This stock was a possibly 40+ year old pre-shaped piece from a stock shaper north of Williamsport , Pa.. Anyway...Not sure how many hands it passed through until me. Also , The wood had a bad fracture running through mid-forearm to about lower end of r/r hole . The r/r hole ran out touching the bottom barrel flat. to one side. The rifle is a flint lock gun and needed a front lock bolt. The end of the misdrilled r/r hole blocked the position of the bolt. The only reason to bother w/ fixing the stock is it a beyond exceptional PPPP+ grade of hard curly maple.
The fix...1. Enlarged the existing 3/8" r/r channel 1/16 " toward the lower center line of the stock.
2. Install the entry r/r pipe on center of stock center line. 3. Next...major surgery...Flip the stock over , come 3" down the misdrilled channel from the entry pipe and remove the wood in the forestock to bottom of miscreant r/r channel. Using a 3/8" r/r hole drill inserted through the 3/8" entry pipe as a guide , drill out the errant 3" 's of wood behind the entry pipe into the void we created in the forearm. 4. This is where the purists in the group swoon....From the local hobby store , lay a correctly cut to length piece of 3/8 " thin walled brass tubing in position where the r/r hole should have been drilled. 5. Epoxie glass bed the barrel back in it's channel using 5 min. epoxie. Instead of messy and expensive glass bedding fluid , since this is a m/l rifle barrel , cut and tape a piece of plastic grocery store bag to allow the barrel to be easily removed from barrel channel. Once the epoxie has set , and the barrel is easily removed , the grocery bag release agent can be pulled from the channel.
The above mentioned break in the forestock also was corrected as an additional benefit w/ Misdrilled ramrod hole fixed. A full 3/8 " r/r may be inserted , and front lock screw used.
The repairs are invisible to the casual viewer of the rifle , however I won't sell a rifle w/ an unorthodox repair like this one. I'll find a need for a good .50 cal. deer rifle somewhere. oldwood
The fix...1. Enlarged the existing 3/8" r/r channel 1/16 " toward the lower center line of the stock.
2. Install the entry r/r pipe on center of stock center line. 3. Next...major surgery...Flip the stock over , come 3" down the misdrilled channel from the entry pipe and remove the wood in the forestock to bottom of miscreant r/r channel. Using a 3/8" r/r hole drill inserted through the 3/8" entry pipe as a guide , drill out the errant 3" 's of wood behind the entry pipe into the void we created in the forearm. 4. This is where the purists in the group swoon....From the local hobby store , lay a correctly cut to length piece of 3/8 " thin walled brass tubing in position where the r/r hole should have been drilled. 5. Epoxie glass bed the barrel back in it's channel using 5 min. epoxie. Instead of messy and expensive glass bedding fluid , since this is a m/l rifle barrel , cut and tape a piece of plastic grocery store bag to allow the barrel to be easily removed from barrel channel. Once the epoxie has set , and the barrel is easily removed , the grocery bag release agent can be pulled from the channel.
The above mentioned break in the forestock also was corrected as an additional benefit w/ Misdrilled ramrod hole fixed. A full 3/8 " r/r may be inserted , and front lock screw used.
The repairs are invisible to the casual viewer of the rifle , however I won't sell a rifle w/ an unorthodox repair like this one. I'll find a need for a good .50 cal. deer rifle somewhere. oldwood
