Oak, Pecan, Hickory, Chestnut: Were they ever used?

[Rasch Chronicles]

Howdy fellows,

I was standing at the ECP (Entry Control Point) waveing my baton of unidentified wood around. As the heavy wood met an object of far less density with a satisfying and resounding CRACK,  I got to thinking.

I wondered if back in the day, stockmakers ever used other woods? Everyone tends towards the walnut, maple, and cherry, but I would think that other types of wood might have been used.

Any thoughts?

Best Regards,
Albert A Rasch In Afghanistan™
Scouting for Hogs

[Lucky R A]

    There is a well documented Bucks Co. rifle stocked in Hickory.   I used a piece of Hickory on a Schroyer type rifle and it made a rather nice gun, just a bit more weight, and more difficult to work.  Ash has a long history of use, and can be quite attractive.  Beech was sometimes used on European guns, and i suspect a few sticks may have been used this side of the pond. There are some originals out there that have "mystery" wood in them that has never been positively identified.  I am sure some of the guys from down south will be able to document guns from their area having atypical woods used in the stock. 

Ron

[Stophel]

As I understand it (never seen a piece of chestnut wood!) Chestnut wood is too soft.

Oak is WAAAAAYYYY too unstable to really use as a gunstock, though I know it was done on rare occasion.

[Jim Kibler]

If I'm not mistaken, all of these woods are ring pourous and therefore have an uneven open grained structure.  I know a few guns were made of perhaps some of these woods, but I don't see a good reason for it today.  I know some use ash today, but I feel about the same with it.  In my mind, it pretty hard to beat a good piece of maple.

[caliber45]

OK, folks, as long as we're on the subject, may I add two more possibles? Anybody ever seen a stock made of persimmon? Very dense (used in golf clubs) and dark. It grows in Indiana and elsewhere in the Midwest. How about ironwood? Grows in Arizona, gorgeous, reddish, so dense (and heavy; sigh) it -- like ebony -- doesn't float in water. Any examples? -- paulallen, tucson az.

[Jim Kibler]

I have a friend that is using a piece of persimon to stock a rifle and he regrets the choice.  He's generally pretty adventurous with using different types of wood and has not found the persimon to be a good experience.  His biggest gripe so far is that it's moving around an awful lot.  Seems to lack stability.

[DutchGramps]

I made a free rifle stock using elm; worked very well

[Dave B]

I had to remove a Dog wood tree  and thought it would make interesting  project wood. It was cut up into planks an let cure in the shop. This stuff was a lot more dense than I thought. It could be used I would think to make a pistol out of. It reminds me of pear wood, having a very close grain and responding well to the blades of my planer. It would be a dream to carve.

[Rasch Chronicles]

Fellows,

Yeah, I got to thinking, and though I didn't realize that chestnut was so soft, I wondered how many hickory or pecan stocks there might be. I made a small block plane out of hickory some 20 years ago and it's been pretty stable. Albeit it is rather small.  I figured oak might be too coarse, and it might move more than desireable. I forgot about elm, it's pretty straight grained and slick.

Thanks guys!

Best Regards,
Albert A Rasch In Afghanistan™
Scouting for Hogs, Chronicles Style!

[northmn]

I made the fowler out of a birch I cut myself.  Birch has been used in modern guns but is a little softer than some maples.  One European contributer called that figure fire birch which is desirable for guns and furniture over there. I have seen quite a bit of curl and figure in birch firewood.  Unfortunately that piece only had it at the stump.  Aspens also can have some interesting figure and might work in a non carved gun.  Again a bit soft.

DP

[northmn]

One other point I may make.  I have no suitable maple for a gunstock, hickory or other woods on my place.  I could go white oak as I have some of them large enough.  Its too cold in my area for most of the gun wood trees.  Choice of woods likely depended upon that more so in early days than now as I can mail order woods. Many areas do not have birch for instance.

DP

[Ben I. Voss]

Couple of years ago at the gunmakers hall at Friendship, someone had a very nice poorboy style rifle with a mulberry stock. Looked perfectly suitable.

[Dan'l 1946]

I've seen a number of guns stocked in apple and even pear wood. I've only ever seen one oak stocked fowler/musket and it was heavy as sin and not very attractive.  Red oak I think it was.

[whitebear]

Years ago a friend bought a rifle at Friendship with a stock of cedar.  He paid almost nothing for it and planned to restock it.  Before going to bed he stripped the metal from the stock and threw the stock in the campfire.  Some friends (not me) returned the stock, put out the fire, reassembled the gun and put a note on it about how hot the gun shot that day.  Everyone had a good laugh.

[Jim Kibler]

Good choices for stock wood:  The big three are Maple, cherry, walnut.  Ocasionally suitable pieces of other fruitwood can be found (apple pear etc.)  Pear wood works incredibly well.  Not sure if I've encountered a better wood to carve.  Personally I don't believe I would use any wood other than those mentioned above.

[whitebear]

I think Kendig mentions a few rifles stocked in fruit wood.

Good choices for stock wood:  The big three are Maple, cherry, walnut.  Ocasionally suitable pieces of other fruitwood can be found (apple pear etc.)  Pear wood works incredibly well.  Not sure if I've encountered a better wood to carve.  Personally I don't believe I would use any wood other than those mentioned above.

[woodsrunner]

Notes from the Resident Forester  ....USDA Agricultural Handbook #72, "Wood Handbook, Wood As An  Engineering Material" will give you all of the data that you could ever want on all species of native woods used in the lumber trade as well as most if not all tropical species. Everything that you could ever want to know and compare is here. For example: The ability of Persimmon wood fibers to withstand sudden shock is tops on the list. Golf club heads were often made of Persimmon for this reason. Dogwood has about the tightest grain of all native woods. Thread spindles in cotton mills were usually made from Dogwood because of this. Chestnut is highly rot resistant-or was. It's all gone now. So is Black Locust highly rot resistant, and it is also the most dimensionally stable wood of all American species. I've always thought that a chunkgun stock out of Black Locust would be about perfect! No movement ever-hot, cold, wet, dry-No Movement! I'm sure that there are several tropical hardwood species that would be superior for stock material. The "Wood Handbook" will give engineering data on these for comparison. I think maybe Wayne Dunlap may even have some of these high-end species in his inventory.

[Rasch Chronicles]

Goex,

Red Oak!?!? Wow...

That must have been a real interesting piece...

Though I suppose if it was well executed, and took advantage of the straight grain it would be ok, I guess. But it is such a porous wood, how would you seal it?...

Really interesting stuff guys.

I'm thinking chunk gun and Live Oak!

Best Regards,
Albert A Rasch In Afghanistan™
Scouting for Hogs, Chronicles Style!

[Kermit]

When he was working in Oregon a few decades ago, Steven Dodd Hughes sometimes used our native madrone (arbutus for you guys in B.C.), and they looked great. It's pretty tough to find a hunk that will work for a long gun. Hard to get dry and even harder to get stable. Woodturners hereabouts like to turn it green and then watch it as it twists and turns into amazing shapes as it dries.

I've liked the curly ash stocks I've seen. Wasn't there a gun shown here that had a stock of sassafrass or some such?

[hoochiepapa]

I used to have a rifle stock made by a well known gunsmith in the '50s (CF) that was mesquite. In my ignorance I threw it in the trash.

[mountainman70]

Alright y'all'how about american poplar?It is used in furniture,especially in my trade,pipe organs,as a main support and wind chest wood.I am thinking about building a pistol or two with it to see how it works on this.Using big saws and planers,it works fine.How about it,any one ever try this?Dave

[Herb]

I built a .40 caplock for a cabinet maker friend, based on a Jerman Jordan rifle (Ohio Longrifles, Volume II, page 56).  He wanted it make from Chinese Elm and he did not want it stained.  I also built the other two rifles here.

The Chinese elm had interesting figure and worked pretty good.

[Rasch Chronicles]

Herb!

That one rocks! Very unique and attractive even if not HC.

Does anyone else have some out of the ordinary stocks to show off?

Best Regards,
Albert A Rasch In Afghanistan™
Scouting for Hogs, Chronicles Style!

[Stophel]

Yellow Poplar, though it can be quite colorful, is way too soft for rifle stocking.

[Gaeckle]

I have seen a rifle stocked in Hackberry and I have two blanks of that stuff. I also have a very old halfstock that is an original (it's just the stock, nothing else) that is pine!

Don't know if it's curly pine, but it's pine.....