Kibler SMR stock?

[bender-bending]

I’m trying to figure out where I would need to remove wood or metal to close this gap.

Any recommendations?

[smylee grouch]

Use some type of transfer color and remove the transfer print by scraping.

[bender-bending]

Use some type of transfer color and remove the transfer print by scraping.

I’ve been, you can actually see transfer color on the stock in the top photo.  The problem is, it fits perfect everywhere else, and I’m at the point where I don’t want to sacrifice another area(accidentally) trying to get this small area to close up. 

I figured someone with a little more geometry knowledge might see what area of the stock or buttplate needs to be adjusted to bring that specific area in.

[HighUintas]

I would peen the gap closed with a hammer. That's what I did with a very similar gap on my single butt plate install. My experience level is 1 buttplate

[J. Talbert]

These are the areas I would expect to see color transfer which needs to be removed.
Do not remove any wood from the horizontal surface of the BP return.




You just want the whole thing to move forward That last 1/64 to 1/32”.
Things get a little tedious at this point.
Patience and persistence will get it done.
I’d also say that I have had little luck trying to peen a cast steel BP.  (It works well for soft brass however. But stay away from the toe.  The wood there is likely to give way before the brass .   
Good luck,
Jeff

[Stoner creek]

Don’t use an aggressive cut rasp or file. Easy does it. Patience, it’ll get there.

[VA HUNTER]

The Kibler SMR buttplate is a casting, you won't move much metal by peening and could damage the stock.

I had the same issue on my SMR, I gained some improvement by removing wood from the comb vertical cut allowing the the top of the buttplate to move forward. I was concerned that I might have to plug and re-drill the two vertical screw holes in the stock but the forward shift was minimal.

A tiny gap remained and I burnished the wood in the direction of the gap with a hardwood dowel, not tapping the dowel like a punch but rolling the rounded edge to swell the wood. The gap filled in very well. The slight marks in the wood from burnishing were removed by the final sanding of the stock.

Jim Kibler is a great resource on these minor fit issues, I am sure he could offer even more solutions.

[Jim Kibler]

I think you are on the right track and it's not too far off.  The advise given has been good in my view.  Just take your time and all should work out well.  We often have customers concerned about hole locations not aligning, but if you don't get crazy with wood removal they will be fine.  We also intentionally try to offset holes to pull the plate in the proper directions.

Jim

[LucasMcCain]

Just purchased a couple of Mr. Kibler's longrifles and joined here to read and learn "before" I do something I might regret. Really enjoy the pictures and advice! Great forum!

[Eric Krewson]

Wet the wood and hit it with a steam iron and a damp washcloth, this will close the gaps to some degree, it has been my experience that the cracks won't open back up as the wood dries back out if the wood has been compressed somewhat by the initial filing and fitting.

[bender-bending]

Thank you for all of the responses, and to the man himself!

Didn’t want everyone to think I abandoned the thread, but I’ve been taking my time using the advice provided here to work on the stock.

I’ll be honest, it got much worse looking as I progressed, and I started getting nervous.  As of this morning it’s starting to get better, so I have hope again. 

I was actually focused on the vertica section on the top of the buttplate(the forward most point of the buttplate itself).
It wasn’t until I realized I needed to move the ENTIRE thing forward that I started seeing progress. 
Thanks to the responses that made me realize that.
As I would take remove material more gaps started showing, so it got kind of ugly, until it all uniformly moved.


Something of note, for me anyway, the SMR has actually been a little tougher than the colonial kit I did a few years ago.  I’m not sure exactly why. 
It’s actually funny since there is far more already completed in this kit compared to the colonial from a few years ago.

[Fly Navy]

The butt plates on SMR's can be tricky to fit sometimes.

[bender-bending]

Well I’m happy with where it is at this point, thank you everyone again!

I also did the toe plate today.

[J. Talbert]

Looks like an excellent result.

Nice job,
Jeff

[Joey R]

Bravo!!

[DCVJR]

Do these kits include toe plates?

[Eric Krewson]

The kits don't come with a toe plate but they are a nice addition. I put this one on a SMR I put together.

[bender-bending]

Thank you guys!

As Eric said, no these kits don’t include a toe plate.  I picked up a few from TOtW, and picked the one I liked most(which ended up being the very plain standard rectangle lol).

I’m finishing up the last few coats of finish on the stock and will be doing the final assembly in the next couple days. 

I’ll post up some photos of the completed rifle then.

[moleeyes36]

Toe plates and patch boxes that are correct for this type rifle are easy to do and add a nice touch.  I built one of these SMRs when Jim first came out with them several years ago.  I only got about 20 shots out of it before someone with a nice bank account convinced me he REALLY wanted it  .  Click on the photos to enlarge.

Don Richards