doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Making a stock thinner

I am considering removing some wood on a Western Arms gun. In spite of the gun being excessively heavy weight reduction isn't my primary objective. I'd like to remove the pistol grip but equally as important I'd like to thin the wrist. Right now it is 4 11/16" in circumference. I would like to get it under 4 1/2" and 4 1/4" would be even better. Is there a minimum wall thickness on a through bolt stock that should be adhered to? This is a 7 1/4 lb sixteen gauge gun. The only thing I shoot in it is 2 1/2" shells with 7/8 oz at no more than 1200 fps, so the amount of recoil the wrist area of the stock gets subjected to isn't much.

Skip

I wouldn't make it smaller that the rear of the receiver. Keep in mind that the lighter it becomes, the more recoil it(and you) will endure.

Several things will determine what you may do in thinning a stock. How is the grain/pore structure aligned? How big is the stock bolt hole? How long is the stock bolt? What kind of wood was used in the stock?

Jim's comment about the size of the reciever is important. It is not so much recoil you have to worry about....it is the stock flex under recoil. Browning is having problems with the Ultra Lite and XS breaking under recoil flex at the back of the receiver due to lack of sufficient (IMO) mass of wood. I have had to repair six so far in the last four months due to this problem. Wood was not too squirrely in structure so can only conclude it had to do with flex of recoil upward causing the breakage.

I would be hesitant to suggest farther than 1/8" OD downsize unless I could really inspect the piece of wood first. Blindness really get one into a boiling kettle sometimes. Can we see pics?

I have a western LR 20 that I found a 12 ga Nitro Special stock for at a gun show and made the alterations you are talking about. Withthe pistol grip gone the wrist is 4 1/2 and I haven't had any complaints. Just keep the belly line staight. Fortunately most WLR and Nitro specials have fairly plain staight grain. Good luck.

I took pictures with a top and side view. The stock is squarish and just by reshaping it to more of an oval or diamond cross section by removing wood where it is the thickest would get it where I want it.

Skip

Thank you for the pics. A slab sided action doesn't lend itself to a rounded profile easily. Try to blend it back not from the receiver but from the middle of the bottom trigger guard screw. Getting the pistol grip off will allow some leeway in making the stock look as you desire. The toe line(behind the pistol grip) will have to be raised to make it look right IMO). By putting flutes in the comb you should be able to bring the top into a rounder profile.

Why don't you get a pre-war Suhl clunker with a cheek piece. Those things have minimalist stocks. Look for J.P. Sauer Suhl on the rib, or obscure name of dealer on the rib (still proly made by Sauer und Sohns). Working on Western Field SxS is labor for lost cause!

That thing belongs in ole' shed with missing boards.

Even a 6lb. gun should easily handle 7/8oz. loads. With the loads you're feeding that 7+ pounder, I wouldn't sweat the recoil.

As long as you don't go to extremes, your stock should be able to handle a reasonable amount of slimming. Mind you - and no offense intended - a slender wrist on that gun might wind up looking like a silk purse with the sow still attached.

Skip,
In agreement with DES, I would look at some guns like Fox, Parker, etc., and take some ques from them. A Parker stock tends to be quite thin in the wrist. But then, I've seen more Parkers with broken wrists than Nitro's. Nevertheless, imagine the "cheeks" or "panels" just aft of the reciever, then start narrowing from there. I'd use a rasp to start with, then on to some 36-40 grit, then finer and finer. Your wood is in good shape and should be fine at a thinner profile, IMO.