My Kibler SMR Build Log

Please take at least a little advice from the people trying to help and round off the heads of those pins. You're only going to cause more damage to your expensive kit by being impatient and not rounding them off even if they're not the final pins you end up using. Chuck them up in a drill and spin them on a file for a little with each pin and you won't cause more damage to the stock with the pins.

I was going to make a helpful post but I ran out of energy. My advice would have been ignored anyway.

Collie said:

... Chuck them up in a drill and spin them on a file for a little with each pin and you won't cause more damage to the stock with the pins.

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That's exactly what I do. I just do it on one end only: the end that goes in. The other end is going to get clipped off, and when it does, I'll round it as well. As mentioned in a previous post, in the pics you're seeing the non-rounded ends.

Jeez Louise. Who knew that muzzleloader builders could be so catty? It's like Mean Girls on this thread.

All these negative, non-constructive comments are ruining the sense of community here, at least for me. Let the guy build his rifle.

Here is how this sort of thing is supposed to work. You buy the kit and realize it may be beyond your level of skill. You then go to the internet and ask for advice about how to do each operation BEFORE you attempt to do it, not after when you screw it all up doing it your way. There is no shame in asking for help when it is time to do so.

Comfortably_Numb said:

Here is how this sort of thing is supposed to work. You buy the kit and realize it may be beyond your level of skill. You then go to the internet and ask for advice about how to do each operation BEFORE you attempt to do it, not after when you screw it all up doing it your way. There is no shame in asking for help when it is time to do so.

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Mike, my point was that this man should be able to make mistakes and ask for help without being s**t on by all and sundry. I thought this place was better than that. Clearly, I made a mistake too.

Yes, it is repairable. And it may never be noticeable. You have gotten some good advice. Understand how you have gotten to this point. Know that everyone has things happen. Maybe you need this experience to teach you. I also seem to learn the hard way sometimes. It will be okay.

Just cut it off and make it a half stock...

Only kidding, sorry I just couldn't resist.

Build Log Update

Cracking On With It

I was given advice by another member via pm that a product called "Starbond" was more suitable for my crack repair application than Titebond if I was going to oil my stock. Yes, I am, and that's the advice I'm investigating because it correlates with a discussion on another forum I remember reading that wood glues weren't the best choice for oiled stocks. I don't remember the reason; I think it was because the oil degrades the glue over time. But don't quote me on that.

I'm also looking into a way to reinforce the forearm by gluing paper to the interior. I used this technique once before to reinforce a crack repair, but don't remember exactly what it was (I think maybe a grip?) I'm looking at using cigarette paper because it's very thin but quite strong and resistance to lateral force for its thickness and weight, and can be used kind of like glass and epoxy, I guess.



So, while I'm a big fan boy of Titebond III, and I concur with, appreciate and am grateful for the various advices recommending its use, I'm going to try something new, if it works well for me. To discover that, first I need to get some practice using the Starbond and also try out my cigarette paper reinforcement idea before I proceed with the crack repair, and may not post another update until ready to do that.

Build Log Update

By Cracky!!

This was just so damn cool that I just had to break my promise not to post another update.

I've been playing with the Starbond product to determine if it's the right approach for my stock crack repair.

The Starbond comes with some teeny tiny applicator tips perfect for injecting product into a tiny crack:


I started with a sample of walnut on hand:


... then created a crack in it:


... to simulate a tiny crack in a stock forend. With the test piece protected from gluing to my work table using wax paper, I then injected the Starbond into the crack with the applicator, allowed it settle, and injected some more:


... hit it with accelerator spray:


... discovered the opposite side also needed a little extra fill plus accelerator:


... waited only moments for it to harden, then filed and sanded:


Then to test, I tried flexing the sample piece to break the bond and it did not break. This whole process from setup to flex test literally took about five minutes.

The cigarette paper test also seemed to work quite well:


There's no way to know how much strength it adds, but it does serve to bond the entire surface, so it's got to be something. And in exchange adds virtually no thickness. Something for nothing is good.

Amazing!!

I'm sold. Tomorrow I'll pick up a bottle of the brown for a better match.

Thanks to the member that recommended this product.

And that is what you want?

Rich44 said:

And that is what you want?

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Unless you have good reasons why not. Practical reasons, not prejudice. Remember my main criterion is functionality, not authenticity. I don't care what it looks like on the inside, so long as it works.

O.K.

For grins and giggles, snap that piece of walnut again. Glue and clamp it with Titebond, Titebond II, or any quality wood glue. Let it dry. Sand and see how visible it is compared to that colored Starbond product.

Bucolic Buffalo said:

....Sand and see how visible it is compared to that colored Starbond product.

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Well, I'll get the brown tinted today and try it again with the lighter color before making final decision. Maybe I'll also get some clear and try it with that. Test crack still holding strong and firm this morning.

Bucolic Buffalo said:

For grins and giggles, snap that piece of walnut again. Glue and clamp it with Titebond, Titebond II, or any quality wood glue. Let it dry. Sand and see how visible it is compared to that colored Starbond product.

Click to expand...

Thanks, don't need to do that. Plenty of experience working with Titebond and other wood glue products, and know how they behave. That being said, though, no experience with work so delicate and precise as this forearm repair. Most of my projects and experience more along the lines of this little number:


... and BTW, as a gun person, I'm sure you know the significance of that piece. No extra credit for gun people that know, but minus points for those that do not.

I have several guns like that, but they are loaded and ready to go, not wired to the wall in a picture frame. So, minus points for me.

I don’t understand the significance of the snubbie mounted in a frame. Your tax dollars paid me to carry a firearm for 28 years.
??