troublsom1, I don't know about the stock crack on my gun but I've seen some of these guys do some pretty nice work with cracks such as this. If it's not possible I am capable of making a replacement stock for it. Putting a gun back on face by building up the hook is becoming a mainstream technique. It may not be right for every gun but for some it is the only practicle way. There was a nice discusion about that a few months back on here. A gun with a dolls head and a hinge pin like these guns have is a good example. Yes you can replace the hinge pin but after figuring out how the old one comes out,pressing it out, pressing a new one in and re-engraving, welding and dressing I believe would be qicker. It would also keep the character of the gun intact. I am a professional welder and am capable of this job. I have already done this. The hook is NOT case hardened as you suggest. Infact many guns of this time frame had the hook brased to the barrels and on some old guns you can see a greenish line where the joint is. Using brazing rod is not the way to go either unless you want to look like bubba the gunsmith. When welding the hook the key is not to rush it. Weld a little and let it cool and repeat as many times as is necessary. On guns with a dolls head, the dolls head is the benchmark. Building the hook so that the dolls head does not have to be messed with. But all old guns are individuals and sometimes the extension is worn also. It is possible to build this up also but having modern welding equiptment makes this possible,control is everything. I know a man with a square wave tig machine that welded two razorblades together. I believe that standard 70s filler is good enough for this job but there may be some more suited and wear resistant. A higher silicone rod may be in order to clense the old steel. I will experiment with some different filler rod when I am ready and choose what I think is best. After all there are no standards on this and these are not going to be used as trap guns.
