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Stock crack in .32

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So I just built this CVA squirrel .32 with my son and it turned out to be a real shooter. Nothing fancy but it works great. We did some shooting the past two days, only loaded it with 20 grains of powder so no serious loads. But after cleaning it I noticed that there is a crack in the stock. Right behind the tang screw.. it’s not big deal I mean it’s a hunting rifle so that doesn’t bother me but I’m wondering why it happened? Yes I did get some cleaning Solution on it I use murphy’s oil soap rubbing alcohol and peroxide and never had an issue. I will say when my lock is out the breech plug will wiggle a little, it’s a hook breech, but I didn’t think with such a light load that would matter. For all I know it could just be a bad spot in the wood.. any thoughts on why it might have happened? I know we’re not going to possibly know for sure but at least something I can do to keep it from cracking out. It doesn’t look deep
 

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So I just built this CVA squirrel .32 with my son and it turned out to be a real shooter. Nothing fancy but it works great. We did some shooting the past two days, only loaded it with 20 grains of powder so no serious loads. But after cleaning it I noticed that there is a crack in the stock. Right behind the tang screw.. it’s not big deal I mean it’s a hunting rifle so that doesn’t bother me but I’m wondering why it happened? Yes I did get some cleaning Solution on it I use murphy’s oil soap rubbing alcohol and peroxide and never had an issue. I will say when my lock is out the breech plug will wiggle a little, it’s a hook breech, but I didn’t think with such a light load that would matter. For all I know it could just be a bad spot in the wood.. any thoughts on why it might have happened? I know we’re not going to possibly know for sure but at least something I can do to keep it from cracking out. It doesn’t look deep
The crack could be from a stress fracture in the wood that was just waiting to open up. If your able to see or get at the crack from the lock inlet I'd douse it good with thin super glue. And run some in from the tang inlet too. If you can't reach the crack through the lock inlet I'd put painters tape on either side and the rear of crack and try to get as much as you in from the top. The tape should minimize damage to your finish. I'd have a couple of hand clamps or a padded vise standing by to put a little pressure on the stock after you've glued all you can.
 
So I might have found the issue, my tang screw was tight against the wood, I’m wondering if that is what caused the pressure after firing to cause the small crack? I removed some wood and now the screw doesn’t come in contact with the wood
 

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So I might have found the issue, my tang screw was tight against the wood, I’m wondering if that is what caused the pressure after firing to cause the small crack? I removed some wood and now the screw doesn’t come in contact with the wood
Yes, there could be a bind there. Take a small chisel or xacto knife and trim the wood in the lock inlet were the bolt is rubbing. Just enough so it doesn't rub.
 
Yes, there could be a bind there. Take a small chisel or xacto knife and trim the wood in the lock inlet were the bolt is rubbing. Just enough so it doesn't rub.
I did just that and now the screw goes in much easier, it might have created just enough pressure to cause it
 
Super glue is not stock glue.


OP.

Get some Tite-Bond III, waterproof, wood glue. Carefully wedge that crack open with some toothpicks and force as much glue in there as you can.

A thinned popsicle stick or thin sliver of wood will allow you to push glue into the crack. Don't break it off in the repair area.

Before you do any of this, look very carefully at how you want to clamp it. Soft jaws are a must. Mock up your clamping technique prior to gluing. This way you won't be fumbling around thinking about how you're going to clamp it while the glue is setting up.

Once clamped, wait 24 hours or more for the glue to fully harden.

Good luck.


P.S. This style clamp is great.
 

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Well that just sucks with a new build. Personally I'd take out the JB WELD job and bed the breech plug and barrel. PM me if you want me to help walk you through it.
 
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Super glue is not stock glue.


OP.

Get some Tite-Bond III, waterproof, wood glue. Carefully wedge that crack open with some toothpicks and force as much glue in there as you can.

A thinned popsicle stick or thin sliver of wood will allow you to push glue into the crack. Don't break it off in the repair area.

Before you do any of this, look very carefully at how you want to clamp it. Soft jaws are a must. Mock up your clamping technique prior to gluing. This way you won't be fumbling around thinking about how you're going to clamp it while the glue is setting up.

Once clamped, wait 24 hours or more for the glue to fully harden.

Good luck.


P.S. This style clamp is great.
Fine cracks and seasoned cracks are perfect for thin super glue, Loctite Ultra Liquid Control Super Glue is a good one for off the shelf. The thin glue actually wicks its way deep into the crack/void, majority of the time completely filling the void. I know more than a couple of high end custom stock makers for rifles and shotguns who not only use it, but suggested I use it to repair a thin crack I had on a $5,000 O/U shotgun buttstock where it met the receiver. Blends in fine, can't tell unless you point it out to someone. The crack blends in with the grain line of the stock, and after several thousand rounds, it has shown no sign of failure. For a crack that the OP has shown in his photo, it would be perfect for the repair. If you try to wedge it open with a toothpick or popsicle stick, all your going to do is split the wood further.
 
Murphy's Oil Soap, though marketed as suitable for wood floors, is NOT really a good choice for that purpose. It is mostly water and will soak into unfinished wood. If you used it to clean the stock, then you got it wet. I will have swelled up... possibly cracking in the process... and then it would have dried, with potential for another crack. It also leaves residue behind that makes it difficult to put a finish over.

Use commercial strippers, solvents and such, but don't use water on a gun stock if you can avoid it.

Not saying for sure what DID cause the crack, just giving you potential causes... and there might well be more than one or even several combinations.
 
I went through your previous build posts looking at your photos. CVA didn't appear to leave you much wood to work with in the area of the breech. And appears that you removed a substantial amount of wood from the little you started with. The angle of the tang screw appears to indicate the trigger plate being to far back.
To get back to a serviceable rifle you will have to stabilize the hooked breech plug. Apart from that, no amount of glue will fix your crack.
 
I went through your previous build posts looking at your photos. CVA didn't appear to leave you much wood to work with in the area of the breech. And appears that you removed a substantial amount of wood from the little you started with. The angle of the tang screw appears to indicate the trigger plate being to far back.
To get back to a serviceable rifle you will have to stabilize the hooked breech plug. Apart from that, no amount of glue will fix your crack.
Im not saying your wrong not at all so please don’t take it that why but what I can’t understand is I’m only using 20 grains of 3f there is very little recoil. The wrist of the gun has more wood then most of my smokeless guns that kick a lot more.. if it is the breech how do I go about stabilizing it?
 
Bedding compound. All around the lock screw, tang bolt, breech area minimum. Movement of tang pressed the bolt forming the crack.

Hate that it happened to you. Did your lock dictate removing so much wood in the lock area exposing both bolts?
 
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Boy, that’s an unfortunate crack on a new build.

Personally, not a fan of fasteners like Super Glue or Tite Bond for repairs of the type of crack you have. In a non stress area, they work fine, but something is stressing your stock. Problem I have with Super Glue and Tite Bond is while they can hold a repair, when they fail, they do not bond to old repairs of the same, while a product like Acraglas and similar products are made to bond to itself. Learned this the hard way.

As others have suggested, I would start by removing the JB Weld, then bed the breech plug (make sure you have at least .010” clearance at the end of the tang) and breech area of the barrel with something like Acraglas. With the amount of wood you have removed, it will require some creative damning to accomplish, but very doable. I also agree with the tang screws not touching any wood (or bedding).

On to how to strengthen the stock. I have repaired quite few stocks with similar cracks, though mostly Milsurp stocks. Below are photographs of a 100 plus year old stock with a similar crack (unfortunately I do not have photographs of other stocks that were much worse) that I reinforced with a threaded brass rod. Ugly and visible, but effective. Basically, after the above steps are taken in an attempt to eliminate the cause, a threaded rod is run across the crack through the stock. I drill a hole that allows for about 70% threads, and use the threaded brass rod (10-32, coated with Acraglas, in this example) to cut the threads in the stock. I have seen similar reinforcements from years ago. Seems to work. The stock in the photographs has endured nearly 1000 high power centerfire rifle rounds without failure to date.

Above might be overkill, but with the wood you have removed from the stock for the aftermarket lock, doubt you will get a replacement stock under warranty on a kit gun.

And yes, my repair will require a stock refinish, not much different from the finishing process you just experienced. But I believe it will fix your problem.
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Super glue is not stock glue.
Get some Tite-Bond III, waterproof, wood glue. Carefully wedge that crack open with some toothpicks and force as much glue in there as you can.
Agree completely. I would consider using a rod, preferably brass through the stock as well. It will show, but I consider things like this part of the story of the life of the rifle. And, with a low cost factory made rifle you will not affect value.
 
So I just built this CVA squirrel .32 with my son and it turned out to be a real shooter. Nothing fancy but it works great. We did some shooting the past two days, only loaded it with 20 grains of powder so no serious loads. But after cleaning it I noticed that there is a crack in the stock. Right behind the tang screw.. it’s not big deal I mean it’s a hunting rifle so that doesn’t bother me but I’m wondering why it happened? Yes I did get some cleaning Solution on it I use murphy’s oil soap rubbing alcohol and peroxide and never had an issue. I will say when my lock is out the breech plug will wiggle a little, it’s a hook breech, but I didn’t think with such a light load that would matter. For all I know it could just be a bad spot in the wood.. any thoughts on why it might have happened? I know we’re not going to possibly know for sure but at least something I can do to keep it from cracking out. It doesn’t look deep
There is a crazy glue for wood you can get at certain hobby shops which seeps into the crack and then clamping the stock. I've repaired one using that stuff a couple of years ago and cannot remember the name got the idea from a wood working friend who repairs stocks. The hobby shop I got it from closed so I'll try to figure out what it's called.
The other stock was my bother in laws 6.5x55 Swede. It was in two pieces so I used an external wood glue and clamped it. He's been using it ever since with no problems. Maybe if the crack is big enough getting some glue in that crack with a feather or something like that.
 

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