Curly Yellow Birch

[Old Ford2]

Hi Guys,
I have a very nice piece of Curly Yellow Birch, and would like to make a .69 cal. Hawken flint half stock, with a .69 cal. pistol to accompany it.
I have used birch for furniture, and it is great, but I have never used it for a gunstock.
I chose this piece for it's beauty.
I did choose this piece of wood for it's brilliant curl, but not to save a dime.
I do realize that it is harder than cherry, or walnut, but not as hard as maple.
I would appreciate your opinions as to it's success.
Any help would be appreciated.
Fred

[moleeyes36]

Some of the mass produced, imported ML gun kits use birch for stocks.  When I lived in Europe I saw some very handsome stocks made with birch, which is common over there.  I've never used it on a stock myself and have no idea how hard it is to work with or if it would work out if you wanted to do some relief carving on it.  I'm sure others here on the forum have had first hand experience with it. 

Mole Eyes

[Acer Saccharum]

Birch very commonly used for 19th century military gunstocks in Europe.

[Virginiarifleman]

I have looked over several what we call Home Rifles here in the Apalachians circa late 1800's early 1900's with birch stocks.

[jamesthomas]

 If its as curly has you say I would make a full stock rifle out of it if I could and I thought that the Flintlock Hawkens were full stock rifles. To me a half stock looks unfinished.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I have only one experience stocking in birch.  It was a butt stock and forearm for a hammered double 12 gauge (cartridge gun).  The wood is much softer and more difficult to get clean inlets that walnut or maple, but in the end, with very delicate and careful work, I got a decent gun.  I would not recommend it.

[JTR]

Sell the wood to Rolf! 

John

[Robby]

I've used yellow birch, I think, to make arrow shafts. Makes a good arrow, a touch brittle. The few planks I have worked, again I think it is yellow birch, some had striking figure in them and didn't loose it in the finishing, and some figured stuff seemed to loose much of it when stain was applied, kind of muddied up. Seems like the right species and the right piece could be made into a nice stock.
Robby

[Dphariss]

Birch very commonly used for 19th century military gunstocks in Europe.

And bottom of the barrel, base line firearms to this day. I would not use it to stock a Hawken or anything else for that matter.
I can't see putting a lot of work into a cheap piece of wood. Some painfully plain rifles of the past have really nice curly maple stocks.
Dan

[Dan Fruth]

Shumway's book RCA vol. 2 has a birch stocked rifle pictured, and at the end of the book there is an inventory from the gun shop at Christian's spring that lists several birch stock blanks. Birch was definately used for stocks.
 Dan

[KLMoors]

There must be different kinds of Birch.  I installed a floor once that was a very hard type of birch.  I don't recall what they called it, but it was definitely birch.  Beautiful floor by the way.

[jamesthomas]

Birch very commonly used for 19th century military gunstocks in Europe.

And bottom of the barrel, base line firearms to this day. I would not use it to stock a Hawken or anything else for that matter.
I can't see putting a lot of work into a cheap piece of wood. Some painfully plain rifles of the past have really nice curly maple stocks.
Dan

  Just because it isn't a grade 6 piece of Maple is no reason to call it cheap, how much it cost him he didn't say, could have got it on a trade. I also don't think a piece of birch as curly as he is describing would be used on a bottom of the barrel firearm of today. I would like to see some pictures of the piece myself.

[Kermit]

There must be different kinds of Birch.

Lots. It grows pretty much around the world in the northern hemisphere. I remember reading that there were about 40 kinds, but then heard that it's nearly double that. Then there are the ornamental hybrids called "birch." So, bottom line, saying "birch" is like saying "maple." Which one might we talking about?

[Dphariss]

Shumway's book RCA vol. 2 has a birch stocked rifle pictured, and at the end of the book there is an inventory from the gun shop at Christian's spring that lists several birch stock blanks. Birch was definately used for stocks.
 Dan

I did not say it was not used. Its still being used on cheap guns. Gun racks at gun shops  show them all the time both centerfire and rimfire.  I said I would not use it.  As an example, there are original guns that are horridly malformed and ugly. I don't choose to reproduce these either.

Dan

[Rolf]

I did not say it was not used. Its still being used on cheap guns. Gun racks at gun shops  show them all the time both centerfire and rimfire.  I said I would not use it.  As an example, there are original guns that are horridly malformed and ugly. I don't choose to reproduce these either.

Dan

Flame brich was used for a lot for high end guns in scandinavia.  You'll find pictures of them below. Don't think they look to schabby.

Best regards
Rolf

[Kermit]

Go for it, Fred. There's your inspiration. If Runar can reproduce an American gun, surely you can reproduce a Scandinavian gun.
 

[Dphariss]

I did not say it was not used. Its still being used on cheap guns. Gun racks at gun shops  show them all the time both centerfire and rimfire.  I said I would not use it.  As an example, there are original guns that are horridly malformed and ugly. I don't choose to reproduce these either.

Dan

Flame brich was used for a lot for high end guns in scandinavia.  You'll find pictures of them below. Don't think they look to schabby.

Best regards
Rolf

Sigh...
I don't make Scandinavian guns.
I do not see Birch as a proper wood for a good grade American rifle especially a Kentucky.  I don't even particularly like American Walnut for Kentuckys though I would not say I would not use it since I have in the past.  I build Kentucky rifles because I like them. I like Curly Hard Maple. Its a good traditional wood for this purpose and I have used it on Breechloaders as well. So far as the ugly guns comment. This has nothing at all to do with stock wood. I used it as an example of things I try not to do. I have seen pictured here or elsewhere on the WWW a very nice rifle stocked in Curly Hickory.  I would not use Hickory either but the rifle had really good lines. To me unless there is something really strange going on the wood used does not make a rifle handsome or ugly. Its the shaping, the flow of the lines and the execution that make or break a Kentucky rifle.

Dan

[smylee grouch]

You asked for opinons and you have several.  Cast me in with the dont use it bunch. Good hard maple is the way I would go. You no dought will get more responses to help or hinder your selection process.

[Virginiarifleman]

I have noticed several rifles at the Tip cutis tent at trade fairs with curly ash stocks.But no Birch Wood.

[Clark Badgett]

Yellow birch is just fine for rifle stocks. Was it the prefered material over in this country? No, but it can be quite nice looking if you want something to your taste. Yellow birch was used more than many want to admit on military stocks. I even saw an 1863 Springfield rifled musket at a CW show in Nashville many, many moons ago that I would bet my paycheck had a yellow birch stock. And I actually like my birch M14 stocks

[Darrin McDonal]

If it's as good and hard as you say, there would absolutely no reason not to use it. It's president in gun stocks already and besides, what have you got to loose for trying it?
Darrin

[Kermit]

Be sure to save your scraps and offcuts to use for finishing trials, Fred. Without a sealer of some sort BEFORE the stain, birch can get blotchy because the wood can take stains differently from place to place. You might try dewaxed shellac as a first coat.

[Dan Fruth]

I once contemplated building a piece of furniture using some walnut of questionable quality. An old school builder gave me some great advice....He said "The price of the wood you use for a project is quite small when you consider the time it takes to build your project...so don't skimp...you will always regret it"

Dan

[Mike Brooks]

I have used it. It was used in Colonial america on a limited basis as well as by the French in Canada.
 It's harder than some walnut I have used. I wish I could find some more!

[redheart]

Do the thumbnail test for hardness.
If you find that it's soft, you may regret using it unless it's going to be mostly a wallhanger!
I the grain swirls in the grip area you may really regret using it!
I've seen birch that's very hard and some that's almost as soft as balsa wood.
It depends on the individual trees species, environment and genetics, or so I've been told.
I always love the way Dan lays it on the line without candy coating anything.
I've got to agree with him.