Thinking of starting another project. I have been considering going with maple for a stock this time. Which one of these blanks would you pick or not pick and why?

#10 because it's the darkest, and the closest to
walnut in color, and has no knots in the forearm like #12.

I'm assuming 250 is the price. Move up a notch and loose the knots!

Try here:

http://www.kustomwood.com/maple/gunstock_blanks.htm

#10 or #15, most uniform figure throughout and on both sides.

#11, just because it looks the most like Bridgete's hair in my avatar.

maple isn't my first choice, so take this for what it's worth

my FIRST choice of these would be 11, because it looks to have good grain pattern and is not sided, but the knots in the forarm will probably stick

10 looks to be two differenet colors.. but that might be the light

12 is junk for a one piece... you aren't going to get around that forend knot, or at least it's affect... which will be to warp when the weather changes


15 MIGHT work, pending examination of the bark inclusions.. so this is my second choice.

13, same thing, though today I like 15 a feather (heh) better

so, assuming they are all of equal merit, my choices are
11
15
13
10

12 is a two-piece stock waiting for a saw, imho

jeffe

I am certain 11 wouldn't be one, I don't like the grain layout through the grip, and 12 isn't any better.

I think Fla3006 has this right. I think # 15 would be my choice. Best color on both sides, and I see a knot or something on the top pic on #10 look at the butt section on the bottom.

# 12 and 13 have issues, I see bark on 13 and a nasty knot in the lower pic on 12 on the forearm.

#15 is the beet blank in my opinion.

I like Bridgette in tiggertate's picture...

Jefffe I concur on your statement on maple in general, not my favorite choice of wood.

How much are these blanks anyway?

15 is my choice as well.

Jbabcock, I always wonder when I see your picture, is the other antler behind your back from the way you are holding that nice deer, or did it only have one side? I hope you stuck those on the wall.

Red

These blanks run $250 each. I emailed the guy to send more pics of his next grade of wood. I'll post those when I get them. #10 and #15 were the two I picked as well.

I would not choose any of them. Why? Because I do not feel the cold steel of a gun barrel pressed against my temple.

Is that reference to taste or the joy (not!) of working highly figured hard maple?

quote:

Originally posted by JBabcock:
I like Bridgette in tiggertate's picture...

Can you tell me more about the Deer in your picture? Looks like it crossed with an Elk or Axis.

quote:

Originally posted by Customstox:
I would not choose any of them. Why? Because I do not feel the cold steel of a gun barrel pressed against my temple.

jeffe

15...uniform figure throughout

maple is not my thing...try these people

http://www.cookwoods.com/

let me know what you think

try african bubinga wood

give them a call they have always been nice and profesional...nosler bought a bunch of bubinga for some of his custom guns. pick the wood than thay will find it for you

quote:

Originally posted by boom stick:
try african bubinga wood
]

ah, NO...
bubinga smells like buring urine when you turn it

jeffe

I like 15

I like the look of the wood named Moabi. I'll give them a call sometime on the characteristics of that particular wood.

That is a blacktail doe...

I found the Elk shed while I was deer hunting. I had a doe tag, and on the last day of the season I shot her. I was fooling around and stuck the antler on top of her head, and there you have it! The rest of the story.

None of the above. You want a straight grain through the action area, otherwise you will have bedding(accuracy) problems from now on. I'm no expert in stockmaking, just reflecting on one in my safe. It took an aluminum bedding block to cure the movement, it looked beautiful but each time I shot it, I had to fool with the bedding to get it to group. Take it for what it's worth, i'd pick a blank with outstanding figure in the butt stock and straight in the action area.
Stepchild

quote:

Originally posted by jeffeosso:

quote:

Originally posted by boom stick:
try african bubinga wood
]

ah, NO...
bubinga smells like buring urine when you turn it

jeffe

I never knew urine could burn...

I like #15

10 or 15. They have the quilted pattern that makes amazing stock and other projects.





GO QUILTED !!!!

quote:

Originally posted by gixxer:
ah, NO...
bubinga smells like burning urine when you turn it

jeffe

quote:

I never knew urine could burn...

I like #15

never pi$$ed on the fire and called the dogs, then, huh? I don't knwo what a dogturd tastes like.. but i can imagine!!

LOL
jeffe

i peed on a campfire of coals...you will not soon forget that smell...we got out of there quick...if you use a dual breathing filtration mask that should do it. not too many bubinga stocks out there...i want a desert ironwood stock on my dream rifle...no bedding-accuracy issues with ironwood

this wood looks nice and it is from africa for those safari rifles...a rifle with a soul in africa

it is called Amazique...

snakewood...now thats a looker

There's more to selecting a stock blank then choosing a piece of wood that looks pretty.

paul...of course you are right but you first need to decide on the wood you like...to some XXXXenglish walnut is boring and to some it gives them a _____harelson...it is refreshing to see uncommon or exotic woods out there on rifles...it is like driving a new ferrari or a classic muscle car... new ferraris are nice but a muscle car no matter the make or shape it is in makes a statement of style and yes tradition is a style too but have you ever heard of a snakewood stock? even on a boring caliber it would be cool. wouldnt you like an exotic wood stock?

If you could find a peice of snakewood that was wide enough for a gunstock it would be many hundreds (~$600+) dollars. Even then the grain structure would be questioneable for a stock. This wood is considered the most valuable there is.

I'll pick a structural sound piece of wood with proper grain flow any day, and often the best blanks from a structural point are relatively plain looking. I like turkish walnut due to it's structural properties more than it's physical appearance, though I have seen some beautiful pieces.

$600 isn't high for a stock blank at all, almost entry level pricing. Nice pieces of walnut are in the $2-3k range.

when people spend thousands on a gun this 600 would be nominal...not for everyone i admit...i'll take desert ironwood please

I have bought and sold snakewood, and ironwood, but I have never seen a piece of either that was large enough to make a stock out of. My larges snakewood was a round trunk that was halved up the middle but it was only six inches at the widest and had a curve to the length ending at 4 inches.My ironwood was much smaller.

Everyone, be careful with these orther pieces. A lot of them are like lead in weight, contian a lot of oils and look amazing, but you are not going to like them in the long run.

I personally love manzanita, but wow would it suck as a rifle stock.

i have seen riflestock blanks (2) they were around $1000

I am having a hell of a time just finding a dense and figured piece of black cherry!

OKH...That is one sweet prewar 70 H&H!!!! Grant

Burning urine? Bought a big piece of Pau Amarelo one time for a project. Nobody told me it smelled like "bundas"..... I gave it to my brother and he left it outside. I didn't tell him it smelled....hiho

Careful with African and South American woods.

Many of them are really oily and greasy. sort of like an old army stock.
Makes for a pretty stock, but they are really soft and easily dented.

Maple on the other hand is quite the opposite. If someone brought me a maple blank or semi-inlet, I would probably refuse the job. It has got to be about the worst wood to work with by hand.

Here is a question though, what is the difference between maple and sugar maple?

-Spencer