Storing stocks

[Mauser06]

I know many of you store stocks for future projects. 


I'm guessing there are better ways to do so...Minimizing potential damage...



I'd be looking to store blanks and precarves.


Kinda buying/ordering stuff for future projects when I come across something I know I will use...Wood just worries me...Warping, cracking, bending etc. 

[WKevinD]

I guess the only advice or suggestion I could make is to store your wood in as constant an environment as possible, no great variant in temp or humidity.
If you have pre carves with barrel channels- store the blanks with barrel in the inlet (same with locks if they are pre inlet)
I store my extra wood in the shop (up in the air)

[L. Akers]

I store blanks stacked and laid flat with some weight on the top one.  Don't store them leaning--they will warp.

[Mauser06]

Thanx guys!


About what I figured.   Keeping the barrel in the channel is a good idea.  Should help keep the wood in its shape. 

[Pennsylvania Dutchman]

I have 12' side walls on my shop, so I have all my stock blanks hanging on the wall. I screw an eyebolt in the muzzle end and hang them on nails or pegs. I dried a couple of cherry planks 18" wide x 8' long the same way. They stayed very straight. They are hanging now as blanks.
Mark

[Mike Brooks]

I lean my stock blanks against the wall in my garage. Planks are stored flat on stickers in  the barn. I don't store many pre carves, but the ones I have on hand  the   is barrel taped in them and stored in the house leaning in the corner somewhere.

[oldtravler61]

 I paint both ends of the stock blanks to seal them. Then keep them off the floor then lean them against the wall. So far no problems. Oldtravler

[Joe S]

I keep mine in a storage cabinet.  A 100 watt light bulb keeps the temperature about 10 degrees above ambient, which is enough to keep the wood moisture constant.  The cabinet is also real handy for drying finish or browning a barrel.

[David R. Pennington]

I have blanks stored in the rafters over the shop because I have no other place to keep them, but seems to work out ok. Do paint the end grain as someone else said. Mike do you treat your lumber in the barn against insects? I almost lost a nice stack of cherry to bugs that was stacked and stickered under cover. I found a huge ant colony right in the center of the stack.

[P.W.Berkuta]

I have mine stored in a closet in my house and they are standing vertically. Some of my wood planks are from a tree that I had a saw mill cut into 3" thick planks in 1974, some walnut is from a farm in Easton, Penn. from 1996. I have not experienced any warping but the wood has been dried before it went vertical.

[Mike Brooks]

I have blanks stored in the rafters over the shop because I have no other place to keep them, but seems to work out ok. Do paint the end grain as someone else said. Mike do you treat your lumber in the barn against insects? I almost lost a nice stack of cherry to bugs that was stacked and stickered under cover. I found a huge ant colony right in the center of the stack.

I have had problems with powder post beetles, but they only seem to like the sap wood...I can live with that.

[deepcreekdale]

I store mine in my shop rafters lying flat. It does get hot during the summer but I have never had any issue with that. Since I live in Florida and stock wood always comes from somewhere else, I like to let it sit for at least a year before I use it. Bigger problem for me is storing barrels. If left long without the muzzle or breech covered mud daubers will find them and make a home. Don't ask how I found out about that!

[Osprey]

I keep my blanks standing on the butt end in a closet in a spare bedroom.  Buddy keeps his, same orientation, in the attic of his shop - I always worried about it getting too hot and checking, but he's never had a problem with that.  Both of us are storing already dried stocks. 

I can say how Ron Griffey stored all his wood when he was a major supplier.  All his stock blanks were stored in his shop, standing on the butt end.  Planks were stickered and stacked to dry for several years, under a roof on the back of  his shop, open on 3 sides.  I remember hearing he had to have those sprayed a few times a year for bugs.

I always liked how he sealed his blank ends, watched that process once.  Melted a bunch of candles in an electric skillet and dipped both ends of the blank 2-3" deep.  Could really seal a LOT of blanks fast that way!

[t.caster]

I store my blanks in the rafters in my (walkout) basement workshop. Ends sealed with paint, varnish or melted beeswax.
Barrels are stored in rafters too. Bores swabbed with RIG grease.