Could I have a quick primer on stock making?

Trboatworks · Oct 31, 2018

I am making a buttstock and handguard set for a AR-15.
Question- how much time do I have to give the wood to settle as I start to shape the parts?
I purchased a shotgun blank for the project- crotch wood aged four years:

It appears that two stocks were cut from the crouch so my piece is off to one side or the other of center.
The blank has a set of about 3/16” or so along length.
I need a small part of that for a ar butt stock- maybe capture that wild figure over the comb.

I am cutting a comb on one side.
I am making up a A2 stock with full length buffer tube, trapdoor, butt plate with a hollow milled out in the stock.
My key concern is how to work out the bore for the buffer tube.
Slip fit direct to wood?
Drop in a liner of some sort: nylon, fiberglass, or carbon bonded to the wood or not.
I guess I am thinking the trick is to keep the stock from warping a bit over time and seizing to the tube.

What is the standard for fitup on receivers and barrels in stock making- rough mill then let sit for a few weeks?

Thanks all

Street · Oct 31, 2018

Thought i would add if your after checkering tools see [email protected] we brownall ask for the pdf list of tools.

MilGunsmith · Oct 31, 2018

Due to the thinness of the wood in the buffer tube area, I would definitely bond a liner into it. Most wood AR stocks I have seen are made from laminate, so much stronger and stable.

Trboatworks · Oct 31, 2018

MilGunsmith said:
Due to the thinness of the wood in the buffer tube area, I would definitely bond a liner into it. Most wood AR stocks I have seen are made from laminate, so much stronger and stable.

Ok- thanks for that.
I am thinking to leave some material on top around buffer tube but if I bond in a FRP liner in carbon or glass it will add a good deal of strength.
Plus a controlled bore.

kd1yt · Nov 2, 2018

I mean no disrespect, but if you are asking for a primer I assume this (stockmaking) may be mostly new to you. With wood that nice I would really suggest that you make up some prototype versions out of some really 'low stakes' wood and maybe even try different ways of going about it. It's be a shame to run into issues one your really nice wood

CalG · Nov 2, 2018

I have a couple of wood furniture sets (commercial walnut) . The spring tube bore is unlined, a close fit, and has not bound on the tube over two years. I do not have a history of the wood, but it is unlikely to be four years at rest, unless bought in that way, and there are concerns in California that inventory blanks for extended time periods and then sell "wholesale". So anything is possible.

Myself I have a half dozen figured and spalted maple blanks "resting". My plan is to use a the drill press and a Forstner bit on a machined extension to bore the buffer tube hole.
The stock then shaped around the resulting hole. The tube bore can easily be .030 over the buffer tube diameter without difficulty. The fit is in the pinch between the lower and the far end of the buffer tube. I plan to complete the stock in one, multi day operation. Without any planed relaxation time outs.

eta

Wood on an AR is very rewarding! It just looks right and feels right.

Trboatworks · Nov 3, 2018

Thanks guys- I am a chippy so have a fair enough angle on the task, I just thought I had read that there was some trade practice surrounding fitting wood stocks.
Perhaps a traditional long stock is more troublesome than this simple buttstock of a ar.

Re- fitting the stock around the tube then forming: yes that is how I had thought I would go about it.

Re- a practice run- no disrespect possible:
‘forewarned is forearmed’ eh.
Though I do spend my woodworking life in a long series of projects that I have one go at things so they had better be right, I do screw things up on occasion but it is always when I don’t have my mind on the task.
This is a project for fun so I will do at leisure..

Since I have ample time I do believe I will bore under by a 1/8”, rough shape the form 1/4” over or so and let sit.
I am wary of how the blank was cut off to the side of limb center and the camber it currently carries as a result.
I think it might need more time to ease than might have been the case if a plain balk of timber.

kd1yt · Nov 3, 2018

Trboatworks said:
Ok- thanks for that.
I am thinking to leave some material on top around buffer tube but if I bond in a FRP liner in carbon or glass it will add a good deal of strength.
Plus a controlled bore.

You might be able to use thinwall titanium tubing- I'm not sure that I got the inside diameter precisely correct but it is in the ballpark
Product Details - Titanium Joe

Trboatworks · Nov 3, 2018

Just for scale- I have lots of material to work with from this blank:

Re- above:
The buffer tube I have is 1.105”od
That sight is selling a 12” piece for $12 - not bad.

I am making up a free float tube based on a WOA barrel nut- I was thinking 7075 but at might consider Ti.

Oh- and from the discussion on CalG thread:
I ended up purchasing the NM carry handle w/ 1/4 MOA sight from Compass Lake Engineering.
Seems the nice piece of kit- tight and smooth in operation.

D Nelson · Nov 3, 2018

here is a Ar 10 if it helps any at all

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Trboatworks · Nov 3, 2018

^^^^
That helps- one key thing I need to sort out:
I have no ideal if comb is needed or required shape.
Just sighting the rifle with peeps and cheek weld on bare buffer tube, all seems right with the world.
I want to carry a scope at times- that change everything?
This is where my lack of time on the platform is getting me- I really haven’t messed with rifles outside of three position match shooting with .22’s....
I need to get out the old Win 52 and take a look at the stock geometry.

I am thinking comb as pictured on this ambi cut stock:

(Photo grabbed from net...)

kd1yt · Nov 3, 2018

To the original post-er who started this thread- if you don't mind, please take photos as you work through it, and share them here (or share them somewhere, and let us know where that particular 'somewhere' is) Thanks

henrya · Nov 9, 2018

Unless you are married to that blank, I think I would look for another with grain more suited to this project. The nice example posted above would be easier to work.

Otherwise, the things to watch for are clearance for the bolt handle and then comb height. The standard A2 stock is sort of the jumping off place as you can see in the nice example posted above. But you could add some comb height as long as you clear the bolt handle.

I have considered using a metal bushing front and rear of the butt stock for fit and just let the wood have a bit of clearance over the tube. But simply fitting it all up in wood would be OK too. There is not a lot of wood around the tube to cause a problem with install/removal of the stock. But, it might crack? A thin liner inside the wood might help with that.

For the forearm or handguard you might consider making one up from walnut veneer laid up on a mandrel. It could be pretty sexy! Just like a bought aluminum one but layers of veneer and epoxy. Maybe a layer of carbon fiber inside to make it stiffer.

Yes, a scope will change the comb height you will need. Unless you find one that mounts on the same level as the irons.

jjxtrider · Nov 9, 2018

I made a stock for a Remington 700 adl years ago out of purple heart, the hardest wood I ever worked with. I started with several 1/2" boards marine glued together to get thickness needed . When glueing them I pressed the stack in the 400 ton brakepress and shut the press down for the weekend. It came out as a solid chunk nicely.I didn't use the power of the press just brought it down till it started creaking and shut down. I finished the stock straight through with no "settling " time ,never moved and I made it full free floating . Turned out a deep,deep red color with just the standard stock finishing oils and then sealed.

CalG · Nov 9, 2018

Just a note on the idea of a "liner".

The stock is already mighty thin between your cheek and the extension tube. How can thinner be better? Getting down to the veneer and epoxy glue for strength range if a liner is fitted. I wouldn't do it.

Trboatworks · Nov 10, 2018

Thanks guys- I am a bit behind in contract work so this project is pushed off for a bit still.
I will take a look today though and see what kind of clearance I have under the charging handle and maybe sketch up a cross section of what the stock and comb might look like.

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Could I have a quick primer on stock making?

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