can this be fixed?

[bassfan586]

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Hopefully the pros here can help me out. Im really bummed as I havent even shot my rifle yet.

Just finished up my rifle. I had a builder get it in the white and I took it from there. I was taking it out of the safe and I leaned it against the wall. It fell over onto the carpet. First time this has ever happened. I thought no big deal. Until I noticed the front of the triggerguard was proud of the wood. Further inspectiin I noticed a crack on the sideplate side at the breech. A small fracture below the lock panel. Almost like a stress crack in the finish. It doesnt flex. The lock side shows a crack in the molding but no farther down. I pulled the lock and noticed the crack under the breech. It is acting like a hinge right there. The. Crack doesnt open much but it does move.
my question is how do I fix? Replacing the stock isnt feasible right now. My thought is try to get epoxy in the crack. If it wont flow warm up titebond three and work it in. Then im thinking of taking a 1/8" thick x 1" wide by 6" long aluminum bar under the breech. Inlet it in and epoxy it in place. Then bed that end in acraglass. Im also thinking of making the trigger plate longer to help spread the stress. What say ye? I am putting links to pics because im not sure how to attach thru a mobile device.

 

[Len Graves]

I am wondering if the crack was just a flaw in the wood, or if there was some stress made by forcing a part in place or tightening a screw/bolt too tight. If the latter, one can check "rub marks" left by the part and remove just a little wood. Check the tightness of screws Etc.. There are "thin". Epoxie glues which can be let into cracks or one can force open the crack (carefully) and use compressed air to blow glue into the crack. I think you will be able to fix it. There are probably many more ideas to be had from this group.. Good luck.

 

[Col. Batguano]

use wood glue, and the blow nozzle on a compressor to blow the glue deeper in to the cracks once spread and opened up. A compression with something like multiple wraps of a bunch of surgical tubing (a vacuum bag is even better) will spread out the compression force more than using mechanical clamps.

 

[Spikebuck]

I have a question...I see that all the wood is removed alongside the breech web on the lock side? Is that sound practice? I don't believe I've ever seen that before, so interested in knowing if it's OK. Seems to me it would put an uneven force on the stock when fired since the full breech is not supported across the back.

 

[FishDFly]

I would call the person who took into white and ask him for help, bet he will.

 

[Vaino]

No doubt the rear lockbolt is interfering w/ its hole and the lock inlet, as was said, leaves a lot to be desired. That's one lousy lock inlet job. There seems to be a mismatch of the hole in the breech bolster and the hole in the wood for the rear lockbolt. Outside of the crack by the rear lockbolt, those other cracks start somewhere and should be determined if there's interference at some other locations and where do they start and finish up? Don't think the fall did all that cracking. I would completely disassemble the rifle and then post some pics. Also, if you're not capable of doing the determination and repairs, get some advise from a GOOD builder......Fred

 

[kaintuck]

Yeah, that gonna be a tuff fix....maybe the builder can help.....

Accuglass, and placed screws???

Marc n tomtom

 

[Pete G]

Accraglas is the trick for this kind of job as it is thin enough to penetrate. Most regular glue will not, no matter how you try to manipulate it. While you are at it, that breach needs bedding also.

 

[bassfan586]

Thats my plan now. I ordered some acraglass. Waiting for it to come in.

 

[ZUG]

That's a shame - no suggestions - but I do like your fishing lures - you made them ?

 

[B.Habermehl]

I haven't needed to do this myself yet, but Kit Reavenshear used this technique. Using accraglass, the thin stuff. Flex the crack and apply the epoxy. Using a hair dryer, warm the epoxy up and it should penetrate the crack further. Use inner tube or rubber surgical tube to wrap the area as a clamp. Best of luck. BJH
PS cyanoacrylate glue such as hot stuff wicks well into cracks I'd think about using this after the accraglass job if you see any spots of lack of penetration.

 

[Billnpatti]

I'd recommend using a good wood glue such as Tite Bond. Add just a drop or two of water to a dab of glue to thin it and mix it thoroughly so it will flow deeply into the crack. Use an air compressor and spread a dab onto the crack and blow it down into the crack with the compressor. Do this several times until you have the crack as full as you can get it. Then wrap it tightly with surgical tubing. Use a lot of tubing wrapped tightly to make sure that you have the crack closed up. Let it sit overnight and it should be fixed and strong.

 

[Stophel]

Well, the crack above the sideplate/lockbolt is actually not an uncommon occurrence. The wood gets stressed there one way or another and pops. Make sure nothing is too tight there and glue it up. It may have been caused by dropping it, or by the barrel bouncing around during recoil... you can see it is not bottoming out in the barrel channel.

From what I can see, the other cracks look like drying cracks. Maybe they were there all along, but unnoticed, or they were there, but just closed up where you couldn't see them, and humidity changes have allowed them to open up now, or perhaps the wood was not properly seasoned to begin with, and it finished "seasoning" in your house. Or, of course, sometimes wood just has stresses in it, and it's gonna crack no matter what. If you cannot flex the wood and open the cracks to get wood glue in (meaning Titebond II), then try to soak in crazy glue.

I avoid ALL epoxy like the plague, especially Acraglas. I have found NONE that work reliably (and I have tried them all), none that stick well to wood, and none that do not set up so brittle (if they set up at all) that it flakes off the wood. Despite rave reviews by others. The one and only epoxy that I have found that comes close to working reliably is J.B. Weld... though it too doesn't stick to wood all that great.

And like others have said, that lock inlet isn't the greatest. And what is all the gray stuff in the bottom of the inlet?? Is the lock not inlet properly so the pan seals up against the barrel? You should NEVER get even the slightest trace of powder stuff inside the lock inlet.

 

[bassfan586]

I painted all freehand with airbrush. No stencils. Some are hand carved most are blanks

 

[bassfan586]

The grey stuff in the inlet is flat black. I tried mike brooks method of aging a stock. I am torn on the titebond or epoxy. I use titebond everyday. I know what a pain it is to try to take a glued up cabinet apart. It doesnt. The wood gives before the joint ever does.
I havent shot it yet so it isnt from recoil. Wood does what it wants too as we all know. I didnt over tighten the lock bolts. Snug thats it. They go in easy. Same as the tang bolt. I am think the lack of wood under th breech is suspect. A fall could cause thr barrel to vibrate? Idk. It just looks like that is the the cause. At least the obvious one. Going to break it down tomorrow. Has any one had issues using tightbond for repairs?

 

[Stophel]

If I ever have to glue something into a gunstock, it is done with Titebond II. It is reliable and it works. It holds wood together WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYY better than ANY epoxy ever will. Like you said, the wood itself will fail long before the Titebond glue joint will. Titebond II is highly water resistant. Titebond III is waterproof. It works too, but it takes FOREVER to dry, at least for me. I would not consider standard Titebond or Elmer's. Strong, yes, water resistant, no, not in the least.

Of course, neither is hide glue, and yet many old guns have slivers and chunks of wood glued on with hide glue and they are none the worse for wear after 200+ years! I need to learn how to use hide glue.

Of course, a good tight fitting joint is required for these glues, they do not fill spaces all that well.

Again, the crack at the lock bolt is pretty common. It's just a small bit of end grain wood with little support around it and a hole behind it, it doesn't take much stress to make it give way.

 

[19 16 6]

use wood glue, and the blow nozzle on a compressor to blow the glue deeper in to the cracks once spread and opened up. A compression with something like multiple wraps of a bunch of surgical tubing (a vacuum bag is even better) will spread out the compression force more than using mechanical clamps.

This is good advise. I work in wood & do this, but before the glue blow water into the crack. Let this wet it deep & it will pull the Titebond 3 glue into any place the water will go. The water also wets the glue into the porosity of the wood & gets you a real tight bond.
O.

 

[M. De Land]

I'll get hung for saying so but if the tang,lock mortice and rear of the barrel had been properly glass bedding it would not have broken!
I would thin some wood glue, carefully express the cracks as much as possible and blow it into them with compressed air.
Warp it up with rubber bands and let set up.
I then would thoroughly glass bed the tang, lock mortice and rear of the barrel and your trouble will be over and if done well know one ever need know the rifle has been defiled with the dreaded glass bedding! :grin:

 

[bassfan586]

So I pulled the lock, barrel, sideplate and trigger guard. The forward part of the trigger guard that sits on the stock was slightly bent. The crack extended thru the side plate. The tang bolt had bent slightly and it was not bent before. As I said everything bolted up as it should. It almost was like the barrel hit the ground as the toe was sitting on the ground. With nowhere to flex it did at the weakest point.
So I used a knife blade to wedge open the crack. I then used a compressor to blow the titebond 3 into the crack until it oozed out the side or stopped going in. Then I clamped it and wrapped sugical tubing all around it. My next step will be to acraglass bed the end of the barrel, tang and lockplate.

 

[ZUG]

Sounds like you done the best you can -- now it will be a "wait & see" future :hmm: . Good luck?