It looks to me you have more than enough wood to sand it down and refinish the entire stock. You might have to take down the width of the butt plate slightly but sand it down and refinish it if you don't want to carve it further.
Not really, it's a Pedersoli and the gouges are relatively deep. I will probably clean it up like Old-Duckman recommended, maybe add a couple of leaves.It looks to me you have more than enough wood to sand it down and refinish the entire stock. You might have to take down the width of the butt plate slightly but sand it down and refinish it if you don't want to carve it further.
I didn't mention it before but the carving is on both sides.........Perhaps you could make up a thin shell of a cheekpiece to apply over the side of the stock. However it would not cover the outer corners of the carving and would be next to impossible to blend in. Also the Euro kentuckies tend to be pretty thin stocks anyway so there's not a lot of wood you can shave off there.
Nope, just keep what you have.
On a different note, I have several Euro kentuckies, all with that honey colored roman-nosed butt. Has anyone tried to straighten the comb out and strip/re-stain them dark? Most likely the buttplate would have to be altered a bit as well.
"A man's got to know his limitations." Good to know!Everytime I get the urge to carve one of my rifles I practice on a piece of similar wood and critique my finished practice piece when I am done. After seeing what I am capable of I have yet to put a chisel to one of my rifle stocks, definitely a good thing.
A plain gunstock looks ten times better than a badly carved one.
I'd say to follow his very good advice as well.Not really, it's a Pedersoli and the gouges are relatively deep. I will probably clean it up like Old-Duckman recommended, maybe add a couple of leaves.
What? You want me to listen to someone who knows what they are doing??!!I'd say to follow his very good advice as well.
Rococo is too French......... Overly busy, way too decorative. I prefer Art Deco but it doesn't lend itself to muzzleloading stocks........ Now a simpler Nouveau style might work as long as people don't know what era the Art Nouveau period was. .Look at stocks with raised carving.. Study the rococo style. If you felt ambitious, you could relieve the background and reshape the scrolls to something similar. Years ago I went to Jim Chambers stock carving class, and while everyone else was happily chiseling away, I couldn't make head nor tail of rococo design. Then on Wednesday afternoon it came together. Carved the stock in two days.. Study the style until it makes sense.
It's a new head set of information!
Yes it is, but still waaaay too busy for my tastes. That is based on the majority of samples I've seen.Rococo is the classic style for American golden age flintlock rifles.
Ask Homer Dangler who made some great instructional videos on the topic.
Agreed. Has a sort of folk art look that a backwoodsman might do himself.I like it as is. So it looks a little "raw". I feel it adds to the character.
Everytime I get the urge to carve one of my rifles I practice on a piece of similar wood and critique my finished practice piece when I am done. After seeing what I am capable of I have yet to put a chisel to one of my rifle stocks, definitely a good thing.
A plain gunstock looks ten times better than a badly carved one.
What?? We're supposed to shoot them??!! Nobody ever tells me nuttin'.This is a story that should acknowledge the true craftsman with the high skills needed to carve a gun stock. Well to have it look professional and be a piece of beauty. I am a fairly good Tool Maker but not a carver. Just do not have the training to pull off the look as if I could duplicate a master’s work. I hate it when people want to know all about Tool Making in 5 min, took me a life time to get where I am. Your job probably looks better than if I did it. Keep it how is and stop making excuses for it. Looks fine and I would need to be happy with it, besides the master carver might not be able to tie his own shoes anyway.
By the way, how does it shoot?