inletting lock (oops)

[ohidan]

  This is my first attempt at gun building ,I guess my guestion is what to use to fill small cracks around lock plate after removing to much wood ?

[Chris Treichel]

You can make a mixture of epoxie and wood dust (of the same wood the stock is made of... make sure you put something between the lock and the epoxie so you don't acidentally glue it in... release agent or saran wrap work...

[Dennis Glazener]

Depends on how small the crack is. If very slight it might close up when the finish is applied. The wood tends to swell some when oil finish is used (at least for me).

If larger about the only thing you can do is to take some thin strip of wood from elsewhere on the same stock and use stainable wood glue to glue them into the cracks. Even with stainable wood glue it is best to stain the wood before doing this.

About the only other thing I can suggest is to glue a larger piece of wood into the mortise and inlet it again without gaps.

I seriously doubt that using anything but solid wood in the cracks will come close to matching the surrounding wood.
Dennis

[James Wilson Everett]

Guys,

Haven't we all done the "oops"?  Stain the wood first as stated above, Sometimes when you finish the section the glue/sawdust filler becomes thin enough to see through to the light unstained wood.  This would leave a light section at the repair.  If you use epoxy, add some stain to the mix.  I bought a little tub of dark brown Acraglass stain from Brownells many years ago and it works very well for this.  Also, a dark area of stain can cover a multitude of the "oops".

Jim Everett

[Jerry V Lape]

The thin strips of wood method works well.  The epoxy and sawdust is fine if the area isn't visible on the exterior.  You can either cut thin strips with a good power saw blade.  I then use a scraper to thin the strip, can get down to 1/64th of an inch if needed.  If your surface to glue to is less than straight you may want to make a clamping block to shape so it makes full contact while clamped to dry.  To conceal any seam which may appear after staining as those above recommended,  use some lamp or bone black in the first coat of finish to darken the area.  Bone black works best. 

[David Rase]

You could also peen the edges of the lock plate to expand the metal and make it fit the inlet if the gaps are small enough.  I have moved metal this way several times in order to "tighten up" an inlet.  Good luck.
Dave

[Gaeckle]

You could also peen the edges of the lock plate to expand the metal and make it fit the inlet if the gaps are small enough.  I have moved metal this way several times in order to "tighten up" an inlet.  Good luck.
Dave

I agree with waht dave says.....if the gaps aren't to large, a small ball been hammer and very light taps in the right place will swedge the metal outward, thus pushing it towards the gaps. Using to big a hammer and too much force may damage the lock plate beyond repair....good luck!

[Dphariss]

Pean from the BACK of the plate on a smooth steel backer/anvil to keep the lock surface that is seen flat..
For other gaps wood glue and slivers of stock wood can be very useful.

Dan

[Jim Kibler]

If I were peening, I think I would be inclined to peen from the outside of the plate.  This would put the flare, that is unavoidable, to the outside where you need it.  If it is a beveled plate you could easily peen on the bevel to spread things a bit.  If it is a round faced lock, the surface near the edge could be peened as well.  In either case there is plenty of material on any commercial lock to true things up with a file afterwards.  Now, this is a suggestion without seeing your situation.  It may be beyond what can be closed up using this method.

[B.Habermehl]

First try using a clean wet rag and a steam iron. Put the wet rag over the inlet allow the moisture to penetrate the wood a bit, then rub the hot iron over the rag and inlet. The resulting steam will expand any compressed wood in the edges of the inlet, often closeing or reducing oopsies. If things work out no glue, scraps, and or fillers needed.  Good luck BJH

[ohidan]

Thanks Guys for all the help and info, think i'm going to try the thin strips of wood first and see how that works out . Danny

[Hudnut]

I haven't done this - but have seen the results, and they weren't bad.  In the event of a major problem, take down the whole surface, glue a new layer of wood over the whole area and reinlet the plate.  Blend the new wood into the original moulding.  The repair can be rather unobtrusive.  Could be useful if changing the lock in a modern gun.

[Dphariss]

If I were peening, I think I would be inclined to peen from the outside of the plate.  This would put the flare, that is unavoidable, to the outside where you need it.  If it is a beveled plate you could easily peen on the bevel to spread things a bit.  If it is a round faced lock, the surface near the edge could be peened as well.  In either case there is plenty of material on any commercial lock to true things up with a file afterwards.  Now, this is a suggestion without seeing your situation.  It may be beyond what can be closed up using this method.

I would agree that this is situational. I was thinking I would prefer to have the low area on the back of the lock plate. Low areas in the face of the lock may require punching from the back side to fix easily anyway. Round faced locks were not on my radar but this is another modifier of process.
I also tend to pean back from the edge somewhat.
Or I fire up my wire welder
Dan