I'm working on a couple stocks. One is a Mannlicher that came from a blank that I've slowly whittled down and another is an older Fajen that I've recontoured to look more like a guild stock.

The problem that I'm encountering is knowing how to smooth the transitional sections; where the butt and grip meet and where the cheek piece meets the stock.

I know that it's just a tedious area to finish but I'm just missing something basic in my approach. I just know it.

What are some good ways to approach this in as painless a way as possible?

Thanks,
lc

Kudos for building a stock from the blank!

Double Kudos for it being a Mannlicher!!

There are basically two styles for how to make the transition from butt to grip, and describing either method in print is tough for me, but here is a weak shot at it.

The current trend in higher end customs is to have a sharp transition from grip to butt. You can see this in the Searcy Scholarship Rifle thread sticky at the top of this page. Page 13 shows a lot of the butt shaping, but the whole thread has lots of good pictures. You can also by a DVD showing how it was made.

When making this style stock, leave the bottom of the butt and grip square until the stock is mostly shaped. Then use a three corner file and turn it so a flat side is pointing up. Use the vee pointing down to cut in the transition, following the rear curve of the grip a little ways up the stock. Then work out towards the butt and muzzle a little until you have rounded them off to suit your tastes. Go slowly if you want the sharp transition that many folks use today.

I make mine more of the “old†style. This can also be considered the â€future†style, as it will come back into fashion at some point. Well, it is not out of fashion right now, it is just that many folks on high end guns go with the sharp transition that was originally found on heavy English rifles. This typical American style stock has sort of a dished out area where the rear of the grip and the butt meet. For that, I use a Nicholson #50 rasp and a crossing file to make the dished out area.

The method you use needs to match the style of stock you are making. The first style was originally used on heavy rifles that had a good deal of weight to them. The second is appropriate for light, medium, and heavy rifles. It would be tough to make a true lightweight rifle with the sharp transition. It throws the proportions off and the stock will not be balanced artistically. As long as you are following sound artistic principles, your stock will never go out of style. When you see old stocks that still like very nice in today’s eyes, I can guarantee you that it is based on sound artistic principles. When you look at an older stock and chuckle at how its style is out of fashion, then it was made to the trends that were cool at the time without regard for, or more likely understanding of, artistic principles.

Most stocks have too much wood left on them. Whichever style grip you choose, make sure you thin the stocks down enough to make the rifle trim. Mannlichers and early Teutonic sporters were trim rifles without excess wood. Hell, the earliest were so trim that they had to put raised wood panels on the sides of the stocks to hold them together under the forces of recoil. It would be harder to have both styles of stock look right with the sharp transition of grip, but it can be done. The dished out style is much easier to get a visually balanced stock, especially on the styles you are building. It has never gone out of fashion, it is just that a lot of American stocks are being made with the sharp transition today.

For the bead on the cheekpiece I use mill files and a large square file that I lopped the tapered part off. The sharp corners of the files will allow you to have a clean and neat look to the cheekpiece. Also, make sure you really bring the bead thickness down low. Most are left too thick. That is OK, but it does not look as good and professional.

I urge you to stop work on the stocks and do some reading. If you are at this point and having trouble, I would say do a little research before you do something that permanently screws up the stocks. Many good books are Dunlap’s Gunsmithing, Howe’s The Modern Gunsmith, and Wesbrook’s Professional Stockmaking. These all describe how to lay out a stock and see it in your head before you start removing wood.

Also, I would study pictures on the web and in books to figure out which styles you like and which ones you don’t. Then start looking at the details so you can figure out which details change the visual impact of a stock in different ways.

The main thing is to finish the stocks regardless of what happens to them. If you make a big mistake, fix it the best you can and trudge on until you are finished. Congratulations again on making a couple of stocks this way. Both from a blank and also just using the inletting and reshaping the Fajen stock is great. Not many folks have done what you are doing and I encourage you to keep up the good work!

Thanks a bunch for taking the time to type that out. That was very helpful advice.

One of the difficulties that I have at these transitions is finish sanding. It's very difficult to finish sand one side of the feature and not scratch or scuff the other side. I may just be trying to go too fast.

I'm beginning to see the lines that I want to create. That triangular file trick sounds just right. I'll use that.

All I can say is "I shoulda thought of that"!! LOL.