Second Build from a blank rough shaping

[Cory Joe Stewart]

Hello all,

I am working on my second build from a blank and wanted to show you where I am so you can stop if I am doing somthing wrong.  I do not have any specific concerns or questions.  I am looking at RCA #21 and #22 and it is not my intention to make an exact copy.  I have not done anything with the cheek piece so it is bulky and stands out very proud of where it will eventually be.  I also have not done anything forward to the lock other than trim the fat.  I hope you can get a sense of what I am doing from the photos.  My digital camera is out of work right now, and these are cell phone pics.  The dimensions are pretty close to what is provided in the RCA volume.  It just looks bulky to me.  It feels fine when you bring it up an shoulder it. 

[greybeard]

Kind of reminds me o Henry Mauger!!
     Bob

[Acer Saccharum]

I gotta say the photos make me feel like I lost my glasses.



That aside, the bottom line of the stock in last photo looks like there is a bulge in it, from the rear of the cheekpiece to the toe of the buttplate. IF you want a smaller butt, you can cut a little off the bottom of the BP and re-curve the toe line, from trigger to toe of BP. You'd have to re-inlet the Trig guard finial.

On the center photo, the top view of the gun: it looks like the box side is bulged out. If you run a straight line from wrist to buttplate, I'm going to guess there might be as much as 1/8" extra material on there.

It's hard to tell by photos what's right and wrong with stock shape. Sometimes the camera creates a 'fisheye effect', making the stock look bulged when it's really not. Best practice is to get as far away as you can from the gun, and zoom in to reduce fisheye. A cell phone is not going to give you the control and sharpness you need.

It looks like the top line of the barrel tang down along the wrist to the comb is excellent in curvature. That's pretty hard to do, so you done good there.

Take your time at this stage. I sometime wait until the next day, when I see the stock in a different light, or with some fresh coffee in me.

[flehto]

Not much into Berks or very early LRs, but do enjoy looking at them. The comb line on yours seems to be too high and at the wrong angle. Looking at RCA #20 and #21 comblines...if extended, to the breech, the line is below the breech, while yours is  quite a bit above. Is the butt plate extension at the wrong angle and therefore the combline? Seems a bit "humpy." As I said, I'm not into that style of LR, so could be wrong.....Fred

[rich pierce]

If you do decide to lower the comb line you may be able to pinch the buttplate heel angle quite easily.  Then you can shaved the comb and move the buttplate slightly forward.  Only if you decide to change the angle of the comb.

[greybeard]

Coryjoe;    Poease keep us posted. Looks like the makins of a good one.    Bob

[Cory Joe Stewart]

I appreciate the help everyone.  Sorry for the poor photos, but I felt the haziness gave a mystical look to my shop. 

What Tom has pointed out is what I think was throwing my eye off.  The dimensions are close to where they need to be in the wrist and at the plate, but buldge in the middle.  I will also play around with what I need to do to address the comb issue. 

This is pretty tricky shaping for me.  The wrist comes way back into the stock and the transition down to the wrist is kind of sccoped out in a fairly dramatic fashion.  Tough to do but it is what makes the original rifle stand out to me so we definately want to get it right.

Thanks again,

Coryjoe

[Thom]

I've only built three rifles from a blank, and it was a while ago so take this for what it's worth. I always had my builds full size on paper before I went to the shop. I knew just what I wanted horizontally and vertically. After getting the stock to those parameters, the rest was the fun part.

Thom

[Stophel]

These types of guns are not easy to do.  As with Lehigh guns, there are a lot of details that you're just not going to get right by looking at the  black and white photos in the picture books.

My observations:  First, too much drop in the butt, and the comb angle is too steep.  It WILL smack you in the cheekbone when shooting it.  Yes, some later Berks guns do have butts with that much drop, but I cannot attest to their handling qualities...

Second, the cheekpiece is too well defined.  Early (and some later) Berks cheekpieces are often not so sharply defined, and the wood around the cheekpiece sort of rises up to meet the cheekpiece edge.  With these guns, always think rounded, and bulbous.  Not "fat", but full...  

I got to handle "gun 21" a few years ago, took notes and built a more-or-less copy of it.  One thing I simply could not handle was the extremely hollowed out cheekpiece.  VERY uncomfortable.  The cheekpiece edge jabbed me hard in the chin.  If the cheekpiece were flat, you'd be good to go.  Some other Berks guns APPEAR to have flatter cheekpieces in the photos... but photos can be deceiving.

The nose of the comb (looking down from the top) gets very thin towards the front...  just about the only part that is NOT bulbous!    The whole thing is very "sculptural".  Flowing curves, in and out.  The areas around the lock panels are a bit concave (it seems to have been a long lasting Berks trait).  The fore end moulding gave me fits.  Transitioning the bulbous relief carving around the lower rod pipe into the inset moulding on the bottom of the fore end was very difficult for me, and I still don't think I did it really right.  The fore arm (ahead of the lock, where the hand goes) is very full and round, perhaps a bit thicker than on other types of guns, which can also be rather slab sided.  Again, all very rounded and bulbous and sculptural.  Probably my favorite types of longrifles.