Any advice on books about stocks. Bedding, in letting, and checkering. Thank you

"Professional Stockmaking" by Wesbrook and "Checkering and Carving of Gunstocks" by Kennedy.

Those are two of the best. Run a google or bing search on either book and take the amazon.com link. Across the bottom of the page will be many other books related to stock making. There are also some good videos as well as hard copy books as well. Plan on making a few walnut kindling sticks along the way.

Stock checkering and engraving by Monte Kennedy is about the best one you'll find on checkering.

Don't forget Les Brooks thumb drive.

Adam

quote:

Originally posted by ab_bentley:
Stock checkering and engraving by Monte Kennedy is about the best one you'll find on checkering.

Don't forget Les Brooks thumb drive.

Adam

Two thumbs up for both of those... "Professional Stockmaking" is next on my list to get.

I would buy the Wesbrook book first, but you might also look for Stockmaking by Al Linden. It's somethat dated but still has a lot of good info.

One of the best is, "Sporting Firearms, A Designer's Notebook." It covers every design aspect of stock design (and a lot more). I see it's available from Amazon.com/books in book and electronic form.

Depends on which purpose you have in mind when reading the book(s).

David Wesbrook may or may not have a good book. Depends on what purposes you read it for.

One thing to keep in mind while reading his book is that David Wesbrook did not succeed as a stocker either with Griffin & Howe or as a custom stocker out on his own. I had him build a stock for me, and I can see why. He considers himself one of the most talented stockers who ever lived. I personally do not consider him even moderately well talented amongst currently living stockers.

Maybe that is why after a relatively short period on his own he ended up supposedly going to work (for the NRA, then headquartered in Washngton, D.C.) as a photographer.

I have a second printing of the Kennedy book, 1962 I believe, with the original purchase card still in it, if you are interested. $25 shipped. I have found that I will never checker a stock. A man's gotta know his limitations.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll try the wesbrook first, if I can get something done that's worth packing around, then I'll look into the checkering

I have no experience with Westbrook's stocking ability but of the books available it is the best I found for what I was looking for at the time. Worlds ahead of Lindens book IMO. That book actually helped more after I had some idea of what I was doing than when I was jumping in head first. In the end nothing beats experience and paying close attention to what ever tidbits you find here or there.

Having the honor to have known Dave Wesbrook for a few years....his stockmaking ability is on par with his ability to teach/write/photograph. David is a very technical and precise man. David designed and built all of the photography fixtures to get the fantastic pictures he incorporated into his book. In my opinion, there is no finer textbook for gunstock making than he has produced. I own every one of the mentioned books and have read them. David's book helped me more in my stockmaking ability while the others helped me understand the development of the gunstock trade better. Each has it's strong points that help complete the aspiring stockmaker. Get them all!!

Dennis Earl Smith
The Stock Doctor
Professional Member ACGG
Tygh Valley, OR.

I own a book entitled Stockmaking by Alvin Linden. It is a copy of a book written quite some time ago, and the patterns in the book are not what today's patterns look like.

However, the book is very good because unlike most books that start with a semi-inletted blank, this book goes into great detail on how to carve and inlet a stock blank by hand with hand tools.

So I would recommend it to anyone who has an interest in custom stocks.

Another book that I would recommend for anyone interested in reading about stockmaking would be the book entitled Gunsmithing Tips and Projects by Wolfe Publishing. There are quite a few chapters on gunsmithing in the book, of which a few go into great detail on stockmaking.

Two other books that might be of interest to you would be the Gun Digest Book on Rifesmithing and the Gun Digest Book on Custom Guns. Both are out of print and you would have to find them used. But both are excellent reading, and contain information on stocks and stockmaking.

Another book that I own that has a lot of information on making and inletting stocks is called The NRA Gunsmithing Guide-Updated. I don't know if it is out of print or not, although my copy is quite old. There are a number of good articles by Keith Stegall, who was a pretty good stock maker in his day.

What is the concensus on Brownell's "Gunsmith Kinks" books?