Howdy,

Bought this piece of wood and found it has these small bore holes in it from some insect. I was
not informed of this upon purchasing. I probed most of the holes with a 0.5mm pencil lead and
they go in quite deep, some better than an inch. Should I keep the wood or send it back?
If I send it back it'll cost $20.00 in postage. What should I do?
Any recommendations appreciated and no I will not say where I bought it from.

I've never heard of insect damage adding character to a rifle stock

I'd take the $20 hit on postage vs being stuck with a couple hundred dollars of firewood. I kinda wonder if the stock seller figured he'd soak an Alaskan, figuring the shipping cost would keep you from returning it?

With that much damage that your can see, imagine what you can't. I'ld send it back.

Roger---

I'd call the dealer and tell him it's unusable. (Which it is)

If he's a *good* dealer he'll upgrade a notch to make up for the postage.

Thanks gentlemen. That is what I will do.

By the way, the holes indicate that the beetles have left the wood. When I lived in Alabama and wished to season wood for projects I would spray it down with Lindane insecticide to keep the bettles out of it. I don't know if Lindane is still available or not but it worked great.

I'm not quite sure why you should be stuck with postage when the buyer 'forgot' to mention such a tiny thing as FIFTY OR SO boring insect holes! Ok, it's only $20, but it's still bulls$#t.

Todd

I agree with Todd, if he was reputable to begin I would think that blank would have never made it out the door. I'd ask for a full refund, including shipping and shop elsewhere.

I called and explained the problem. The secretary who answered the phone sounded surprised and immediately offered a refund.

It is a shame since it is a pretty piece of wood. I am going to have them just keep the bucks on credit until my wife can pick another she likes then I'll get that one. Of course I will ask that it be visually inspected for cracks, checks visible voids and...insect holes.

Roger,

You might add sapwood to the list of things they should check for. I was being polite earlier but is sure looks like a big chunk of the aft part of that blank is sapwood. I personally don't mind a little white streaking, especially at the edges of the stock, but I think it is generally not well thought of. At the very least, a blank with sapwood that may end up in the final product should be notched down a grade in price.

JMO.

Todd

[ 04-02-2003, 08:10: Message edited by: Todd Getzen ]

I hope I don't come on like a smart ass but it amazes me at the number of folks that will come into cyber space and be really bent out of shape over a dis-service of some sort and after all the smoke clears, one finds they have never contacted the vendor or provider and given them a chance to correct the problem. This is not really directed at Roger and I do think
Roger was very low key about his problem, but when you have a problem, your first act should be to give the provider a chance to make good. If he doesn't want to act in good faith, THEN come into cyber space and smoke his ass.

Beeman
I agree with your basic premise, but it doesn't apply here. If the person sends that blank out without a detailed explanation of it's condition prior to sale, he deserves anything he gets. Knowingly selling a flawed product without informing the buyer is poor business. Of course they'll take it back and I'll bet they will try to sell it again. Maybe the next guy won't know any better.

Todd,

That light colored section is amazingly dense and superfine-pored. The wood at the end of the stock has some sort of rubberized coating, I think rubber cement. I would assume it was painted on nice and thick to keep the stock from checking or cracking while it dried.

This is a large piece of wood, the stock I want to duplicate is a Husqvarna Model 146 which very closely resembles a 1920's Type B Mauser Sporter. It is large enough I would have had no problem making the stock and working right around the light wood.

As for my reason for posting this before contacting the seller is pretty simple: there is an astonishing amount of knowledge represented on this forum. From those who have gone before me would come the recommendations to keep the stock and how to make it pretty, or from hard earned experience the recommendation to send it back.
I also was looking for the best approach to take when contacting the seller.
Jack told me what he thought and so did another gunmaker I had contacted offline. When I contacted the seller and explained the problem it was immediately taken care of, they asked no questions of me but, "what do you want me (seller)to do"?
Judging from the reaction I heard in the womans voice I think this was a mistake; I do not know how many people are in this operation so it is quite probable.

Anyway it is taken care of and I appreciated the help.

[ 04-02-2003, 10:31: Message edited by: Roger Rothschild ]

Dempsey, to a degree you are right but it is a loooong ways from the sales floor to the warehouse. It is quite possible that the guy in shipping could care less. To him its just another interruption to his smoke break and the quicker he can get it done the quicker he can get back to his girlie mag.
Most vendors and providers would like you to think their products are made by elves under a hollow log. And those elves just hang around waiting for your order. But we know that's not true. In todays world of zero inventory, the fellow that sold Roger his blank may have never had that particular piece of wood in his inventory. But rather, sub-contracted it to yet another provider.

beeman
Your scenario is understandable. I don't know how many companys that sell blanks to the general public are so large to make such a thing a possibility, but I'm sure there are some. The people I've bought from are small operations where I usually if not always talk to the owner himself/herself. Either way I'm glad to see all turned out well