Woodworking as a Gunsmith
Woodworking as gunsmith is where art meets engineering. The path to success is completely built upon careful planning, impeccable design, and no small amount of elbow grease. In a world full of amazing polymer tools, those who are devoted to woodworking are keeping the tradition alive.
While this article is only the tip of the iceberg, it will point you the right direction- whether it’s carving, engraving, or checkering. Like anything worth studying, there’s a lot to know and even more to do, so get ready to open a few extra browser tabs as we dive in.
Choosing the Right Wood for Your Gun Stock
One of the most common woods for gun stocks is black walnut. It’s not as hard as maple or birch, but its dark color helps mask discoloration from oil, and the markings that come from general wear and tear are far less noticeable against the dark grain. This can give its appearance a comfortable, worn-in wabi-sabi rather than a blemished look. Aside from that, there’s a lot to be said for feel when it comes to walnut. Sapele, for example, has a dark, rich color like walnut, and can potentially even offer a little more in the way of durability since it’s harder than Walnut, but it simply won’t give you the same kind of tactile experience. So, be cautious about walnut substitutes. If you’re in North America, Walnut typically isn’t that difficult to source from lumber suppliers, so don’t consider any alternatives unless you absolutely have to do so.
If you’re making a gunstock from scratch, it’s worth investing the time to find the right piece of walnut for your project. And as a rule of thumb, the most unimpressive piece is likely to be the most dependable. A piece of spalted walnut might have amazing figure, but it also has the potential to be much softer than a less striking piece of wood. And that can create unwanted opportunities for chips, cracks, and other compromises in durability. The same consideration should be given to larger knots. Pin knots, however, are typically only cosmetic concern and shouldn’t be of too much concern when it comes to durability- and they can add a little touch of personality if they aren’t too obtrusive. Burl can also look really cool, but having a distinct texture and color pattern in your wood may distract from any engraving that the stock might get during it’s lifetime- and burl, like spalted wood, has the potential to be les durable.
When it comes to roasted woods, it’s probably not worth the investment if you’re making a gunstock from scratch. Sure, it’s more stable and less susceptible to warping, but it can also be brittle if it’s “over-cooked.” Simply put, it’s just not as likely to be as forgiving when it’s put under stress. A regular, kiln dried piece of roasted walnut is likely to be the most reliable piece you get. Again, if you have any plans for engraving, go for the the most uniform grain that you can get- especially if relatively ‘blank’ surface that won’t visually detract from your engraving. And, if you can, check your blank with a moisture meter to get the driest, most stable blank that you can possibly get.
Before you start shopping for wood, I recommend checking out this article from Buehler Custom Sporting Arms on choosing the right gunstock blank.
Carving a Gunstock
If you’re looking to craft your own a gunstock from scratch, you’re definitely got your work cut out for you. And the time that you’ll spend filing and sanding may be a considerable investment. Creating an exact replacement for another stock without available dimensions may mean doing just a little bit of math if you want to get the radius of your stock exact- this is especially true if you need to make a CAD model for a CNC. While you may have a little bit of room for artistic license with a curve here and there, the length of pull, the drop at the comb, and the drop at the heel, absolutely need to stay in spec with what the engineers originally intended.
I highly recommend checking out this YouTube video from Kelly Makes before you start planning. She mostly uses hand tools, and even gives a brief run down of her finishing and checkering processes.
Laser Engraving
Whether you’re considering using a CNC laser engraver or a stand-alone unit, it’s a fairly simple process to get into. But keep in mind that more affordable laser engravers work best on flat surfaces. So, make sure you go with an engraver that’s made with curved surfaces in mind. If you want a design that will circle around your gunstock, or you want a laser engraver that can handle checkering as well, you’ll need a rotary engraver like the xTool F1 Ultra (or potentially the P2 if you’re considering checkering)- but you’ll need a RA2 Pro rotary attachment to make the most of the F1 Ultra.
If you’re already got a design on hand, make sure it’s in the correct file format for your laser engraver. Some laser engravers will work just fine with a PNG image, but many require an SVG. And if you’re designing your engraving from scratch, an SVG image is definitely the file you want to create. You’ll have more options for editing line width and taper after the fact. You create an SVG file with a vector image app like xTool Creative Space, Affinity Designer, Inkscape. Adobe Illustrator, or Clip Studio.
Do not forget to wear protective eye wear that’s rated for your laser engraver- which is likely to be 200-2000 nm! And remember to use painter’s tape to mask your gunstock before you begin. It’ll likely spare you the pain of flashback marks and unexpected scorching.
Engraving by Hand
There are two types of hand engraving techniques to consider. The first is incised carving, which involves cutting a design into the wood without affecting the wood surrounding the cut. Or, basically, just making an incision. The second technique is called relief carving, and as you’ve probably guessed, it involves creating a design by carving out an ‘outline’ around the design- causing the remaining material to stand out from the newly chiseled ‘background.’
I wish I could say I could confidently recommend tools, but recommending a chisel to an engraver is little like recommending a paintbrush to a portrait artist. Sure, there’s always better choices for each medium, but experience and comfort are all you can really depend upon to tell you what’s right. Ramelson has some very basic recommendations if you’re looking to get started, but keep in mind that if you’re doing really intricate work, this list does not include the 1mm V-tools preferred by some for more intricate line work.
I also recommend checking out Woodcarving Illustrated’s “All About Chisels, Gouges, and V-Tools” and definitely don’t miss this carving tutorial from Von Aschwege Flintlocks.
Finishing
If you’ve already completed MGS’s hands-on gunstock refinishing project, you’re probably already a pro at finishing. If you haven’t, it’s worth nothing that it’s available in all of MGS’s courses. Birchwood Casey has a really short, straightforward guide to gun refinishing that’s worth checking out before you get started. And once you’re ready to get started, did I mention that MGS just so happens to sell a Tru Oil stock refinishing kit?
I know, my not-so-subtle advertising chops could use improvement. But in all seriousness, take it slow with the sanding and be sure to use a sanding block to keep things as uniform as you can. And even though Tru-Oil is non toxic, it can be an irritant, so you may want to wear a respirator mask and some protective gloves.
Checkering
Before you even consider checkering a gunstock, make sure that your gunstock is finished. Walnut is an open grain wood, and finish fills in the grain and gives you a much more even and well-tempered surface to work with. I recommend checking out Midway USA’s video on gun checkering and Kurt the Gunsmith’s tutorial if you’re considering checkering by hand.
Camp Perry has packaged toolsets available, and Dembart has as well, though I highly recommend shopping around for the best price because they don’t come cheap. But then again, good tools seldom do. You’ll likely want your finished project to be somewhere between 16 and 24 lines per inch. Remember that the lower that number is, the coarser your checkering may feel- and that creating more lines per inch may create more opportunities for unexpected breakage.
When it comes to do your checkering with a laser engraver, you’ll likely see it done professionally with CO2 laser- though you don’t necessarily need one unless you’d like your checkering to have a high LPI (lines per inch) count. CO2 laser engravers are more expensive and more precise when it comes to extremely small details. That aside, the process of applying checkering is relatively similar to any other laser engraving project. A quality laser engraver will give you the consistent depth and spacing you need, provided the design that you provide is sound. And having a good grasp of hand checkering will definitely increase your chances of success!
A Note on Failure
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: The first time you create anything by hand, it’s probably not going to be your greatest work. Success is an amazing goal, but sometimes success in woodworking just means failing less than you did last time. Try not to get discouraged! You’re going to make something awesome, so have an awesome time making it.
Written by: Lanna Perkins, Education Writer
