Carving/shaping a wood stock?

K

kmw1954

New member
Do any of you good people know of or can recommend a good site to read on this subject?

I have a Richards Mocrofit stock coming that will need finishing and fitting and would like to get some tips on proper fitting for myself. Such as trigger reach, palm swell, grip contour.

I also this past week received a Boyds Thumbhole stock and it is not comfortable to me. To the point I am not sure I am going to keep it.
 
I can't give you a website, but chisels, rasps, and sanders are your tools. For a Richards Microfit, it is mainly sandpaper and elbow grease. If you must reduce the pull, start with a rasp, or even a bandsaw. There is no magic, just patience and hard work. Google "whiskering" for a final finish.
 
Things to consider:

Length of pull. Important for the user. Is that Boyds Thumbhole too short or too long? It's measured from the finger pad to the crook of the elbow (bent).

When you shoulder it, how are the sights? If you have to lean your head back, it's too short. You want some distance between your face and the action and that depends on your shooting style. Some people use scopes and you don't want it too close lest you get that black eye. You want some distance between the thumb and the nose too.

Drop at comb is from centerline of the bore to the where the cheek rests on the stock. Scoped rifles generally have a raised cheekpiece to keep your head higher because a scope is a bit higher (in most cases) than iron sights are.

Cast is another matter. Which dominant eye?

A good stockmaker takes those and many other factors into consideration in making a stock for an individual.

the shaping part isn't hard. #49 Nicholosn, #50 Nicholson and a good vise (I use a pattern maker's vise).
 
Sorry folks but I am not reporting Length of Pull but the length of reach from the pistol grip to the trigger. As I grasp the grip I feel I have to really stretch my finger to reach the trigger. Or that I have to reposition my wrist so that I am not just barely to the tip of my finger on the trigger. Otherwise things are well overall.
 
I have many books that discuss things like this, and I cannot recommend a single one of them for 'teaching' inletting and stock shaping.
It is not something that is well represented in text and a limited number of photos.

If you don't have anyone near you that is willing to teach, or at least let you observe, I suggest Youtube. Watch the videos - as many as you can - starting with Larry Potterfield (MidwayUSA).
 
You might want to take a 2 week stockmaking class at some NRA summer gunsmithing school.

Here's a tip. use a straight rule. Hold it against the wood and it'll show you the high points. Pencil mark it and then work on that.
 
I had a Boyd's thumbhole on a deer rifle and experienced the same issue. Eventually that gun went buh bye. The stock makers probably cut their thumbholes for average size paws. Mine are small. If your doing an unfinished stock, you can use a rasp and sander to change the palm swell and distance from thumbhole to trigger. The Boyd's could be altered too, and the area that was worked refinished with Truoil.
 
Thanks for the replies folks. this video is one that has my attention and points out a number of things I want to look at once my Richards stock arrives.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXq4c0YKjdw&t=304s

I also have been thinking of molding a clay or plaster rifle grip that I could practice carving on. Only I have never had to make a mod either si I am going to research that, next.
 
You asked for a book. One that I like is "Professional Stockmaking Through the
Eyes of a Stockmaker" by David L. Wesbrook. ISBN 978-1-879356-15-3
 
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