How would you fix this?

Was the stock cracked or is this just a mortise hole? If it is just a mortise hole I would cut a "dutchman" to fill in (A basic piece of wood matching as near as possible, cut to fit tighly and glued in). What are the function of the screws? It looks like there may have been a receiver sight installed at some point.

Are you talking about the screw hole or the mortise?

The stock is not cracked. There was a receiver sight installed that did not come with the rifle.

Inlet a piece of wood that matches the color and grain as best you can. Then, checker it to complement the checkering on the sides of the grip. Another way I have handled similar fiascos is to inlet a contrasting piece of wood or other material ("ivory" "silver", etc.), again, using a size and shape that complements the existing checkering.

I would concider inletting a piece of blued steel to resemble a tang.

I would radius the square corner near the comb, remove the thin ledge at the action (which will break out anyway) and widen it enough to straighten the sides. Easiest way would be to set it up in a mill and make a pass with a cutter just slightly wider than the mortise, or could be done by temporarily installing a dutchman near comb, drilling with a forstner bit to create the radius then finish out with chisels. Then fit a dutchman of similar material, starting slightly oversize and sanding it to fit snug (glue a piece of fine sandpaper to a block, clamp to your bench and stroke the dutchman along it), may take a couple of tries, leave long + tall and trim after gluing. The radius at the comb will help disguise the dutchman, a square joint across the grain will stand out like h*ll. You can fit the sides of the dutchman tapering slightly wider toward the surface, and lightly tap it in, to keep the glue line as thin as possible. Be sure to use a glue that doesn't leave a dark line at the joint.
If the forend is from the same piece of wood, you might be able to steal a piece from underneath the barrel for the dutchman, just fill with another dutchman or epoxy as it won't show.

Thank you for your input. The rifle is a Browning High Wall in 45/70 and because of the damage, I got it for a good price. I like the idea of silver or ivory. If I am real careful, I may not have to try and match the high gloss of the original finish.

I would find the correct sight and install it.


It is probably a long range peep.





Cal30

If you don't mind spending a little money on it, there is a stockmaker I know that can repair such problems so that they DO NOT show. dba the Stock Doctor.