A butt plate tip from an old fart for new builders (not kits)

[Larry (Omaha)]

The ever fun butt plate can be a little tricky, but going about it in a good way, can really help.
Here are some suggestions if you care to look at:

Making a decent pattern to mark the stock is critical. You want to cut off what you don't need, but no more.
I trued up (filed) the casting so the contact surface is flat and or a clean non bumpy curve. I filled the cavity with spackle, let dry, and made a pattern out of light cardboard. Scribbers help obtain the pattern shape. Once you have the pattern, then mark the dimension for your desired trigger pull length. Examine your butt plate very well, and determine if the downward sides are both the same with respect to forward or rearward on the stock to each other. This butt plate is skewed different from one downward side not matching the other. The curve is parallel, but right side is forward of the left side. Now were are not talking much, but around 1/8". In order to compensate for this you have to cut the curve out of square, or if you will, match the casting. Now the bandsaw cut will never (at least for me) be perfect and there is always final fitting with rasp and chisels. You still want to be as close as possible from the git go. Hope this helps.

 

[Comfortably_Numb]

If you build a whole bunch of guns, you can get a buttplate on in a 1/2 hour. When I was just starting out it might have taken 8 hours.

 

[user 34300]

I carefully cut the top of the stock flat for the extension. Then cut the curved part a little long. Inletting is mostly making the curved part fit the wood over the whole surface, not just the edges. The inletting is mostly moving the plate in by removing wood based on what the spotting goop says. Be mindful of the toe and do not chip it off.

 

[tallpine]

One thing I learned after struggling with the first few butt plates is to chisel out a hollow in the center of the butt, I leave about 3/8 or 1/2 inch around the edge of the stock. This gives you a whole a lot less wood to get flat and makes it easier to get started straight. I make a paper template like Larry, it works well.

 

[Valkyrie]

Do you leave the spackle in the butt plate?

 

[Larry (Omaha)]

Do you leave the spackle in the butt plate?

No, just soak in hot water and it becomes gooey again, then rinse/wipe off.
Larry

 

[The Crisco Kid]

If you build a whole bunch of guns, you can get a buttplate on in a 1/2 hour. When I was just starting out it might have taken 8 hours.

No way that I can do it in a half hour and I've built a few myself. I inlet the plate so that the entire inside area is in contact with wood, not just the outside edges. Maybe I'm just old and slow!

 

[mikesto44]

Crisco kid that's how I do it also. Might take a little longer but it gives more contact/ support. But how much it really matters . who knows...

 

[Comfortably_Numb]

Crisco kid that's how I do it also. Might take a little longer but it gives more contact/ support. But how much it really matters . who knows...

The old timers didn't do it like that .

 

[The Crisco Kid]

Crisco kid that's how I do it also. Might take a little longer but it gives more contact/ support. But how much it really matters . who knows...

The old timers didn't do it like that .

You're right at least from the few I've seen. I don't know why I started doing it the way I do but that's just the way I do it.

 

[mikesto44]

That's what I like to do...How they did it back then. Doesn't much matter to me. If we all stuck with that philosophy we'd still be stuck throwing rocks and sticks...

 

[Blitz]

That's what I like to do...How they did it back then. Doesn't much matter to me. If we all stuck with that philosophy we'd still be stuck throwing rocks and sticks...

Some still are.