Carving your own stock

oxfordshirestalker

Well-Known Member
Hi All,

I’d love to have a more traditional wooden stock for my Sauer and had a random thought of trying to carve one from a blank myself. I’m fairly handy with woodwork. Has anyone done this?
I’m slightly worried I’d waste a lot of time and effort and never actually achieve the finish and look I’m after!
Any thoughts, advice etc more than welcome!
T
 
If you want to try it go for it, you will only regret NOT trying it later on, what's the worst that can happen, you lose time effort and a bit of cash...............nothing we haven't all done with girls!!!!
 
On one forum that I used to be on years ago (might even have been this one) there was a guy who made a stock for himself. He literally started with a fallen tree and gave very regular updates on his progress. He made a lovely job of it and, if I recall correctly, he only used DIY type skills.
 
Don’t bother unless you’re going to spend that countless hours on something worth it, ie, a very nice English, French or Turkish walnut blank that’s air dried for 10+ yrs and has the ‘right’ density, veining and layout. This will cost you between £500 and £1000 in wood.

Sure you can make something in cheap wood, but it quite honestly stinks putting the best part of a year into a project, and then realising you’ve actually got a cheap stick of wood!

It’s a massive undertaking to make a stock yourself, and unless you are very good, precise, and patient, it will not be the end result you hoped for. Also learn how to finish a good stock and of course, start practicing checkering because you dont want that stock to be your first attempt, I can guarantee you that!

I’ve made a fair number of stocks, I will only make another if I’m forced to or for a very special build!!
 
Cameron Hatcher pantographs a lot of different stocks in Aus. They are 80/ 90% done and he uses some pretty good wood too.
Maybe it could be a starting point for you to obtain and finish/fit your own.
And at least you have a real stock to develop from.
Pic is one I purchased a year or so back,there is a lot of work to be done but for you a great starting point perhaps.

 

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@keith rippin has made some of his own so would be a good person to ask.

I've bought a Finnish CWP laminate blank for a stock that I want to make so it's not necessary to spend silly money for your first try. I bought the blank from lamnia online.
 
You can start with Beech. Cheap enough to buy not so bad if you balls up. I paid £45 for enough for four blanks.
Do yourself a favour and do the inlet first. Then work on the shape. At least if you mess it up you have minimum of time in it
 
The guy who taught me a London train stocker advice was to start with a blank and slowly inlet the metal work then just remove anything that doesn’t look like a stock. First one takes a long time then you get quicker and quicker. Never spent a year making a stock I’d never have built rifles if they did.
 
Like any kind of woodcarving I should think: if you keep on cutting away the bits you don't want, you'll be left with what you do.
The finishing is the bit that would faze me, I reckon. Not sure I'd have enough patience.
 
I would also suggest starting with a shaped blank or if your more brave/ skilled buy a cheap lump of wood to practice on. £500+ walnut blank would be the second project once skilled and lessons learnt.

I went down this road with a blank I picked up off here. It looked like crap in the photos, covered in varnish in an atempt to show off the grain. I paid very little for it. On delivery I could then see it might have some potential.
I sent it away to be shaped and inlet.
I then did the final inletting, shaping, sanding and oiling.
I have to say oiling and stippling was the most enjoyable.
Next time I'll do the whole thing from scratch.IMG_20170921_064926951.jpgIMG_20170613_084822569.jpgIMG_20170612_085212654.jpgIMG_20170612_085142035.jpg
 
i went to school for it and it's still not easy. Pick up a good book on the subject. "The Carving and Checkering of Gunstocks" by Monte Kennedy is a pretty good one.~Muir
 
Dont let the Nay sayers put you off. With some simple hand tools, the ability to keep them razor sharp and time its not really that difficult. You dont have to start off with an exhibition grade piece of walnut. Go to a good lumber yard that supplies wood to Furniture and take your time you will find a good peice of straight grained american walnut, and probably as good if not better than most factory walnut stocks. Rough cut it out and then leave in to season for a few months before staring. Modern day bedding techniques can take care of less than perfect inletting, and not difficult to let in a bit of aluminium tube into forend to stiffen it if needs be.

And here is an excellent show and tell Stockmaker show and tell - Topic
 
Don’t bother unless you’re going to spend that countless hours on something worth it, ie, a very nice English, French or Turkish walnut blank that’s air dried for 10+ yrs and has the ‘right’ density, veining and layout. This will cost you between £500 and £1000 in wood.

Sure you can make something in cheap wood, but it quite honestly stinks putting the best part of a year into a project, and then realising you’ve actually got a cheap stick of wood!

It’s a massive undertaking to make a stock yourself, and unless you are very good, precise, and patient, it will not be the end result you hoped for. Also learn how to finish a good stock and of course, start practicing checkering because you dont want that stock to be your first attempt, I can guarantee you that!

I’ve made a fair number of stocks, I will only make another if I’m forced to or for a very special build!!
To do it correctly is indeed not for the faint hearted. Get one thing wrong and it will look a mess!

I would suggest the Op gets a semi-finished stock and have somone do the bedding. That will leave time and inclination for focusing on the aesthetics.

Few top Gunsmiths to stockwork themselves. Callum Ferguson being a case in point.

K
 
Yes you can spend a lot of money having a stock made for you. Nowadays it will be machine made as cost of labour precludes hand carving.

Here is a 22 Brno I restocked with a bit of Cherry wood a few years ago. Wood cost me nothing ( came from a tree that had been cut down a few years before), and then it was time. No its not a beautiful stock built by a London stocker. But its mine and i get huge satisfaction from that.
 

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Why not start with some laminated marine ply and see how you get on. Also as it is flat you would not have a problem drilling and lining the action holes for a start and you could build up the stock in sections. I have always thought I would like to make a stock and this is how I would go about it. Also with flat sides at the start it would be easy to use a router to create the barrel inlet.

D
 
Nope, he gets them sent 90% finished
To be clear what I meant to convey is Callum does not make stocks himself. I'm sure he does have some 90% finished by others but he use to have an in-house stocker and a very fine one at that but he moved on back in the 90's. I'm assuming if someone wants a classicaly stocked PRS in walnut he will send it to someone who's trained by one of the London houses?

K
 
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