Just curious what you think of this. Regardless of the concensus, I plan to try it anyway. To clarify, I'm talking about well seasoned, air-dried American Black walnut -- NOT kiln dried, the form that has given black walnut the reputation of being brittle.

I used to live near a sawmill that kept small quantities of air dried black walnut, with which I was able to make steam bent oval shaker boxes, to illustrate its pliability. Try that with kiln dried wood, which will splinter and snap no matter how long you boil it.

Todd

The important thing is that the wood be dense, tight, fairly straight grain. Doesn't matter if it's English, Claro, American Black, or what. I have a Texas-grown American blank that is as dense as iron and I have a gorgeous Turkish Circassian blank that is soft and light and won't be suitable for heavy recoil (or fine checkering either, I fear).

I sent an email to Mr. Paul Dressel regarding this very same question in case my repair on my Hannibal didn't work. His reply was it would work but the bedding would have to be very well done, stock crossbolts of course and second lug on barrel.

He then stated a better choice would be Bastogne or the best choice Turkish. He has Turkish wood that is pretty for as little as $300.00 and the price for jaw dropping begins around $500.00.
Black walnut jaw droppers start at $300.00

Todd,

fla3006 hit the nail on the head. The black walnut will work fine if it is dense, straight grained from the wrist to past the barrel lug and quartersawn. Being air dried is a BIG plus to.

Make sure that the burl is kept at the butt end of the stock. Burl is structurally weak and extremely prone to splitting. I suspect you are aware of this; however, as it sounds as though you have furniture making experience.

Watch out. Robgunbuilder is trying to say that you and I are one and the same.

TEG

Great he is talking to himself again!

*FIRE IN THE HOLE SSSSSSSSSSSSSS BOOM!*

Where my troll gun when I need it...have to go to that thread!

JAG

JAG,

You ignorant arse, what is your post supposed to mean? I am not talking to myself! You moron! If you don't know anything then keep your mouth shut (fingers off the keyboard) and stay out of these discussions.

SSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHH Boom to you too ding dong.

TEG

/

Please excuse my last post. I was quite behind in taking my lithium (my mother reminds me when I don't take it, but she was gone this week).

I'm really not like this all the time.

Todd

Alf,

The term "Turkish Circassian walnut" still seems to be in use in stockmaking circles.

http://www.dressels.com/id15.htm

Regards,

Terry

TEG,
KISS MY ARSE!!!
Thats what it means!

ALF,
Wondering were you got your info, I am not doubting it but just wondering as I have seen reference to this wood as well.

/

Todd,
I was hoping that Ray or Chic would weigh in on this one. Oh well here goes, I have always been told by the experts that "American Black Walnut" is too porous, stringy, and soft to be suitable for a big bore rifle. It also doesn't checker as well as california english walnut.

RAB

ALF- I haven't looked at a map but I was told that the Circassian Mountains extend into Turkey and that is supposedly where my blank came from. The point I wanted to make is it all depends on the particular tree as to whether one variety of walnut is better than another. Over the past few years I've seen a fair amount of Juglans regia grown everywhere from Turkey to California that is soft and porous and not as good for stockmaking as some Claro or American Black, which most stockmakers consider inferior.

/

ALF: Very interesting. Perhaps some enterprising soul should plant an orchard near Poti! Have you looked at much of the wood now being sold as Turkish or Circassian? Most I have seen from different vendors does seem to have color and grain characteristics distinctly different from California European.

/

Todd,
I hope that American Black Walnut will make a wonderful stock for my Mod.70 .375. I have a blank coming from San Antonio. A friend helped remove the tree from one of his buddy's property. His reward was a few slabs of the tree. I am looking forward to seeing it next week!

Rusty
We band of brothers

[ 11-02-2002, 19:03: Message edited by: Rusty ]

ToddE - You are correct, I don't know much about wood other than you can burn it in a fireplace. Sorry

Well hell, lets cut through all this BS...There are two kinds of walnut period, soft shell and hardshell....Normally softshell will give you the best wood, but not always.

Turkish is softshell grown in Turkey
French is softshell grown in France
California is soft shell grown in California
THAT is how we identify it, thats all....

Bastogne and Claro are cross bred walnut woods. The original Bastogne was from Bastogne.

Softshell is identified by us by where it comes from....therefore that equates to How it grew and under what conditions, a good example is Turkish, It is grown under the harshiest of varing temp changes and hard winds and drouth, cold and heat and the trees are 100 years old and bigger around than skyscrappers thus it is the best of wood today...Old world French was beatifull hard, and light of weight...

Volumes and books have been written on the subject and I have not touched on it here nor will anyone else...want to know if your tree will make a gunstock, take a core of the root and if it smells like dog poop then it is probably good stuff. thats real.....

Will Black Walnut make a stock, you bet it will and a good one if it grew under harsh conditions but if it grew on a ditch bank or in a swamp it wont do, same for any softshell walnut. I have seen a couple of Black walnut stocks that took my breath away and were about as porus as marble and harder'n woodpecker lips, but thats the exception...I have a claro blank on my 6x45 that is as good as wood gets and so pretty it brings tears to the eyes of gun stockers....

Add to this it must be properly cured and dried and that in itself is another catagory of extended study..

Mostly, I like Turkish today, since true French is a thing of the past....A lot of California English is akin to balsa and some is sho nuff first rate. Some Claro and even California English is called California cork wood by such ministers as Jack Belk and thats a good evaluation.

Today too much emphasis is placed on "marble cake", because its pretty and it sells..a sucker every minute comes to mind...How about this: grain that starts at the toe and runs through the grip then stight to the forend with ever so little upward thurst...contrasting streaks are OK as is fiddle back...Now that is a stockmakers dream, and prone never to change POI if cured and dried properly. if turned properly, and if the stocker lays it out right. One must observe this grain structure from the side, end and top and bottom of the blank...say 7 hale Marys, two our fathers and cross hisself at least a dozen times that when cut it will have no knots or holes in it..

The truth is one man (including stock makers) in a million knows diddlede squat about gunstock wood. Millions think they do. Every customer of custom stocks knows all there is to know about gunstock wood, or so I have come to observe over the couple of centuries

As for myself, I am still learning, I have studied wood all my life, well read on the subject, and I am probably somewhere in the top 25% but there are some folks that just amaze me with their wood knowledge, I like to hang around with them and learn, learn, learn.......

But one thing is sure, the conditions under which that tree was stressed is what makes a gunstock...

Knowing wood is like owning a good roping horse, but the time he is solid and fool proof, it's time to die.....

Some excellent discussion here, thanks to all for the input. As I said, I plan to try it, perhaps with three if I like the first one. Ray, fiddleback is exactly what I was planning for figure, if any. The person I'm planning to buy from seems to know what he's doing when it comes to layout, at least as regards grain flow through the grip.

The first stock will be for a big boomer, #'s 2 and 3, if they happen, will be a fiddleback matched pair for my 35 whelen in the works, and my poor, sick 270 (see "lug setback" in gunsmithing forum; cards of condolence and donations for repair accepted).

Best to you all,
Todd

Keep in mind that Black Walnut is very heavy wood when compared to such walnuts as french...A 270 well?? I would prefer lighter wood for the lighter calibers and keep the Black for the big bores. Just a personal opine.