Making a laminate stock?

[Kroberts]

I plan to make a new laminated stock for my rifle over Christmas break here in a few weeks. The reason I want to make it, I like to build things and have a decent bit of wood working experience so would like to try it. That and I'm cheap, though in the end I will probably put as much into it as buying one. It is going to go on a Stevens 200 that is currently chambered in factory 243win but plan to order a 28-30" shilen barrel in 243ai with a 1-7or8 twist around the first of the year. The gun currently has a thumbhole stock on it that a friend and I made a couple years ago. It is walnut wedged between maple, and is a 3 piece laminate. It shoots great as is, but the barrel has a definite preference for light bullets <0.5moa with 58s, I am getting too much poi shift with weather, and I have found that the design is not that great for hunting for me. So I'm going to build a new one. So I'm looking for opinions. My idea right now is to use 1/8" laminates of walnut and in the middle I'm thinking of alternating strips of fiberglass cloth with the walnut where the action will rest. I'm thinking that a clear epoxy of some sort would be best for glue. It will be pillar and glass bedded. I think that this will cut down on poi shift if not eliminate it, hopefully. Right now I'm wanting it to look like a traditional hunting rifle but with subtle changes to make it better for long distance shooting. To get the look I want I'm going to go blued barrel and blued steel butt plate. With the chambering and weight the gun will be I don't see a point in needing a rubber pad.

I'm looking for opinions and suggestions on this build. Especially since I have only built that one stock before.

Thanks for all advice
Kyle

 

[Sully2]

Save your $$ and effort and just buy a stock

 

[264co]

nah go for it building stocks is fun and rewarding. I am surprised that the weather changes your poi. Did you pillar bed or glass? 6mmbr has a great article on how to do this. I have done a few laminates but never included fiberglass. I would be worried about it bonding. I know that a lot of epoxies are temperature sensitive and need good clamping.

good luck,

Pat

 

[Joel Russo]

I would be worried about it bonding. I know that a lot of epoxies are temperature sensitive and need good clamping.

good luck,

Pat

What?

You should not be experiencing any poi shift if the material used was at the acceptable moisture content, they were glued together properly, it was properly bedded, and it was properly sealed.

You must meet all of the above criteria....not just some.

Not sure why you would need the fiberglass cloth or the clear expoy for bedding. Perhaps your reading too much information on the intrurdnet.....

Use conventional bedding epoxy, and follow the criteria stated above, and you will have a serviceable stock that will enhance the accuracy performance of your barreled action...assuming that was properly assembled with quality components.

 

[yobuck]

ive known guys who built their own from scratch. joel would know some of the ones
im referring to. i believe they used regular glue and not epoxy in the glue up.
most of these were wide benchrest type stocks and they used laminates wider than
i find appealing. also consider the cost of having it duplicated to the desired shape.
one nice thing about a factory stock is knowing what it will look like when finished.

ive also known guys who used a factory stock like a 700 rem and cut it off in
front of the recoil lug. then fabricated a new and usualy wider front end.
then glue/dowell the new to the original back part. no inletting involved at all.
send the original front part thru a saw a few times and add laminates to that if you like. you can also add a laminate along the bottom overlapping both for added stregnth. how much would it cost if you totaly screwed it up?