The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Guns, Politics, Gunsmithing & Reloading Gunsmithing recommended tools for begining stockmakerGo | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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I have started to modify as well as begin to make some stocks for my rifles. Can't say how far I will be able to take it or what sort of results I am going to get however, I am loving the process. Could those of you with some experience give me your recommendations as far as begining stock maker tools? I have a few essentials but I know the process would be better and move quicker if I were using the right equipment. Inletting is a particular challenge in that I know I am using the wrong tools for the job....  Best, Dave | ||
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The following is what I consider a minimum. Set of 2 alignment pins to screw into action to align receiver with bottom metal as you start to inlet the action. Set of inletters thumb screws to use instead of action screws while working on the inletting. These make it much easier to get the stock on and off the action the hundreds of times you need to do it, without wearing out the action and screws. 1/4 inch wide flat chisel. 1/2 inch flat chisel. 1/2 inch round gouge chisel. 1/8" to 1/4" round gouge chisel. 2 inch wide coarse file. 4 in one multipurpose rasp. 1/4 inch tri corner file. Wood blocks for sanding, 3 or 4 diameters of wood dowells for sanding, and grits of sandpaper from 80 to 600. Inletting blacking or reasonable substitute. Extras that are nice to have are: Any other shape of chisel that might work better in select areas. Offset handle chisels, which reach in better. Set of riffler files. Multiple rasps and files, different shapes and cuts. Gunline disk type barrel channel scrapers. Flat sheet steel scrapers in various shapes. Hook type scrapers in very small sizes and both flat and rounded shapes. Dave | |||
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I don't know shit about making stocks, but I do know that if I wanted to start making them the first tool I would want would be a bridgeport milling machine. | |||
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learn what in and out cannel gouges are... these are critical to good inletting ... i tried to make stocks from blanks, by cutting away evrything that wasn't a stock .. so i built a pantograph #dumptrump opinions vary band of bubbas and STC hunting Club Information on Ammoguide about the416AR, 458AR, 470AR, 500AR What is an AR round? Case Drawings 416-458-470AR and 500AR. 476AR, http://www.weaponsmith.com | |||
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A local gunmaker here did a stock making class for a few of us who like to do our own work. Here is the list he gave. # 49 cabinet rasp both fisher scrapers a good set of carving chisels ( I bought a 6 piece set from wood craft made by pfeil) barrel bedding tool stockmakers handscrews inletting guides crews inletting black sanding block small machinist square Buy good quality tools. We had a guy who bought some off brand chisels, all he did was sharpen most of the class. | |||
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If you can find a copy of "Professional Stockmaking" by David Westbrook, he has a very good list of tools he uses. I'm not saying you need them all, but it will give you a good idea as to what you might need. Midway carries the book. John Farner If you haven't, please join the NRA! | |||
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I second that statement. This book shortens the learning curve incredibly if you pay attention to detail and take everything David says to heart. -Mike | |||
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I'll also recommend the book, unfortunately it is no longer published. Keep an eye out, they come up for sale once in a while but at a price above the original by quite a bit. High quality tools are always a good idea, I use several tools in several different types of woodworking and it's nice to know they are ready to go when I pick them up. ______________________ Ken A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in. --- Greek Proverb | |||
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Read the post on the top of the forum of Stockmaker Show and Tell. I use the basic tools needed to make a stock. There is pictures of some of my tools. Different strokes for every stockmaker, but the end results are about the same when finished. I CANNOT consider myself as one of the top stockmakers on this forum, but over the years I had a following of customers which enjoyed hunting with rifles I made. There is room for improvement by all of us. | |||
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Great responses.....Very helpful. I will definitely be picking up the tools that have been mentioned. Can you reommend any particular brands of tools to purchase or avoid. I personally prefer to buy high quality items that will last and hopefully are made here in the states. Les, Your thread is a huge help! I have been studying it as well as the one on the Silver lining scholarship rifle........ Thanks for the help! Best, Dave | |||
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Buy the best tools you can afford. Wood workers chisels are not cheep, and the cheep ones go dull to quick. Barrel channel rasp, inletting scrapers. Milling machine would be nice but of little use unless you know how to use it and/or are willing to invest the time to learn. The biggest thing is patience. don't get in a hurry. Wood is easy to foul up and near impossible to replace if too much is removed. So on any inletting job take your sweet time and if it takes a month of sundays to get it done don't worry as it will be better then hammering it out in one day and having huge gaps everywhere. www.KLStottlemyer.com Deport the Homeless and Give the Illegals citizenship. AT LEAST THE ILLEGALS WILL WORK | |||
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And a spokeshave, a must have for me anyway. Jim Kobe 10841 Oxborough Ave So Bloomington MN 55437 952.884.6031 Professional member American Cusom Gunmakers Guild | |||
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Over time you'll find all sorts of odd things that in addition to the standard lists will be helpful. I use a large file used for trimming horse hoofs quite a bit as an example. ______________________ Always remember you're unique, just like everyone else. | |||
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Something to secure the blank in is very usefull. A large vise and rubber pads works well. Chisels, rasps and one little trick I find useful is a rectangular eraser to use as a small sanding block. Its great when you begin to get close to where you want to be. Inletting black is almost a must. And a good barrel bedding tool is as well. But the more I work with full blanks, the more I like semi inletted blanks.. In fact I would highly reccomend starting with a semi-inlet before tackeling a full blank. | |||
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All these experts are leaving out the most important tools.  Those tools are mental. In no particular order. First is patience and more patience. Second is the willingness to fix it when you screw it up. Third is to develop the ability to keep on keeping on. Howard Moses Lake, Washington USA hwhomes@outlook.com | |||
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beat me to it  | |||
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Rarely do I ever agree with Howard and it pains me this time to agree with him, trust me! But I have found myself getting better even when I haven't done work in awhile. What changed? I got older and more patient. In addition I did more reading, getting ideas and building gameplans for whatever I was about to tackle. Going into this without a plan with leave you with less than good results. -Mike | |||
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It is good also that you are learning respect for your Elders.  Howard Moses Lake, Washington USA hwhomes@outlook.com | |||
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Howard Moses Lake, Washington USA hwhomes@outlook.com | |||
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The only stockmaking tool I need is a check book. I would not be able to afford all the sutures if I took up stock making Mike Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.  What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
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The one thing you don't want is a calendar. LOL  Howard Moses Lake, Washington USA hwhomes@outlook.com | |||
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