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Started my wife's new '73 stock.


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I found this nice, very aged block of figured Claro Walnut in my shop and decided it needed a rifle.   I'm putting it on my wife's '73.  I would have put it on my own gun, but I'm way too hard on cowboy guns for a piece of wood this nice.  1653968827703882373780653020799.thumb.jpg.174caf6bc5a37bfa8924d187b1599bad.jpg

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14 minutes ago, Doc Shapiro said:

That's some pretty grain.  Please share it as you go.  Would love to see "in process" pics.

 

Yes beautiful grain there.....it would be great to follow along the transformation from that to finished stock and forend. 

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I'll try to pictorially go step by step-- somehow without showing my messy shop in the background -- maybe I should just do some clean up. 

My friends tell me I need to rope up just to walk through the door.

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Beautiful wood, should be stunning when finished.

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3 hours ago, Cheyenne Ranger, 48747L said:

signing up to watch  the project

It wont be a fast project.  The forearm in particular is a difficult inletting job, with its tapered boring on an eccentric alignment.  Some tooling is probably going to have to be made.  I'll try to show as many sequential steps as possible.  I'm making precise drawings to start with.  The forearm requires  over 40 different precise measurements.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I've made good progress on the re-stock project and recorded the steps pictorially.  I'm trying to put the whole story together with pics into a Word file, if I can figure out a way to post it here.  Stay tuned.  

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Here's a preview of the product prior to final sanding and polishing.  I need to sand out that orange peel , caused by applying the last coat of finish too thickly.  The final stock will not have the cheap shine.  Rubbing out with powdered rottenstone will give it an eggshell finish. 

16549215460114469305490097816679.jpg

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17 minutes ago, Buckshot Bear said:

Beautifully figured timber. 

Here's the Ca Claro Walnut tree that I milled it from.  The tree died on a farm out west of Fresno Ca.  They called a friend of mine to help them remove it before it fell on a building.  He called to get my help with the logging part.  He makes furniture, so took most of the lumber after I milled it into slabs.  Just a small section of the big log had the silk pattern, and I was able to keep most of  that wood.   20200201_094128.thumb.jpg.84819e0790326e1b0205d4a21bbd087b.jpg

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10 hours ago, watab kid said:

that should be a beautiful rifle when completed and the egg shell will look far better than that gloss 

I wanted to use the two-part urethane automotive clear coat because it is so impervious to oils and gun solvents.  But the shine is definitely its downside.   Fortunately there are a number of fine abrasives that can be used as rubbing compounds to  neutralize the cheap looking shine and make it look more like a rifle and less like a waxed  automobile.  

 

Added:

But the gloss step performs a useful function in hilighting surface defects for final sanding. 

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Just beautiful already!

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For those who have interest, here is the first of several requested posts, describing the process and tools I used in converting the subject Claro Walnut blank into a rifle stock.  I will apologize up-front for the level of detail.  Hopefully it will be useful to some who want to try a first rifle stock replacement project.   If something here is less than clear, just ask.

 

1.  Boring the Fore-end Grip Magazine Tube Hole:

I began the project working on the most difficult part; the fore-end grip.  I wanted to exactly copy the original fore-end, sans the checkering.  The Rifle is a Beretta/Uberti Renegade .357.  Seeing the challenges in doing this work with modern tools and machinery, I can only appreciate the innovation and skills of men and women who did these operations in the mid 1800s using overhead leather belt driven machines and hand tools.   They were serious craftsmen.

 

The fore-end grip of this rifle has a magazine tube boring that is not parallel to the top or bottom edges of the grip body. In addition, one end of the hole, nearest the receiver, is bored 3/4" while the opposite end nearest the muzzle is 5/8", which is the actual magazine tube diameter.  I presume the wider hole at the receiver end is to allow a bit of wiggle-room, so as not to bind against the magazine as the fore-grip is inserted/fitted into the receiver front recess.  

 

As in all gun inletting, it is important to do the internal milling and material removal operations before rounding and shaping the exterior surfaces of the workpieces.  Parallel, square sides help a great deal in precise measuring and in solid work-holding for the milling operations.  

 

Making the oblique magazine boring was one of those machining operations that take an hour to plan, 1-1/2 hour to set up, and 2 minutes to perform.  There are a number of ways to approach it.  Boring a center-located hole on the lathe obviously requires the workpiece to be held by only one end in the lathe chuck, rather than held between lathe centers.   So the end of the work-piece needs to be formed in a way that can be dependably held in a lathe chuck.  In this case, that means the workpiece needs to be cut longer than the finish grip, to enable a cylindrical work-holding protrusion or plug to be turned on one end. 

 

Unfortunately, in my hurry to show my wife what her stock would look like, I cut the forearm to finish length prematurely.  Had I instead cut the forearm blank an inch longer than the finished forearm, I could have simply marked the magazine hole center positions at each end*, then using the wood lathe between centers, turned a roughly 1" long x 1-1/2” to 2” diameter cylindrical chucking plug at the muzzle end, concentric to the located magazine hole center axis.  The cylindrical plug could then easily be chucked/centered in a wood or machine lathe to perform the boring operations.  Once all of the boring is completed, the chucking plug is simply sawn away.  ( * I note that the two ends of the magazine boring are are NOT in the center of the work-piece ends AND the two ends are also in different positions with respect to the top and bottom edges of the grip.  Both hole-center-points must be located by precise measurement.)  

 

In my case, having already cut the workpiece too short, I instead had to make a separate glue-on chucking plug to perform the boring operations.  I located the center-points at both ends of the boring axis and pilot drilled them 1/8" to a depth of about an inch.  At the muzzle end of the grip, I inserted a 1/8' drill bit into the pilot hole as a guide-pin.  Then, separately on the wood lathe, I turned a 1-1/2" diameter x 1" long cylinder of hardwood through which I center-bored a 1/8" hole.  The cylinder would become a chucking plug after being C.A. glued to the muzzle end of the workpiece, centered on the above guide-pin.   I glued and tightly clamped the chucking plug to the fore-end grip, then pulled out the guide-pin before the glue set. 

 

I then aligned the boring axis by loosely chucking the chucking plug in the machine lathe's 3-jaw chuck and centering the opposite (receiver end) pilot hole on the lathe tailstock.  With the intended boring alignment then secured in the lathe axis, I tightened the 3-jaw chuck**, replaced the tailstock live-center with a drill chuck, and and bored the 5/8" diameter hole all the way through the workpiece and into the chucking plug using a brad-point bit.  (photo).  I then used the 5/8" boring to pilot the larger 3/4" hole, also drilled from the tailstock (receiver) end, to a measured depth of 6-3/4".   The photo shows the fore-end workpiece chucked via the glued-on chucking plug and being bored on the machine lathe. 

 

(**I am sure the machinist readers are all laughing now.  Holding a wooden plug in a 3-jaw chuck becomes less than a precise operation, as the wood gets compressed.  But I believe the 3/4 inch oversize hole at the receiver end has enough "wiggle room" to compensate for any minor compression generated alignment error.) 

 

That was surely a lot of operations just to bore one hole.  A little planning and patience could have saved much of the time and trouble.  The serious lesson is not to get too anxious to see the end product and get ahead of your work planning. 

 

In the next post, I will cover the milling of the tapered octagonal barrel groove, which adjoins and opens up the top of the above magazine tube boring. 

 

 1026377780_foreendinlathe.jpg.804ea7b8fa1e6c4d2d48c5c3becac994.jpg

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18 hours ago, Dusty Devil Dale said:

For those who have interest, here is the first of several requested posts, describing the process and tools I used in converting the subject Claro Walnut blank into a rifle stock.  I will apologize up-front for the level of detail.  Hopefully it will be useful to some who want to try a first rifle stock replacement project.   If something here is less than clear, just ask.

 

1.  Boring the Fore-end Grip Magazine Tube Hole:

I began the project working on the most difficult part; the fore-end grip.  I wanted to exactly copy the original fore-end, sans the checkering.  The Rifle is a Beretta/Uberti Renegade .357.  Seeing the challenges in doing this work with modern tools and machinery, I can only appreciate the innovation and skills of men and women who did these operations in the mid 1800s using overhead leather belt driven machines and hand tools.   They were serious craftsmen.

 

The fore-end grip of this rifle has a magazine tube boring that is not parallel to the top or bottom edges of the grip body. In addition, one end of the hole, nearest the receiver, is bored 3/4" while the opposite end nearest the muzzle is 5/8", which is the actual magazine tube diameter.  I presume the wider hole at the receiver end is to allow a bit of wiggle-room, so as not to bind against the magazine as the fore-grip is inserted/fitted into the receiver front recess.  

 

As in all gun inletting, it is important to do the internal milling and material removal operations before rounding and shaping the exterior surfaces of the workpieces.  Parallel, square sides help a great deal in precise measuring and in solid work-holding for the milling operations.  

 

Making the oblique magazine boring was one of those machining operations that take an hour to plan, 1-1/2 hour to set up, and 2 minutes to perform.  There are a number of ways to approach it.  Boring a center-located hole on the lathe obviously requires the workpiece to be held by only one end in the lathe chuck, rather than held between lathe centers.   So the end of the work-piece needs to be formed in a way that can be dependably held in a lathe chuck.  In this case, that means the workpiece needs to be cut longer than the finish grip, to enable a cylindrical work-holding protrusion or plug to be turned on one end. 

 

Unfortunately, in my hurry to show my wife what her stock would look like, I cut the forearm to finish length prematurely.  Had I instead cut the forearm blank an inch longer than the finished forearm, I could have simply marked the magazine hole center positions at each end*, then using the wood lathe between centers, turned a roughly 1" long x 1-1/2” to 2” diameter cylindrical chucking plug at the muzzle end, concentric to the located magazine hole center axis.  The cylindrical plug could then easily be chucked/centered in a wood or machine lathe to perform the boring operations.  Once all of the boring is completed, the chucking plug is simply sawn away.  ( * I note that the two ends of the magazine boring are are NOT in the center of the work-piece ends AND the two ends are also in different positions with respect to the top and bottom edges of the grip.  Both hole-center-points must be located by precise measurement.)  

 

In my case, having already cut the workpiece too short, I instead had to make a separate glue-on chucking plug to perform the boring operations.  I located the center-points at both ends of the boring axis and pilot drilled them 1/8" to a depth of about an inch.  At the muzzle end of the grip, I inserted a 1/8' drill bit into the pilot hole as a guide-pin.  Then, separately on the wood lathe, I turned a 1-1/2" diameter x 1" long cylinder of hardwood through which I center-bored a 1/8" hole.  The cylinder would become a chucking plug after being C.A. glued to the muzzle end of the workpiece, centered on the above guide-pin.   I glued and tightly clamped the chucking plug to the fore-end grip, then pulled out the guide-pin before the glue set. 

 

I then aligned the boring axis by loosely chucking the chucking plug in the machine lathe's 3-jaw chuck and centering the opposite (receiver end) pilot hole on the lathe tailstock.  With the intended boring alignment then secured in the lathe axis, I tightened the 3-jaw chuck**, replaced the tailstock live-center with a drill chuck, and and bored the 5/8" diameter hole all the way through the workpiece and into the chucking plug using a brad-point bit.  (photo).  I then used the 5/8" boring to pilot the larger 3/4" hole, also drilled from the tailstock (receiver) end, to a measured depth of 6-3/4".   The photo shows the fore-end workpiece chucked via the glued-on chucking plug and being bored on the machine lathe. 

 

(**I am sure the machinist readers are all laughing now.  Holding a wooden plug in a 3-jaw chuck becomes less than a precise operation, as the wood gets compressed.  But I believe the 3/4 inch oversize hole at the receiver end has enough "wiggle room" to compensate for any minor compression generated alignment error.) 

 

That was surely a lot of operations just to bore one hole.  A little planning and patience could have saved much of the time and trouble.  The serious lesson is not to get too anxious to see the end product and get ahead of your work planning. 

 

In the next post, I will cover the milling of the tapered octagonal barrel groove, which adjoins and opens up the top of the above magazine tube boring. 

 

 1026377780_foreendinlathe.jpg.804ea7b8fa1e6c4d2d48c5c3becac994.jpg

Ah  for a Beretta Renegade that even makes it better :D ..great job

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20 hours ago, Dusty Devil Dale said:

... take an hour to plan, 1-1/2 hour to set up, and 2 minutes to perform. 

Then add the time to write it all up and present it!

 

Seriously, thanks!

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2.  Cutting the Fore-end Barrel Channel;

 

In closely examining the original fore-end grip, the barrel inlet groove is parallel with the initial 5/8" magazine tube boring alignment.  Precise measuring of that groove is challenged both by the oversize receiver end of the magazine tube boring and by the fact that the barrel inlet groove itself is tapered to closely meet the barrel contours.  (I am not providing measurements here, because they will vary with gun manufacturer and date and also by gun caliber.)    

 

The first task is a pilot channel running lengthwise along the top and center of the grip work-piece (see first photo). It needs to be slightly narrower than the width of the slot in the top of the original magazine boring, measured at the small (muzzle) end.  On the subject rifle it was 3/8".  Center the cutting bit on a line scribed along the top center line of the grip (The grip workpiece needs to be very slightly wider than the finished width of the grip, to leave enough for final shaping and sanding of both sides).    Begin shallowly at first pass and make several passes, gradually deepening the cutting tool setting to reach full depth, which will break through into the top of the magazine boring.  

 

Once that initial pilot channel is milled, it is time to set up the mill to cut the tapered  barrel inletting. To accomplish the taper in the bottom of the barrel groove, the workpiece must be held in the machining vise at the appropriate angle to enable the level pass of the milling cutter to taper the depth of cut as needed along the length of the work-piece.  The cut will be deeper at the muzzle end. Careful measurements will be needed of the original fore-end to determine the taper dimensions.  

 

To achieve a tight match-up with the barrel side tapers, the vise will need to be rotated a fraction of a degree clockwise to cut one side, then rotated back counter-clockwise at an identical angle to cut the other side.  The taper angle is likely to vary between different guns, so it must be measured or calculated.

 

Fortunately, the octagonal barrel cross section has equal 45-degree angles, which makes it possible to use off-the-shelf 45-degree cutting tools to cut the final contours (see photo).  I used a 45-degree router chamfer cutter, as shown.

 

3.  Fitting the Magazine Tube and Barrel in the Fore-end

 

Once the barrel groove has been machined, it will usually be necessary to "clean up" any roughness of the inside contours and possibly cut additional relief in some places.  Otherwise, the next step of fitting the grip to the barrel and magazine will fail.  Use machinist’s ink on the barrel and magazine tube to locate any high spots that require reduction.  A curved gouge of appropriate size, skew carving tool, files and sanding blocks/sticks will make the clean-up easier.  Work very carefully along the top edges of the grip at the barrel meet-point.  Gaps in the barrel-to-wood inletting will be very obvious after finishing.

Try to insert the magazine tube into its bored hole.  It should go in very easily.   It is OK if the fit is loose.  Both ends will be held and concealed by the receiver and the end cap.  

 

Next test fit the barrel into its groove.  I like to mill the barrel groove just a tiny bit narrow, to enable hand fitting of the steel-to-wood interface, using progressively finer sanding blocks.  Again, work carefully.

 

When the assembled barrel and magazine both fit firmly (without forcing) into the grip, it is time to mark and cut the rebates into both ends of the grip.  These must tightly articulate with the recesses in the receiver and end cap.  The fit of those rebates will show in the finished grip, so cut them carefully by hand using sharp chisels and safe-edge files.  Test fit them frequently and diligently.  After the rebates are cut it is likely that a bit more grip-to-barrel fitting will be needed, as now the grip will be able to slide another ± 5/32" up the barrel taper.

 

Mark the rebates by first scribing a line around the outside of the grip work-piece, using a caliper set at the length of the two recesses.  Then mark the rebate depths by generously coating the recess edges of the receiver and end cap with machinist’s ink  and temporarily assembling all of the parts in the rifle.  Use a block of wood and light hammer to tap the pieces tightly together to transfer the ink to the wood.  Hold the corner of the wood block against the end cap, in the angular space between the magazine tube the barrel and tap it firmly.  Then carefully scribe into the grip ends the outside of the receiver and end cap.   Scribe the line deeply enough to be visible during final grip shaping and finishing.  Cut and file the rebates.

 

With the rebates cut, the fore-end grip block should be able to fully assemble with the barrel, magazine, end cap dovetail and end cap in place (See middle photo).  Be sure the two screw holes in the end cap are able to align and articulate with their mates in the sides of the dovetail piece.  Do not insert the magazine lock pin into the magazine support band as yet. Disassembly will be needed for final fore-end shaping, sanding and finishing. 

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16553921211053277470859290692022.thumb.jpg.a9d77b205e879f96ed6c31d105da6ba9.jpg16553917044403783231396230612218.thumb.jpg.b17b968dd909cb97835d4feb8447af02.jpg16553919638128377929107452182996.thumb.jpg.8d5ec18480db1162a34b6ce415196bbd.jpg16553919638128377929107452182996.thumb.jpg.8d5ec18480db1162a34b6ce415196bbd.jpg16553917044403783231396230612218.thumb.jpg.b17b968dd909cb97835d4feb8447af02.jpgCutting the Fore-end Barrel Channel;

 

In closely examining the original fore-end grip, the barrel inlet groove is parallel with the initial 5/8" magazine tube boring alignment.  Precise measuring of that groove is challenged both by the oversize receiver end of the magazine tube boring and by the fact that the barrel inlet groove itself is tapered to closely meet the barrel contours.  (I am not providing measurements here, because they will vary with gun manufacturer and date and also by gun caliber.)    

 

The first task is a pilot channel running lengthwise along the top and center of the grip work-piece (see first photo). It needs to be slightly narrower than the width of the slot in the top of the original magazine boring, measured at the small (muzzle) end.  On the subject rifle it was 3/8".  Center the cutting bit on a line scribed along the top center line of the grip (The grip workpiece needs to be very slightly wider than the finished width of the grip, to leave enough for final shaping and sanding of both sides).    Begin shallowly at first pass and make several passes, gradually deepening the setting to reach full depth, which will break through into the top of the magazine boring.  

 

Once that initial pilot channel is milled, it is time to set up the mill to cut the tapered  barrel inletting. To accomplish the taper in the bottom of the barrel groove, the workpiece must be held in the machining vise at the appropriate angle to enable the level pass of the milling cutter to taper the depth of cut as needed along the length of the work-piece.  The cut will be deeper at the muzzle end. Careful measurements will be needed of the original fore-end to determine the taper dimensions.  

 

To achieve a tight match-up with the barrel side tapers, the vise will need to be rotated a fraction of a degree clockwise to cut one side, then rotated back counter-clockwise at an identical angle to cut the other side.  The taper angle is likely to vary between different guns, so it must be measured or calculated.

 

Fortunately, the octagonal barrel cross section has equal 45-degree angles, which makes it possible to use off-the-shelf 45-degree cutting tools to cut the final contours (see second photo).  I used a 45-degree router chamfer cutter, as shown.

 

Fitting the Magazine Tube and Barrel in the Fore-end

 

Once the barrel groove has been machined, it will usually be necessary to "clean up" any roughness of the inside contours and possibly cut additional relief in some places.  Otherwise, the next step of fitting the grip to the barrel and magazine will fail.  Use machinist’s ink on the barrel and magazine tube to locate any high spots that require reduction.  A curved gouge of appropriate size, skew carving tool, files and sanding blocks/sticks will make the clean-up easier.  Work very carefully along the top edges of the grip at the barrel meet-point.  Gaps in the barrel-to-wood inletting will be very obvious after finishing.

Try to insert the magazine tube into its bored hole.  It should go in very easily.   It is OK if the fit is loose.  Both ends will be held and concealed by the receiver and the end cap.  

 

Next test fit the barrel into its groove.  I like to mill the barrel groove just a tiny bit narrow, to enable hand fitting of the steel-to-wood interface, using progressively finer sanding blocks.  Again, work carefully.

 

When the assembled barrel and magazine both fit firmly (without forcing) into the grip, it is time to mark and cut the rebates into both ends of the grip.  These must tightly articulate with the recesses in the receiver and end cap.  The fit of those rebates will show in the finished grip, so cut them carefully by hand using sharp chisels and safe-edge files.  Test fit them frequently and diligently.  After the rebates are cut it is likely that a bit more grip-to-barrel fitting will be needed, as now the grip will be able to slide another ± 5/32" up the barrel taper.

 

Mark the rebates by first scribing a line around the outside of the grip work-piece, using a caliper set at the length of the two recesses.  Then mark the rebate depths by generously coating the recess edges of the receiver and end cap with machinist’s ink  and temporarily assembling all of the parts in the rifle.  Use a block of wood and light hammer to tap the pieces tightly together to transfer the ink to the wood.  Hold the corner of the wood block against the end cap, in the angular space between the magazine tube the barrel and tap it firmly.  Then carefully scribe into the grip ends the outside of the receiver and end cap.   Scribe the line deeply enough to be visible during final grip shaping and finishing.  Cut and file the rebates.

 

With the rebates cut, the fore-end grip block should be able to fully assemble with the barrel, magazine, end cap dovetail and end cap in place (See photo). Do not insert the magazine lock pin into the dovetail as yet. Disassembly will be needed for final fore-end shaping, sanding and finishing. 

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Thank you for walking us through the process. I’ll bet you laid in bed many nights thinking this through. Superb craftsmanship, indeed.

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1 hour ago, Yul Lose said:

Thank you for walking us through the process. I’ll bet you laid in bed many nights thinking this through. Superb craftsmanship, indeed.

Sometimes I think about projects because I can't sleep.  At other times, I can't sleep because I think about projects.  I can never decide which is which.  

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47 minutes ago, Dusty Devil Dale said:

Sometimes I think about projects because I can't sleep.  At other times, I can't sleep because I think about projects.  I can never decide which is which.  

Chicken, egg, chicken, egg, chi.............been there a lot.

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Shaping the Fore-end Grip.
 

Now that the fore-end hopefully will assemble onto the rifle and align properly, the exterior surface of the fore-end needs to be carved to its final contours. Close inspection and measuring of the original grip being replaced is important.  Use a reliable caliper and pin-style contour gauge. Work carefully to avoid over-removing material; especially at the ends where the grip meets the receiver and end cap.   The material removal cannot be done with the wooden grip in place on the rifle.  Frequent, patient  disassembly and reassembly will be needed. 

 
Just a side comment here:
Because I happen to have some experience with, and a shop equipped with some machining tools, I am describing the material removal work here being done in that way.  That should not discourage anyone from taking on  a project like this using hand tools.   With careful process planning, precise measurement/marking, sharp tools, and patient work, there really is nothing here that cannot be very nicely crafted without any power machinery.  I used to do gunstock inletting almost entirely by hand; only doing the initial cut-out on a band saw.  In many ways I found it more satisfying.  
 
Back to the project:
 
The fitted workpiece is itself fairly fragile, due to its thin walls and "U" cross section.  If it is to be held in a vise for hand shaping, it is very easy to crack the workpiece. I recommend inserting a supporting 3/4" dowel, or drill bit into the larger (receiver) end of the magazine boring or a wood block in the barrel groove to support the weak cross-sectional axis. Be sure the inserted object diameter is large enough to afford full support. 
 
If appropriate care is taken, the initial rough shaping work can quickly be done with a disc, belt, or drum sander, followed by hand filing with medium rasps or with sanding sticks of progressively finer grit.  It is very easy to remove too much material using power tools, so be sure to work shallowly, stop frequently, and reassemble the parts often to visually check and recheck the contours.  
 
The marks scribed earlier onto the ends of the wood at the receiver and end cap meet-points are of importance during shaping; especially if power tools are used.  (pictures (1) show location of scribed lines on the fore-end metal-wood interface and (2) use of a drum sander to remove material down to the scribed line on the buttstock--same process is used for fore-end).   If you remove material too deeply and cut inside the marks, or even if you cut right up to them, the metal will be proud of the wood surfaces after the wood is final sanded.  Exact fit of wood-to-metal surfaces is the hallmark of good inletting workmanship.  Where metal protrudes above the wood, even slightly, it feels uncomfortable to the hand and the blueing or other metal finishing will gradually be worn away from the edges of the proud metal surfaces.   
 
Final smoothing and sanding should be done entirely by careful hand work.  DO NOT try to do this sanding with an orbital or other power sander.  Doing that will almost certainly guarantee that wood corners will be rounded off, creating a poor fit.  (Remember, the grip is not installed on the rifle during shaping and sanding, so it is quite easy to remove too much at the ends, top, and corners.)
 
Sand the end and top areas of the grip that will meet metal using flat sanding blocks or sticks.  As is the case with filing, always do sanding strokes in only one direction, one stroke at a time (no back and forth rubbing).  Stroke the abrasive carefully from the middle towards the ends of the workpiece and watch those scribed end marks very carefully.  Stop short of obscuring the marks, and mount the grip onto the gun often to check the fit. Over-sanding at this stage is irreversible.  The finish coating thickness will not be enough to fill visible gaps.  
 
Final finishing of the fore-end grip is an identical process to finishing of the buttstock.  So I will describe the wood finishing process for both pieces later, after covering inletting of the buttstock.   
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On 6/18/2022 at 6:45 AM, Dusty Devil Dale said:

Sometimes I think about projects because I can't sleep.  At other times, I can't sleep because I think about projects.  I can never decide which is which.  

Same here. I solve some of my toughest project issues laying in bed trying to get to sleep.

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1 hour ago, Yul Lose said:

Same here. I solve some of my toughest project issues laying in bed trying to get to sleep.

i used to do that before i retired , not so often anymore , i think your mind looks for solutions when your sleeping rather than dwelling on the problem as one does when awake , the solutions arent always perfect but they give you a starting point the next day to build from , 

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