Cutting and shaping a Walnut stock, what tools do I use?

[kgill]

I have a Musket kit from the rifleshope
Walnut stock has been roughed out on CNC, inlet for barrel and lock etc.

I need to fit the lock and barrel and will need to shave, cut, and file wood to properly fit the parts.

Are there basic tools ideal for this job? Where do I look?

Thanks in advance.

Gill

[Rich]

Take a look at the gun building section of this site. "Recreating the American Longrifle"
is a good book to read before you start. I think that cabinet scrappers and a good cabinet makers rasp would be among the most needed tools.

[PPatch]

There is loads of information in the Tutorial section here on ALR. You can learn a gread deal by going through old threads or by using the search function.

A vice, many choices around. You will need, at least, something like an xacto knife or small carvers knife that is so sharp it cuts you if you look at it. A set of flat chisels from 1/8th to about 1inch wide and as sharp as the knife. Scraper's, very handy, buy some or learn to make them (I make mine from an old broken handsaw blade. Learn how to maintain them by prepping them and putting a working edge on them by burnishing. Gun maker’s style screwdrivers, flat sided screwdrivers will ding up the screw head’s in a heartbeat, you can make serviceable ones out of old paint scrapers. Sandpaper from about 150 down to whatever you feel is right. Always use backing for the sandpaper, a 3x4” or longer block of wood or wrap in a dowel. Good files, an 8” Mill at least, do not buy from the Big Box stores. The above is a minimum. A drill press is very handy as is a bench grinder. Good lighting!

dave

[rich pierce]

You need gunbuilding books, lots of visits to see originals, and as many books showing originals as possible. Take classes and work beside other experienced gunbuilders as much as possible.  Though everyone here is helpful, building a gun by online advice is about the same as saying on a handyman forum, "I bought some land and I've got some concrete mix and lots of lumber.  What tools will I need to build the house?"

(Added later) Kgill, sometimes my reading comprehension is weak- I just noticed (duh) you're working on a kit that is close to finished in final shape.  My response was more intended for someone doing more of a scratch build.  Sorry about that.  Still, it would do no harm to see and study some originals of that model, or some pictured in books.  Good gunbuilding books will be a great help to help you unbreech the barrel, know how to place the touchhole, do dovetails, sights, pin and bolt everything together, and apply finishes to wood and metal.

[Topknot]

Gil, besides buying how to books,buy a coupla three videos on building also. It will show you some of the tools needed and how to use them. The Ron Ehlert video shows Ron building 2 Jim Chambers rifles from Jims kits. It is very informative and comes in a 3 dvd package. James Turpin has some good gunbuilding videos too. As far as books , there are three that are very helpful, Peter Alexanders The Gunsmith of Grenville county, Chuck Dixons book , and Recreating the pennsylvania longrifle by Buchele and Alexander. I highly reccommend that you buy 2 or three videos and also the books and read them several times and also watch the videos several times  before you go out and buy a bunch of tools that you might not need. And first and foremost , these gentelmen on this site are very knowledgeable and usually willing to answer any questions that you may have, so dont be afraid to ask.They are really a great bunch of guys.

                     topknot

[Hungry Horse]

 My suggestion is to avoid power tool at this stage of the game. I like GOOD!!! SMALL!!! wood carving chisels, and gouges ( don't skimp on quality here), Miniature planes ( mine came from Harbor Freight), and a miniature spoke shave, (Mine came in an Xacto set). Scrapers are invaluable, read a tutorial, and make your own. I have three I use all the time, one made from a old industrial hack saw blade, and the other two from a ruined two man ripsaw.
 I would avoid course rasps, because you are always going to be guessing which tooth is the long sharp one that keeps putting marks on your stock that are hard to remove.
 Look at all the original rifles you can. Especially notice how thin and fragile the for stock is on most of them. You don't want your longrifle to look like a barge pole.

                    Hungry Horse

[pushboater]

     I use a four in hand file for most of my stock shaping. You have 2 different rasps and 2 different files in one tool.  Real handy. Also a set of palm chisels or small carving chisels are worth investing in. Just make sure you learn how to sharpen them properly. A dull chisel will give you nothing but grief. Spend the money for a good set and they'll last you a lifetime. I've been using the same set for 30 years.

[Lucky R A]

  The man can have a full set of tools and if he does not know how and where to apply them he will quickly reduce a sizable investment into parts etc. to something that is worth less than he paid for the raw materials.  Having an original in hand allows you to visually see where to make cuts, how far and how to contour certain areas.  In lieu of having the original in hand copious photographs from all imaginable angles helps in getting it right.  the eye and the hand helps to guide the mind in replicating the feel and the essence of a gun you are attempting to replicate
Best wishes

Ron

[Acer Saccharum]

Small straight chisels, from 3/8 down to 1/16 wide are what I use most for inletting parts. If your stock is pre-shaped, then a fine rasp will do nicely, half round cabinet style is best. Then make up some scrapers, or buy them from a cabinet tool supply. Woodcraft, while pricey, has a nice range of tools, and has tutorials on sharpening just for the asking.

To echo Rich Pierce, it is very hard to build a gun from online advice. Just look at all the replies already! I built my first guns without the internet(a loooong time ago), and you will have a real leg up with many online resources at your fingertips.

Yes, looking at originals is very handy, and at some point, essential, to get the real feel of how things were done. But you can build a perfectly functional gun without access to originals, which happened to be my experience in my earlier guns. Once you get serious about this hobby,and should it turn into a passion, you will be drawn to study, as a moth is to the porchlight.

In the meantime, your focus should be
1) safety: build a thoroughly safe firearm. If your kit has been breeched by the manufr, then you should be covered.
2) functional: your build should work in a safe and reliable manner.
3) stock shaping: since you have a pre-shaped stock, you will be focusing mostly on the first two. But there is a surprising amount of wood that comes off a stock, even a pre-shaped one. I have heard the the Rifle Shoppe stocks don't have much extra wood on them.

I always try to make the gun I'm working on the best one. I really fall in love with the project, and it's a lot of fun. Somewhere during the process, I screw something up, and I take it kinda hard. Getting older, and having more experience, my mistakes are fewer, and I don't take them so hard. So the fun is in better proportion.

I'm just trying to say that you will make mistakes, but try not to let that ruin your day. The ALR community is very helpful when it comes to suggesting fixes.

[Ky-Flinter]

Gill,

Welcome to ALR.  There's lots of knowledgeable folks here that are willing to help.

When I was preparing to build my first muzzleloader, I got a copy of Buchele's "Recreating the American Longrifle", then went to Ace hardware and bought a Nicholson 4-in-hand and a 1/4 straight chisel.  These got me started, then I added tools as needed.  All the above is good advice, but my point here is, don't try to buy everything at once.  You'll end up with stuff you won't use much.

Books and videos are great, and I've acquired many, but they can get expensive.  Check with your local library, if they don't have what you seek, ask them about the Inter-Library Loan program.  Most libraries participate and the cost is nominal, if not free.  Then buy the ones you really like.

Good luck with your musket project.

-Ron

[DaveP (UK)]

I stumbled across a free resource the other day!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=PJVz3T61trI&feature=endscreen
The Gunsmith of Williamsburg
Enlightening and intimidating in equal measure IMHO. He makes it look soooo easy...
Something to look at while waiting for books etc to arrive.

[rich pierce]

The kits from the Rifle Shoppe have very fat or extra wood on them, so major wood removal tools are generally not needed except for maybe a square fore-end section useful for holding in a vise.  The inlets are pretty close to final also, so as stated above an assortment of straight chisels of varying width up to maybe 5/8" wide and some sharp smaller gouges will be the ticket.

If you are very good with a spokeshave this can do the bulk of very fine wood removal, otherwise half-round coarse files will do good shaping work.  There's not much need for a toothed rasp on TRS kits in my limited experience.

It doesn't hurt a bit to practice either.  You could inlet a trigger guard into a piece of hardwood, same with a sideplate etc to get a good feel for the process before tacking the kit stock.

[bob in the woods]

 I'm trying to focus on your actual build rather than taking a broader view . With that in mind I would invest in the video  of Ron Ehlert building the Chambers Kits. You will then have a chance to see which tools are used and for what . You are building from a kit, so it is pretty much apples for apples.
You said you have a musket kit so the smoothbore build in the video  would be a help.  If you have examples [photos etc of what your musket is supposed to look like then I think you are on your way.

[Paul Griffith]

A face mask would be a good start with walnut. These days I can't even cut a walnut board on the band saw without it screwing up my sinuses.

 #49 nicholson wood wasp. 10 or 12" course half round file. If you choose sand paper for finish you'll need to start at 150 or so & end at least at 320.  Depending on the shape of things around the lock & cheek there may be other shapes of files neccessary and or chisels.

[Dogshirt]

Second the face mask. I love the smell of walnut, but it does me bad for 2-3 days afterwards.