Ash for gunstock wood?

[alaskasmoker]

How is ash for a gunstock? I did a search, not much was turned up. Someone asked if it made the gun heavy, but the question was never answered. Are there any problems with it? I have a knife with an ash handle and that is about as much experience with that type of wood as I have

 

[Birddog6]

Not any heavier than maple & at times lighter. If not, all the wooden baseball bats would have been made from maple. If you have an old Louisville Slugger bat in the basement, I guarantee you it is made of Ash. I have a stock I am making into a Tenn, it is about 3 rifles deep. Should make a dandy as it is the most consistently stripped ash stock I have ever seen.
Curly ash makes some pretty gunstocks. Doesn't seem to stain as dark as maple will, looks allot like Oak as far as the grain looks.

Here is a photo of one of several curly ash blanks I have. The one I am going to build next has allot more & closer curl than this one, but this one is pretty nice as well.

 

[MikeC]

Ash stocked rifle Roy made for me. Love it!

 

[Mike Brooks]

I have built a couple ash stocked guns. Exceptionally hard and will wear you out shaping it. It doesn't hold carving well in the porous areas.

 

[Jason Lewis]

large pores in the wood.

 

[Tommy Bruce]

Jackie Brown has built a number of guns with ash. I believe it would be ok as long as there wasn't much carving involved.

 

[FlinterNick]

I needs to be a premium cut of Ash or it will be porous and brittle at the end grain.

Otherwise, Ash is considered somewhat exotic today, and is mostly available in dowel form for tool handles and pool sticks. Gunstocks in ash are very nice looking with the wavy grain patterns.

On the wood hardness scale, ash is pretty tough.

 

[bldtrailer]

go to cabin creeks web sight they have made several flinters in curly ash (look in sold)

 

[Col. Batguano]

As was stated, because of the open and strong-grained nature of it, it's not that great of a carving wood if you are planning on intricately carved details. Ash is also a rather "bendy" and flexible wood, which will put the wrist less in danger of breaking the way other woods some times do. It CAN however make for some very pretty gun stocks.