I agree with Dave B, you can not learn good stock architecture from a book. The books will give you a lot of layout tips and the steps to get you to fit all the parts together but to make a stock fit you or someone else is hard to relay in text form. The best thing is to find a rifle that fits you well and use it as a patern. There are a few paterns available that are full scale but they will not fit your meausrements. Then there is the feel and understanding that you receive when you handle originals, this can not be put in book form.
I have been building since the early 70's and the only thing I have really learned is that I have a whole lot more to learn. I have enjoyed building and I built my 3rd rifle from scratch. That first rifle from a blank did not have enough drop and I left way to much wood in the butt stock. You could not get down on the sights, the rifle looked OK and functioned well but you had to fight to see the sights.
I used Recreating the American Longrifle as my guide. I shold have spent more time on what is important to fit the stock to me and not just making a rifle that looked like a picture I had seen in a book.
I learned a lot building that rifle and I have built several since then but I always spend the needed time on the stock layout before starting a project. If you don't you will spend a lot of time building a rifle you are not happy with.
Good luck
Jim Parker
Calvary Longrifles
