In looking at wood blanks, what are the optimal dimensions for a blank that you want to use with a big bore Mauser?

It seems that a lot of blank suppliers get a bit skimpy on the dimensions...

Lastly, for shotguns and double rifles, most blank suppliers have great photos and options for butstocks...but how do they source forearms?

Have you checked with Roger Vardy on wood? Remember the exchange on money between the USD and AUD is very favorable right now.

in my world, 2 1/4" thick works great for a Rigby.

If you're building a 577 T-Rex you might want a little more.

Be glad blanks are thinner. This means more stocks are coming out of a single tree.

2 1/4 is good assuming the blank is reasonably straight.

Of course it depends on if you're going to have a cheek piece or not. A slender stock without a cheek piece could be as narrow as 2".

Min length will obviously depend on several factors: Planned LOP and forearm length, thickness of any recoil pad, and whether or not you plan to use a contrasting tip.

Oh, and then if you are having it duplicated you will need some excess there as well...

When I was shopping for blanks I determined the shortest LOP, thickest pad, shortest forearm and longest tip I could tolerate to come up with an absolute minimum length to hand carve a stock. I then searched avoiding key words like "rifle", "stock", or "stock blank" and I found that sometimes plain old "lumber" or "boards" (even nicely figured) can be found at cheaper prices.

quote:

Originally posted by Duane Wiebe (CG&R):
2 1/4 is good assuming the blank is reasonably straight.

Is that enough to ensure a decent cheek piece?

14.5 LOP, magnum mauser?

quote:

Originally posted by butchlambert:
Have you checked with Roger Vardy on wood? Remember the exchange on money between the USD and AUD is very favorable right now.

That's my plan...

Been looking hard at his website.

I'll likely wait until the exchange rate dips back into the 60s.

It's tough to pick...a lot of the better blanks in terms of appearance, also have sub optimal grain/flow in high stress places. It's not a money issue...I don't plan to buy a pallet full of wood but I do want it to be straight, strong, and attractive.

quote:

Originally posted by lockingblock:

That's my plan...

Been looking hard at his website.

I'll likely wait until the exchange rate dips back into the 60s.

It's tough to pick...a lot of the better blanks in terms of appearance, also have sub optimal grain/flow in high stress places. It's not a money issue...I don't plan to buy a pallet full of wood but I do want it to be straight, strong, and attractive.

Trust Roger if there is anything wrong with the blank it will be disclosed to you up front. I have found Roger to be one of the most honest people you can deal with. The blank for my 318 had a small 1/4" crack right on the edge of the blank by the pistol grip area. He pointed it out as it was very hard to see in the picture and discounted the blank very heavily but it was not even going to be a problem once the blank was shaped. Roger will not steer you wrong when you buy from him.