Need advice on ramrod pipe repair

[Canute Rex]

This is long overdue. Last year at the Primitive Biathlon in Jeffersonville VT I returned my ramrod in a hurry at some below-zero temperature. The ramrod hit the middle pipe and knocked it off. I was in a hurry to get to the next shooting station and didn't notice it till I got there. Oops.

The present problem is that I'm not much of a woodworker, especially not the fine work done on long rifles. I don't know where to begin. Here are a couple of photos:



A jagged gap. The wood is quite shallow.



This is the forward pipe, for comparison. Note that it is starting to crack.

I have the brass replacement pipe. How should I go at it?

Thanks

[Captchee]

 Well here is what I would do .
 For the crack . Take the pipe out  and use thin CA  glue .   Clamp it prior  just to the pint you have a fine hair crack .  Apply the glue and then clap it quick . Within about 2 Min it will be done  and cured

don’t use super glue from the grocery store . Get quality CA from a place like Horizon  or Tower hobbies ..
CA was originally designed for medical glue . But today its use to make everything from  the bottoms of  jet ski Hulls to   high end serf boards .
 There is even a CA designed to  bond steel
 If you have never used Good CA , I warn you . Its SUPER glue on steroids.
   So if you’re the type that’s kind of  a fumble fingers , get you the release agent while you  getting the glue

 Now for the  repair of the broken area . Your going to need a patch  if you don’t have the original piece . You want the patch  to be a nice tight fit Take your time  in making it and you should be able to blend it out  to the point it wont be  noticeable unless  your looking right at it .
 Now stain it to match .  Once you have that , you can  the use that same CA to  glue it in place . Glue it from the pipe side and let it wick down in the crack . You don’t need a lot  of the CA .
 The CA will hold a 1000 times better then white glue . However it will not take a stain , so keep that in mind

 Then you can come back and  using the off side hole as a guide , re drill for the pipe pin

[John Archer]

Also make sure that the tabs on the pipes are not bearing on the barrel and causing the cracking of the stock by putting a lot of pressure on the pins.

Best,
John.

[Scott Semmel]

I don't doubt for a minute that the repair as descibed is possible and that for many skilled stockers not that difficult. Me, I find such repairs challenging at best. If it were my gun I would be thinking half stock.

[Long John]

Cnute,

That ramrod pipe is availabel from Track of the Wolf.

Do all the work with the barrel in the stock - the barrel is necessary to support the stock and prevent further damage. 

You are going to have to make a splice piec out of maple that will fit into that hole.  Carefully cut the wood where the break is so that you have a nice smooth rectangular cut-out.  Dont be afraid to make the cutout a little longer than the existing jagged hole.  Extend it 3/8 to 1/2 an inch on each side.  I would also cut out until the bottom of your cut-out (rifle resitng barrel down) until the hole is just a bit deeper than the pin hole.

Now make a splice piece out of maple wood that fits into the hole.  Don't mess with ramrod groove just yet.  Once the splice piece fits into the hole with a nice snug fit, glue it in place with something like Tite-bond or Elmer's carpenters glue being careful to keep the glue off the exterior surface of the wood as it will impede staining later.  If you get some glue on the wood by accident wipe it off with a damp paper towel right away.

Once the glue has dried for a couple of days take a gouge and put in the ramrod groove.  Shape the outside of the splice piece to match the outside profile of the stock.  The slowly let in the ramrod pipe.  Set it where you want it with the tab pointed up and mark each end.  Use a sharp carving knife to cut into the stock where the pipe ends are to be.  the use a small gouge to pare away the wood betwen teh end cuts.  when I use that pipe I hold the pipe over an oil lamp flame and soot the pipe.  I thn place the pipe in the mortice and tap it with a mallet.  when I remove the pipe the soot shows where the pipe was resting onthe wood.  By cutting away the blackened wood I can let the pipe into the mortice.

Once teh ramrod pipe is fully let in flip it over and let in for the tab.   John Archer is absolutley right - the tab must NOT be resting on the barrel.  It needs a few thousandths of an inch clearance.  Once the pipe is fully let in you now drill the pin hole by measuring down from the top barrel flat each side, marking your hole and drilling each side by itself.

Once the patch is doen you have to take sample wood and concot a mixture of stains that give you as good a match to the color as you can achieve.

When all that is done consider the same treatment for the front pipe.  I am not sure you can get enough glue into the crack to make it secure.

Best Regards,

JMC

[Canute Rex]

Thanks for all your responses. I was wondering whether I would have to dovetail in the repair piece, but I guess not. That's a relief.

Wish me luck.