Thanks.

On a hairline crack you will likely not be able to open the crack to inject it. NO soaking with acetone or anything else. Here, carefully mask the crack, and continuously coat it with WEST epoxy with slow or extra slow hardener, over and over, wet on wet, until no more will soak in. Remove the tape and scrape off the excess before it completely cures.

If I can't use acetone to flush and dry out the stock prior to applying the epoxy, what do I use?

Thanks,

Ed

So, there're five woodworkers backed into a corner and someone asks them the best way out. How many different answers?
Seven.

Depends upon how old the crack is. If it is fairly recent I wouldn't fret about flushing it out. If it is an old crack that has accumulated a bunch of grime and oil, that is a horse of a different color. After wedging it open (if possible), I would mask the heck out of the outside of the stock, and also tape plastic sheeting of some sort to cover the whole bloody thing. Give it a good blast of compressed air to dislodge the big pieces, then inject acetone or lacquer thinner into the crack and then blow it out again. Let dry thoroughly and proceed with the epoxy protocols described above- all good ideas. Clamp it, wipe off any squeeze-out, wipe everything down with alcohol or vinegar (so as to not dissolve the surrounding finish anymore than you may have already done). Remove the masking/plastic and double check for any traces of epoxy remaining around the surgery site. If you are lucky, careful, and the gods are smiling upon you, you won't have much if any touch-up to do on the finish. If you do, no big deal. Determine what the finish is and get back to us.

As stated above, I'm afraid too that the crack will never be totally invisible after repair. But, form follows function.

As for using cyanoacrylate, I never had good luck fixing cracks in gun stocks with it. May have been my luck, or lack thereof. I'm a firm believer in epoxy for such things.

That crack looks like it would be easy to get to from the back of the bottom metal inlet.

I'd see how far the crack went. I'd drill holes thru the crack from inside the inlet, hopefully to fully encompass the crack. I'd then work Acraglas Gel (brown dye) into the crack, making sure I got the gap fully filled.

Then, I'd patch the finish with Tru Oil. To fully eliminate the crack, you'd have to refinish the stock.

I'd glass bed the action to stop any future movement. I'd be sure all stress was relieved, leaving a slight gap behind the bottom metal and behind the tang.

DF

...Acetone will strip the finish. Drilling out the crack from the inside, not getting into the surface seems to be a better option. A full refinish will be needed to make it look perfect. Glass bedding to arrest any more movement.

Wonder what round?

DF

So, there're five woodworkers backed into a corner and someone asks them the best way out. How many different answers?
Seven.

good advice. hit it on both sides from the inside and build a little bridge over the crack and forget about the outside. and figure out where its tight and relieve it.

A rag with rubbing alcohol was used to wipe the surface, if done carefully the repair could be leveled with the finish and no refinish would be required.

12Oclock. Like that vacuum idea. Thanks.

Any cyanoacrylate believers for this, such as Satellite City red?

...Ed,....take that stock and plunk it in a piece of ABS sewer pipe, or a rocket storage tube,....fill it with NAPA's diatomaceous earth based floor dry and stick it in the HOTTEST spot you can find,....agitate periodically.
That big ML's stock, and MANY others have had that ride here,....and does it ever pull oil ! I just leave em' out in the Summer,....that black ABS, or OD green cardboard gets too hot to hold. GTC

Thanks for that info.

WEST looks a lot easier than what I've been doing.

From what I've learned on line, the WEST system is for boats and such, I don't see it offered in a small kit suitable for fixing a cracked gunstock.

I'd still put in the hidden cross pin to reinforce
the repair and I'd use the Gel for that.

DF

Where can I get this West repair kit? Sounds like the ticket.

Where can I get this West repair kit? Sounds like the ticket.

Here is one place to get them. There are others, I'm sure. I found this in 30 seconds via Google. I use West System in much larger quantities, but occasionally buy a repair kit to keep in my mobile tool kit. When I do so, I get them at a local marine distributor.

http://www.jamestowndistributors.co...p;familyName=WEST+System+101+Repair+Kits

Having spent many years working in the adhesive industry (not epoxies), I would like to warn against taking any actions such as thinning which are not specifically recommended by the manufacturer. If you thin an adhesive, in nearly all cases you weaken it.

Adhesive manufacturers of repute such as the WEST people employ skilled chemists to develop and produce their product. They have a far better feel for what works and what does not than any end user, especially casual home hobbyists. Use a thinner which is not appropriate to the adhesive and you run the risk of making a bad situation far, far worse.

WEST and System Three are two very high end epoxy manufacturers and you can (properly) use their product with confidence.

...I'd still drill a few holes thru the crack from inside...

To wedge it, I'd think you'd have to drive a chisel into the crack just enough to gap it slightly...

The Poles have a name for this, though I can't spell or pronounce it, but it translates roughly to "pissing in the soup".

You're probably right DF.

I sure like the sound of letting that Shop Vac do the work though, like 120 said..... Also wondering if that rubber door stop wedge would give a very slight bit of relief if wedged in there?

Lot's of good ideas here. Much appreciated.