24hourcampfire.com
24hourcampfire.com
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Hop To
Page 5 of 6 1 2 3 4 5 6
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
P
PaulNZ Offline OP
Campfire Member
OP Offline
Campfire Member
P
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
Good suggestion, thanks. "Professional Stockmaking" was one I intended to pick up, although I believe it covers working from a semi-inlet and not from a blank? I'll add "Restocking a Rifle" to the list.

BP-B2

Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,593
Campfire Kahuna
Offline
Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,593
Originally Posted by PaulNZ
Long winded is fine - better too much information than too little! grin

Re. your first post - I followed about 90% of that, and I'll have to try sketching that layout on a piece of cardboard or similar. One question though - what do you define as the single cheek weld point within the area that your cheek contacts the stock?

Generally, just the place that touches below your cheekbone in a natural shooting stance.

Re. your second post - you lost me on some of the detail. If your bending moment (rather than force) is occurring at different distances from the action, then you are proposing that the centre of rotation (around which the wood is warping) is in a different position dependent on whether the grain is tending up or down?

That is correct, but also, most wood movement issues include an increase in moisture content... With rising grain increased MC usually moves the fore end away from the barrel.

Looking around, I found written that downward sloping grain will result in the forend pulling away from the barrel over time. It makes sense to me that with grain dead straight through the forend, dry conditions encouraging the wood to shrink would result in the forend curving down - due to there being less wood in the top of the forend (the walls of the barrel channel) vs. the bottom of the forend (underneath the barrel). Upward sloping grain would tend to counteract this tendency , while downward sloping grain would exacerbate it. I don't know if this is correct, but it makes an approximate kind of sense in my head.

Yes, and also as just above...

Putting aside the reasons, if I accept that upward grain in the forend = good, how effective would it be to counteract imperfect, downwards grain in the forend by stiffening the forend with carbon fibre rods and epoxy? I could mill a sizeable channel while having the stock set up for rough inletting, giving room for substantial reinforcement. Just trying to give myself options.

I have straightened a number of crooked fore ends exactly as you mention. I use a bundle of broken fishing rods bedded in epoxy fluffed with microballoons.

Re. your third post:

#1 loses a lot of figure from the butt if flipped - hence my question about carbon fibre.

#2 - definitely see what you are saying about 2-piece stocks. However, if the butt is raised to put rising grain into the forend, it also looks like it could be good. The hard bend is actually much less pronounced on the other side of the block. So it might be made to work either way. I think there will be no shortage of 2-piece stocks in this tree.

#3 - agree on both layouts. I can see the practicality in having the grain flow upwards in the butt, but it still looks slightly unusual to me compared to flowing down. The look might grow on me.

#4 - I planed and had a look at the top of the block after your post. Not good IMO - the grain is angled about 30 degrees rather than running down the length. I actually think this is one of the blocks shown in the 3rd photo of my 08/23/10 12:47 PM post, where we had to cut the buttress off just to get into the log proper. All a learning experience, anyway.

In any case, I think the wood needs at least a couple more years before seriously considering stocks. And in that time, no doubt we'll drag out another block or two, plane them, and go through this exercise again before selecting a couple to actually start shaping.


Straight grain in all directions is important and run-out is not acceptable, short of two-piece stocks with stock bolts... And you are very right, two-piecers are far easier to come up with than one...


Mark Begich, Joaquin Jackson, and Heller resistance... Three huge reasons to worry about the NRA.
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
P
PaulNZ Offline OP
Campfire Member
OP Offline
Campfire Member
P
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
Originally Posted by Sitka deer
I have straightened a number of crooked fore ends exactly as you mention. I use a bundle of broken fishing rods bedded in epoxy fluffed with microballoons.



I got the idea from your posts actually, and have used it successfully on two rifle forends which had movement problems. Though I find it easier to source carbon fibre tube and strip from the local model shop rather than find broken fishing rods.

Last edited by PaulNZ; 12/30/13.
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 19,822
A
Campfire Ranger
Offline
Campfire Ranger
A
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 19,822
Paul,

Thank you for sharing this journey with us! The possibilities in that wood make me grin.

Art, thank you for sharing your knowledge and insight!

Keep it up, fellas!

Ed


"Not in an open forum, where truth has less value than opinions, where all opinions are equally welcome regardless of their origins, rationale, inanity, or truth, where opinions are neither of equal value nor decisive." Ken Howell



Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,593
Campfire Kahuna
Offline
Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,593
Originally Posted by PaulNZ
Originally Posted by Sitka deer
I have straightened a number of crooked fore ends exactly as you mention. I use a bundle of broken fishing rods bedded in epoxy fluffed with microballoons.



I got the idea from your posts actually, and have used it successfully on two rifle forends which had movement problems. Though I find it easier to source carbon fibre tube and strip from the local model shop rather than find broken fishing rods.


Great! I am happy something I posted helped out. I seem to leave a never-ending trail of broken rods behind me, so sourcing them is pretty easy!


Mark Begich, Joaquin Jackson, and Heller resistance... Three huge reasons to worry about the NRA.
IC B2

Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
P
PaulNZ Offline OP
Campfire Member
OP Offline
Campfire Member
P
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
So, it's been nearly 10 years since I started this thread. Plenty has changed over that time - I got married, bought a house, had two kids, and have had several changes of job title. Looking back at the first post, I've still got the same car though!

Anyway, it's finally time I got properly stuck into making a custom stock for myself. So here's a brief update of where I'm at for those who are interested. The rifle to receive the new stock is my Anschutz 1717 Silhouette .17HMR.

First up was a pattern stock, shown set up on my mill/drill for inletting earlier this year. The wood is Totara - an NZ native that is both easy to carve and very stable.

[Linked Image]


After a lot of time spent shaping, I got to the point that I was happy with the pattern stock. It's not based on any other particular stock, just a combination of what I think looks good on this rifle and what fits me (emphasis on the latter). This is the first stock I've ever attempted, so dimensions for LOP, cast, pitch, drop etc. etc. came off other factory rifles that I feel fit me well. Having a couple of good reference books also helped.

I'm lucky enough to now have access to a duplicator, and here's the start of the roughing out. I chose a blank with strong mineral streaking and a little fiddleback in the butt (not visible unless planed/sanded). In this tree the best black streaking was in a narrow band adjacent to the sapwood, so there are a couple of compromises in grain layout. The grain is dipping instead of rising in the fore-end (which I'll address by reinforcing the foreend with carbon fibre tubes), and the lower part of the pistol grip goes into sapwood. 90% of this will be removed by the time the stock is down to final size, leaving a small patch on the bottom of the pistol grip only. Not sure yet whether I'll stain the remaining sapwood or leave the contrast - I'll do some trials on scrap.

[Linked Image]


First stage of the duplication complete. If the stock looks chunky it is because I left a full 1/2" thickness on all surfaces. This is for a couple of reasons - firstly it gave me a chance to gain experience with the duplicator without being close to final lines (I've never run one before), and secondly it gave me room to reposition the pattern relative to the grain after the first duplication. I'll offset the blank by about 1/4" for the next duplication to better follow the grain.

[Linked Image]


One photo of the rough stock wetted to show the colour:

[Linked Image]


So that's about where I am at the moment. Next step is to put the stock back on the duplicator sometime in the next couple of weeks to rip down to 1/4" oversize. Then I will let it sit for a few months to allow for movement (if any). After that, down to 1/16" oversize and out of the duplicator for inletting and shaping/finishing by hand in the evenings. I've got some metalwork to do in the interim also, not to mention other unrelated projects. If I can post a photo of a finished rifle stock by Christmas 2020 I reckon I'll be doing well.

Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 553
Campfire Regular
Offline
Campfire Regular
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 553
Great progress. Many thanks for bringing this thread to the top.

Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
P
PaulNZ Offline OP
Campfire Member
OP Offline
Campfire Member
P
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
I don't spend much time on this forum anymore, and I'm not sure how many of the posters on a thread nearly 13 years old are still around. But just to close this out for anyone who is still interested, I did end up making at least one stock:

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]

I'm not the best photographer, but the close-up photos are closer to the real stock colour than the full length ones.

Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 2,256
B
Campfire Regular
Offline
Campfire Regular
B
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 2,256
That is a beautiful stick of wood. You did well.


“You never need fear a man, no matter what his size. When danger threatens, call on me, and I will equalize.”
Samuel Colt.

�Common sense is genius dressed up in work clothes.� - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 16,287
M
Campfire Ranger
Offline
Campfire Ranger
M
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 16,287
You did VERY well, Paul!
That's a gorgeous stock!


I've always been a curmudgeon - now I'm an old curmudgeon.
~Molɔ̀ːn Labé Skýla~
IC B3

Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 19,822
A
Campfire Ranger
Offline
Campfire Ranger
A
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 19,822
Paul,

I'm one of the old guys still here...

That is a beautiful stock and excellent work! Thank you for sharing this journey with us!

Ed


"Not in an open forum, where truth has less value than opinions, where all opinions are equally welcome regardless of their origins, rationale, inanity, or truth, where opinions are neither of equal value nor decisive." Ken Howell



Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 1,015
M
Campfire Regular
Offline
Campfire Regular
M
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 1,015
Hi Paul,

I'm also one of the old guys still here - I probably live about 80 km from you as the duck flies...

That is a REALLY nice stock, feel free to post up any others that have come from the same tree.

Cheers

Mike

Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 1,106
Campfire Regular
Offline
Campfire Regular
Joined: Aug 2017
Posts: 1,106
That is just gorgeous.


The cow is where you are, the bull is where you want to be.

No one gets something for nothing unless someone else got nothing for something.
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,593
Campfire Kahuna
Offline
Campfire Kahuna
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 50,593
Very, very nicely done!


Mark Begich, Joaquin Jackson, and Heller resistance... Three huge reasons to worry about the NRA.
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 922
D
Campfire Regular
Offline
Campfire Regular
D
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 922
Beautiful!!!


Nobody's right if everybody's wrong.
Getting into reloading to save money is like getting married for free sex.
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 18,995
Campfire Ranger
Offline
Campfire Ranger
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 18,995
It turned out very well. All of your work has paid off.

kwg


For liberals and anarchists, power and control is opium, selling envy is the fastest and easiest way to get it. TRR. American conservative. Never trust a white liberal. Malcom X Current NRA member.
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 9,180
Campfire Outfitter
Offline
Campfire Outfitter
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 9,180
Fantastic thread. Thanks for the update.


Originally Posted by BrentD

I would not buy something that runs on any kind of primer given the possibility of primer shortages and even regulations. In fact, why not buy a flintlock? Really. Rocks aren't going away anytime soon.
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 4,267
Campfire Tracker
Offline
Campfire Tracker
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 4,267
Glad you shared your results. I wish I had the skill.


CK
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 10,340
B
Campfire Outfitter
Offline
Campfire Outfitter
B
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 10,340
Beautiful wood and stock Paul! Yes I've followed it from the beginning.

Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
P
PaulNZ Offline OP
Campfire Member
OP Offline
Campfire Member
P
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 105
Thanks for the kind words everyone, it's satisfying to be able to close this thread out after all these years. I expect I'll try my hand at another stock sometime, but perhaps not for a while yet. For now I need to put the above stock to good use and get that rifle out hunting!

Page 5 of 6 1 2 3 4 5 6

Moderated by  RickBin 

Link Copied to Clipboard
YB23

Who's Online Now
260 members (1minute, 45_100, 204guy, 257_X_50, 10gaugemag, 280shooter, 42 invisible), 2,169 guests, and 958 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Forum Statistics
Forums81
Topics1,187,726
Posts18,400,633
Members73,822
Most Online11,491
Jul 7th, 2023


 







Fish & Game Departments | Solunar Tables | Mission Statement | Privacy Policy | Contact Us | DMCA
Hunting | Fishing | Camping | Backpacking | Reloading | Campfire Forums | Gear Shop
Copyright © 2000-2024 24hourcampfire.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5
(Release build 20201027)
Responsive Width:

PHP: 7.3.33 Page Time: 0.095s Queries: 15 (0.006s) Memory: 0.9083 MB (Peak: 1.0689 MB) Data Comp: Zlib Server Time: 2024-03-29 05:36:07 UTC
Valid HTML 5 and Valid CSS