Bought my second one...

[noahmercy]

I was dinking around on some of the auction sites this morning looking for ML stuff when I came across a Sharon 54 Hawken kit less stock. I put a bid in and ended up winning it. :grin:

My buddy who got me interested in frontstuffers has one just like it that he built back in the early 80's. He has won many 'vous events with it and it is a fine rifle. I have lusted after it for several years, but he is completely adamant about not selling it, even though he put it on the wall of his den 9 years ago and hasn't shot it since. (Isn't there some kind of law against that?)

I figure it's going to take me quite a while to finish this gun, so I'm just going to make it as perfect as I can. I've decided to look for a piece of lightly figured curly maple to stock it. From the little bit of reading I've done, it appears most original Hawkens had fairly plain maple or black walnut stocks, but I want something with a little eye-appeal. And since the Lyman GPR I built had walnut, I think I'll do the maple just so I get some experience with a different wood. :hmm:

Do any of y'all know if a Track of the Wolf Kit Carson Hawken stock would work with this or am I going to have to get a blank and learn to whittle real good? If I have to go the latter route, can any of you point to a good book on stock inletting and shaping?

Once again, thank you in advance for your suggestions, recommendations, advice, and guidance.

:thumbsup:

 

[jimeckersley]

You didn't say what size your barrel is. Is it 15/16" or 1" across the flats?

Virgil Otto, Gunstocks Plus, in Ohio, has many styles of stocks and if your barrel is tapered or swamped, he can even custom carve the barrel channel for you. If your barrel is straight you have a lot of choices: Track of the Wolfe, Pecatonica, Gunstocks Plus and others.

 

[noahmercy]

How do, JPerryE. My buddy's Sharon is 1" across the flats, like the TOW Carson barrel. I was kinda' wondering about the lock and trigger inletting. (Not sure if the ones in the Sharon kit are his design or another maker's.) I'm also not sure how far Track inlets those areas.

I'll have to give Mr. Otto a ring and see what he offers. Like I said, I've got a long time to look for wood...the steel and iron is going to take me many moons to finish. But if he is familiar with the Sharons, he could save me many more on the stock. :grin:

:thumbsup:

 

[jimeckersley]

If you have a Track Of The Wolfe catalog, they show actual sizes of locks, triggers, etc. You can easily compare what you have with what's in the catalog. You may have standard locks and so forth. If so, you can get a 95% pre inlet stock.

If your lock is not a standard size and shape, you can also just buy a new lock and use the rest of the parts you already have. If you don't mind inleting for the lock, trigger, etc, a pre carved stock with a 1" barrel channel is easy to find.

 

[Swampman]

Call TOW and see what they suggest. They sold those kits at one time. My buddy sold a nice one for $250.00 not to long ago, but I wasn't looking for one at the time. I wish I'd bought it now.

 

[MikeChapin]

Myself I would get a precarved Hawken stock with the barrel channel of the right size. That way it would not matter if the pre-inlet mortices will not fit your parts.

I used a pre-inlet stock on a flint Hawken last summer simply because it was a second and the price was right. It happened to be pre-inlet for the parts I had on hand. Some of the mortices did not line up right and the tang took some creative work to get it inlet and lined up properly. The rifle came out all right but if I had it to do again I would just get a pre-carved and go from there.

 

[bioprof]

I just finished a Kit Carson Hawkens from TOW this fall, and the tang is already almost 99% inletted. Even so, you have to move it way back to get the hammer to line up with the nipple. If you went this route, you would have to probably go with TOW's patented breech and tang to fit the precarved stock.

The hammer is pretty stout on their lock, so is almost impossible to bend without an acetylene torch.

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

You got those parts for a very good price! I believe that they are for a full-stock rifle. The trigger guard is the early type and there is no under-rib with the parts. They will make a fine rifle and the full-stocks are a little easier to build. TOTW should be able to tell you if one of their stocks will work. Have fun.