Butt plate gaps

[cajun]

Was doing my butt plate tonight and for the most part came out ok. I do have a couple of small gaps one on each side. My "OCD" kicked in and basically wanted to see if someone had tried/can recommend a filler. Thanks Cajun.

 

[Tom A Hawk]

Nope. No filler. Only inletting black, a sharp scraper and a rawhide mallet. It ain't done.... till its done.

 

[cajun]

Nope. No filler. Only inletting black, a sharp scraper and a rawhide mallet. It ain't done.... till its done.

View attachment 122405 View attachment 122406

Thanks Tom A Hawk, think I'm going to need a sledgehammer for this butt plate got it from the Hawken's Shop and it's as think as armor on a tank!!! Again, thanks and will give it some more work in the morning!!!!

 

[Phil Coffins]

Filler is shoddy work, only used by people that don’t care enough about their work to do a good job. Tom A Hawk is doing good work but to get things moving a bit quicker I’d remove a fair amount of the wood on the contours inside the edges so it didn’t touch at all. This allows the edges to come in to contact much easier. I’ve done a fair number of butt plates of this type when I was doing it for a living and needing perfect fit in the shortest amount of time taught me that.

 

[cajun]

Filler is shoddy work, only used by people that don’t care enough about their work to do a good job. Tom A Hawk is doing good work but to get things moving a bit quicker I’d remove a fair amount of the wood on the contours inside the edges so it didn’t touch at all. This allows the edges to come in to contact much easier. I’ve done a fair number of butt plates of this type when I was doing it for a living and needing perfect fit in the shortest amount of time taught me that.

Thanks Phil I just finish reading a post explaining what you just stated. I'll give it a shot in the morning. Thanks Cajun!!!!

 

[Sidney Smith]

Filler is shoddy work, only used by people that don’t care enough about their work to do a good job. Tom A Hawk is doing good work but to get things moving a bit quicker I’d remove a fair amount of the wood on the contours inside the edges so it didn’t touch at all. This allows the edges to come in to contact much easier. I’ve done a fair number of butt plates of this type when I was doing it for a living and needing perfect fit in the shortest amount of time taught me that.

Ok, so if a person makes a mistake and takes off too much wood in an area. Using your logic if this person uses filler, he's doing crappy work and or doesn't care? BS! Nobody's perfect. Not everyone is a world class craftsman! Sometimes filler may just be required to fix imperfections that can't be removed any other way.

Slight gaps in butt plates can be made less noticeable by greasing the plate, adding a little epoxy to the area of the gap, then the plate is screwed in place. The slight gaps will all but disappear.

 

[Tom A Hawk]

When carefully working off high spots you're removing maybe 0.0005" at a time. Its slow tedious work but done this way never causes a gap that might need filling. Gaps are most likely the result of rushing and using an inappropriate tool that hogs off wood quickly. Slow and patient does the trick.

 

[Hatchet-Jack]

To get a tight fit you also need to know when to stop taking material off or you can fall into a cycle of cause and effect. When it's getting close constantly recheck it, look at it from every angle and decide what areas are touching that should touch and what needs to come off.

 

[Phil Coffins]

If you set your goals high you may not get there on the first try. But if you have low standards you will have no problems achieving them.

 

[frankie]

I agree with Phil. Just take your time. I use a dremmel with a metal cone tip one can get at a Lowes or home depot. If you want I can post a picture. I use Jarrows inletting black- sparingly. I put the black on with a toothbrush- again sparingly. I do stock work for a living and sometimes it takes me 4 to 6 hours to do a Butt plate. I can post a picture tomorrow if you want of the stuff I use. Remember the job you complete is the one you have to live with. I will help you anyway I can.

 

[deerstalkert]

the toughest part of fitting a Butt Plate when i started was knowing just where to take off material to achieve the needed effect.
like if the point of the plate angled up from the plane of the comb. the first one i lowered the comb inlet, before it dawned on me the toe had to shorten to drop the angle.
still struggle with the things. and most everything else.

 

[cajun]

I agree with Phil. Just take your time. I use a dremmel with a metal cone tip one can get at a Lowes or home depot. If you want I can post a picture. I use Jarrows inletting black- sparingly. I put the black on with a toothbrush- again sparingly. I do stock work for a living and sometimes it takes me 4 to 6 hours to do a Butt plate. I can post a picture tomorrow if you want of the stuff I use. Remember the job you complete is the one you have to live with. I will help you anyway I can.

Thanks Frankie and yes please post!!!

 

[cajun]

the toughest part of fitting a Butt Plate when i started was knowing just where to take off material to achieve the needed effect.
like if the point of the plate angled up from the plane of the comb. the first one i lowered the comb inlet, before it dawned on me the toe had to shorten to drop the angle.
still struggle with the things. and most everything else.

Yes, the struggle is real Deerstalkert!!!

 

[frankie]

Thanks Frankie and yes please post!!!

I will get my stuff out and take some photos tomorrow. This really works. I do lots of these in my job.

 

[Coinneach]

Was doing my butt plate tonight and for the most part came out ok. I do have a couple of small gaps one on each side. My "OCD" kicked in and basically wanted to see if someone had tried/can recommend a filler. Thanks Cajun.

Inletting the Butt plate is the most frustrating job for me, I've read that thinning down the inside edges of the Butt plate is a good technique to enable a light peening with a hammer; to close down the fit when the almost tiny gaps your photos show needs a final fit.
I'm about to do it on the Chambers kit I'm working on.

 

[Coinneach]

If you set your goals high you may not get there on the first try. But if you have low standards you will have no problems achieving them.

Indeed, I reckon its about what we as individuals want to accept as an easy compromise, or the best possible work we can achieve.
As for myself, when I take the easy path I'm never happy seeing the finished item, it leaves me with an abiding sense of personally inflicted failure.

 

[stikshooter]

Ok, so if a person makes a mistake and takes off too much wood in an area. Using your logic if this person uses filler, he's doing crappy work and or doesn't care? BS! Nobody's perfect. Not everyone is a world class craftsman! Sometimes filler may just be required to fix imperfections that can't be removed any other way.

Slight gaps in butt plates can be made less noticeable by greasing the plate, adding a little epoxy to the area of the gap, then the plate is screwed in place. The slight gaps will all but disappear.

Phil is correct ,your so wrong that's a Bubba fix ! If you need practice getting it right hit flea bay get cheap screwed up stocks and practice till you get it right ,whoa maybe not that's where bubba sells his ./Ed

 

[stikshooter]

Ok, so if a person makes a mistake and takes off too much wood in an area. Using your logic if this person uses filler, he's doing crappy work and or doesn't care? BS! Nobody's perfect. Not everyone is a world class craftsman! Sometimes filler may just be required to fix imperfections that can't be removed any other way.

Slight gaps in butt plates can be made less noticeable by greasing the plate, adding a little epoxy to the area of the gap, then the plate is screwed in place. The slight gaps will all but disappear.

Phil is correct ,your so wrong that's a Bubba fix ! If you need practice getting it right hit flea bay get cheap screwed up stocks and practice till you get it right ,whoa maybe not that's where bubba sells his ./Ed

 

[French Colonial]

1 tube of Prussian Blue will last it seems forever, use sharp chisels and shave off the high spots and do not get in a hurry and it will be worth it years from now when you pick it up and look at it.

 

[FlinterNick]

For this I would do the following, Peen the edges of the butt plate where the metal meets the wood until it expands enough for a tighter fit. Then when finishing the gun, keep the butt plate on the stock and use a good sealing oil that will work up a slurry with 150 -180 grit. I use Watco Danish Oil to seal wood, its a thin enough oil to really penetrate maple, cherry or walnut. Its important to let the sanded slurry sit on the wood for a little while (1 hour) before wiping away. This takes care of any gaps I’ve had on butt plates, thimbles and trigger guards and nosecaps. By the time you’re ready to varnish the gun You’ll have minimal noticeable gaps.

The only draw back is you have to treat many of these parts as permanent parts to not be removed. James Turpin works this way with this rifles.

This works well for modest gaps less than 1mm.

Other things you can do, I’d avoid a fill but if you do, go for a very dark stain and matte finish with pure tung oil.

Gap filler I use is called Starbond, and when it dries it blends into a varnish.

A friend of mine is an avid welder and will do small welding spots on parts that have large gaps, then rework the part and stock to fit right. I don’t do this personally because I think it takes away straight edges on the steel parts.