HW/Weihrauch How hard is it to make your own stock?

[Croxton63]

Someone was asking about CS stocks, and I nearly asked this question there. Then I remembered how irritating it can be when things go off on a tangent.
I’m a leftie and have a HW50 which I am using for paper targets as I try to develop my skills for next year’s local field target club. It seems to me that I’d benefit from either an adjustable cheek piece, butt piece, and a hamster, OR a custom fitted stock.
I’ve seen a YouTube video on someone making a stock - so now I know everything just kidding.
It made me wonder how difficult it would be to make a stock along the lines of my HW50 stock, but with the design tweaked for FT? I don’t want to take a saw to my stock because it would reduce its resale value if ever I decide to sell it.
One initial question I have is about inletting. I read that the action tube is 29.4 or 29.6 mm in diameter. I assume that a 30 mm round router would be a good fit to house it - does that make sense?
If anyone would care to answer any part of this question I’d appreciate it. Also appreciated would be photos/tips of stocks you’ve made for airguns. Thanks.

 

[Bear-of-Grayling]

Really depends on how fussy one is. I’ve been doing woodworking for over fifty years. There is a LOT more going on than it appears. The inletting is really a job for the proper machinery. Then shaping is another thing altogether. The project can go south in a moment. One wrong cut and the stock is firewood. Also, price a nice piece of gunstock. I bought this CS 95/98 stock for around $500 to my door. I sold the factory stock (98) for half of this. I couldn’t find a Walnut blank of this caliber for the difference. The buttpad alone is $50. Then checkering or stippling is another expense. I would recommend buying one unless you have plenty of time and machinery to do it.

 

[Croxton63]

Really depends on how fussy one is. I’ve been doing woodworking for over fifty years. There is a LOT more going on than it appears. The inletting is really a job for the proper machinery. Then shaping is another thing altogether. The project can go south in a moment. One wrong cut and the stock is firewood. Also, price a nice piece of gunstock. I bought this CS 95/98 stock for around $500 to my door. I sold the factory stock (98) for half of this. I couldn’t find a Walnut blank of this caliber for the difference. The buttpad alone is $50. Then checkering or stippling is another expense. I would recommend buying one unless you have plenty of time and machinery to do it.View attachment 508359

Thanks for your thoughts. That’s a pretty stock.

 

[c_m_shooter]

I haven't tackled making one. I have modified the inletting of a couple to fit other rifles. Was always more difficult than anticipated. just finding a good axis to base your measurments off of can be a challenge. Second challenge is cutting on it without nicking the existing finish. I decided that the next time I get the dumb idea, I will start with a blank. At least there are square sides to work from...

 

[dan_house]

Crox-

Ive made a few stocks. If you have patience, some woodworking skills/experience, you can do it. IMO though, the hardest two parts of stock making are a) inletting and b) a good design. "good design" is defined as having the ergonomics needed for the task you are building for. Fortuanely theres a lot of great dsigns out there you can steal from be influenced by.

Id suggest finding a "clear" 2x6 and work out the inletting, and maybe even some of the design elements your thinking of. A dry run so to speak. If ya kill it, yer not out a boatload of money for a nice blank, and you'll still have learned a lot.

 

[Croxton63]

Thanks for the advice!

 

[boscoebrea]

I tried to make one out of Maple.I did not have the talent. It takes time ,patience and talent,plus a nice piece of wood will be over 0ne-hundred $$$.
The great SC stock is under $400=$500 for your lefty ,which I bought. That is more than your springer costs.So then make sure the gun you want the stock for is the one you will keep for almost forever,.
Some people modify the stock, stock.There are pictures of them ,they cut the stock so it has a adjustable cheek piece,the adjustable butt is very easy
There are some people that have posted the stocks they have made,some are works of art,cheek them out.

 

[Croxton63]

Thanks for your take on this. I’m appreciative of the different points of view. I live in the Midwest and it seems like there’s a lot of wood available that’s grown locally - Black Walnut, Cherry, and Maple. If I do start hacking at it I hope to be able to get a workable piece for $40-50. I understand your point about the cost of the stock versus the value of the gun you put it on. Thanks.

 

[Sawney Bean]

I found inletting to be by far the hardest part, but I didn't even attempt anything like checkering.

 

[Croxton63]

Did you have access to a router, or did you try a different method?

 

[Sawney Bean]

Did you have access to a router, or did you try a different method?

I used a mill, but even with that, it's harder than you might think. Your typical Chinese mini mill doesn't have the range to do something like cut the groove where your reservoir or cylinder lies in one pass, so you do one pass, reposition the stock as best you can and pray that you got your alignment nearly perfect.

I'm completely self taught with machine tools and my usual method is to make a tiny cut, see how far off I am and then repeat the process until done.

 

[Sawney Bean]

This is one I made out of oak scraps I had lying around. I think it may have been my first. At the time I was flat broke and couldn’t afford a furniture kit for a Saiga I was converting, so I made my own. The forearm is actually 3 pieces of 1” oak glued together and the buttstock is 2 pieces. If you look closely you can see where the grain doesn’t line up on the buttstock, but on the forearm it’s pretty much invisible.

 

[Sawney Bean]

This is another that I made on the cheap. This one is made of poplar planks that I glued together. The rifle is an HPA powered QB. I put a crazy high cheek piece on this one. I was really just experimenting and seeing how wild I could get with a QB. I drilled out and threaded the inlet valve on the air chamber and ran a 90 degree elbow straight off of it and down to the hose.

 

[Croxton63]

You’ve got some skills man! Nice work.

 

[Sawney Bean]

My work’s actually pretty amateurish compared to most of what you’ll see here, but if you’re just starting out it might give you some ideas of how you can practice on the cheap.

For those two guns I used some homemade clamps to glue the wood together and all I used to make the clamps with were 2x4’s with some pieces of all thread bolting them together. I’d coat the mating surfaces with wood glue, slip about 6 clamps over them, tighten up the bolts and 48 hours later I had some dirt cheap stock blanks to work with.

 

[Keene]

I have a bunch of 1 1/4 inch walnut countertop sitting in my shed. Iv'e thought a lot of making a stock, but the thought of doing the inletting makes me want to pee my pants. And......I'm a measure 4 times and cut 5 carpenter

 

[Croxton63]

I have a bunch of 1 1/4 inch walnut countertop sitting in my shed. Iv'e thought a lot of making a stock, but the thought of doing the inletting makes me want to pee my pants. And......I'm a measure 4 times and cut 5 carpente

 

[Croxton63]

Make it a winter project! After reading the responses and ideas I’m going to put it on my to do list. When I get to it I think I’ll start the inletting part first because if I screw it up badly only the time invested in that and the wood will be wasted.

 

[BABz58]

Thanks for your take on this. I’m appreciative of the different points of view. I live in the Midwest and it seems like there’s a lot of wood available that’s grown locally - Black Walnut, Cherry, and Maple. If I do start hacking at it I hope to be able to get a workable piece for $40-50. I understand your point about the cost of the stock versus the value of the gun you put it on. Thanks.

I’m in the Midwest as well. Also wanting to build my own stock.

The pine 2x6 is a great idea. One I think I’ll pursue.

 

[Sawney Bean]

I'd encourage any of you to give it a try, but plan on it being a learning experience and start with a cheap piece of wood so that when, not if, you screw up you won't feel like you wasted a $100+ stock blank.