Make an 'Ivory' stock?

[TNHillbilly]

I've long been fascinated by the idea of making an ivory pistol stock. Obviously, real ivory would be almost impossible to tinker with. My thought was to cast a resin, suitably pigmented and go from there. I've found a couple of 'recipes' on the net. I'm curious if you Gents have any thoughts or ideas?

 

[JayDee Flohr]

I've used casting Urethane from a company called Silpak. It is normally used for casting replica antlers and similar type items where great detail is needed. Their model is called Sil White. When sanded, it looks just like ivory. It machines very well and is pretty tough, not brittle. These knife handles were made from it. I mixed in some ground up Mammoth tusk ivory into it to get the coloring.
I think it would work good for a pistol stock.
Far from PC though :surrender: :wink:

You could carve a stock from a block of plaster of paris, make a silicone mold of it and pour one after another, all exactly the same. You can usually get 20 to 30 pours from the mold before it fails.

 

[Lonstar]

If you pour it yourself using what Fossil Hunter suggested you may be OK. I bought two sets of 1911 grips made from what they call faux ivory. I put a lot of time into some scrimshaw and getting the color right. Both sets cracked after just a few shots. One at a diagonal across the grip and the other between the screw holes. The material they used did not seem to be brittle while I was doing the scrimshaw.
It would be a shame to put all that work into a stock and have it break or crack. Just my thoughts.

 

[TNHillbilly]

Thanks for the lead on a source for resin! The ground tusk is also intriguing, come from the same place? I thought I'd try taking a wood stock I already have and making a mold from that. As far as cracking, I think many of the originals' pics also appear to have cracks. Though, most are several hundred years old! Probably not very practical, but sure purty to look at.....beauty being in the eye.......! I've got some 'ivory' grips for a Hi-power, and I made some for a SW Russian rep out of clay polymer that look pretty good. Always pay to ask here about this kind of thing.....usually there's someone who's 'been there, done that'!

 

[rabjr]

There are a number of resins used for faux ivory Even some types of wood. One thing you want to think about is aged ivory. Some of the newer stuff will remain white and not yellow with age. It's been so long I couldn't tell you the company I got my Bisley grips from almost 20 years ago but they yellow with age and have. My last grips were made of a material that will not yellow.

Theres "Westinghouse Micarta", "Corian" that might be worth looking into if you don't want to mess with the real stuff and want an aged look.

 

[dyemaker]

It doesn't relate directly but ... I wonder what piano keys are made of now. Ebony is kind of expensive. Ebonite?? :idunno: I think if someone had an old broken down piano the keys may be useful for fancy inlays like the hunter's stars you see sometimes on Jaeger rifles etc.

 

[JayDee Flohr]

The ground tusk is also intriguing, come from the same place?

No, it came from my supply. When I cut some I always save the dust for these type of projects. I think colored chalk would work the same. Some people even mix brass filings with it and once sanded, it looks just like cast brass.
If you want to get a small amount to mess around with, VanDykes taxidermy carries a product called Pour-a-Cast. Pretty much the same thing.

It would be a shame to put all that work into a stock and have it break or crack. Just my thoughts.

Yes it would. You may want to call the guys at Silpak and see what they think. They carry a lot of products and may have something better for your needs.

 

[rabjr]

It doesn't relate directly but ... I wonder what piano keys are made of now. Ebony is kind of expensive. Ebonite?? :idunno: I think if someone had an old broken down piano the keys may be useful for fancy inlays like the hunter's stars you see sometimes on Jaeger rifles etc.

There are a number of website and on ebay where you can get Mammoth Ivorys i all grades suitable for inlays and other things. Also some pre ban Elephant is still out there if your willing to pay the price. Nothing wrong with Mammoth Ivory and quite affordable.
http://www.nimrodsplace.com/nesquirrelrifle12.html

 

[Stophel]

Kind of a cool idea! You could pretty much do all your carving on your pattern (wax or whatever), and get it just as you want it before casting.

I guess you could do the entire stock in wood, completely inlet, and then cast from that, and not have to do much of anything to the finished casting.

I haven't been able to find white micarta in anything larger than about a 3/8" thick slab about 2" wide. Just BARELY big enough to make scale handles for a S&W J frame. I may be mistaken, but I thought I heard that it wasn't being made anymore... :hmm:

 

[wulf]

Be careful of piano keys...gun cotton looks just
like ivory and it burns well too. can't put it
out once it starts...I got a hand full of them
thinking they were ivory till I tested.....Wulf

 

[Zonie]

I've long suspected that the Ivory pistols were originally intended as showpieces, not to be fired.

We have cracking problems with somewhat flexible but strong woods and I can only imagine that Ivory would be even more susceptible if it were used for a functioning gun stock.

Now, if someone wants to go to the trouble of creating one of these masterpieces, more power to him.

 

[paulvallandigham]

I have a client who came up with his own " Polymer Ivory", that yellows just like the real Ivory, but it does not crack like real ivory. He made a run of grips for Colt many years ago, and they were all put on Peacemakers that were sold overseas. He has never seen one of those guns at any gun show, or at the Shotshow here in the states.

So, there is a process, or a product out there that can be used to stock a gun without worrying that it will crack. He only makes those grips for special orders these days, so I have never asked him if the process is proprietary, and a trade secret.

 

[Tourblanche]

I've long suspected that the Ivory pistols were originally intended as showpieces, not to be fired.


Exact , people today are very surprised to learn that some fancy
guns in museums and collections were never fired even once .

 

[rabjr]

I have a client who came up with his own " Polymer Ivory", that yellows just like the real Ivory, but it does not crack like real ivory. He made a run of grips for Colt many years ago, and they were all put on Peacemakers that were sold overseas. He has never seen one of those guns at any gun show, or at the Shotshow here in the states.

So, there is a process, or a product out there that can be used to stock a gun without worrying that it will crack. He only makes those grips for special orders these days, so I have never asked him if the process is proprietary, and a trade secret.

The grips on my Bisley have aged but for the life of me I can't remember the companys name. There is a wood that looks like aged Ivory that might be used. More yellow than white though.

 

[TNHillbilly]

The pics I posted are from a booklet entitled: The American Society of Arms Collectors At Hartford, Conn. OCT 9-13, 1985. Bulletin No. 53. There are lots of pics of ivory stocked pistols. The author/lecturer claims there are about 100 such weapons known to exist. Most of the figured heads' (such as the pic) pommels were believed to be done by one master. Whether or not they were ever fired, I don't know. Frankly, most of my guns, I've fired less than 5 or 6 times. I have a few that are regular shooters......the rest, I look at, handle, admire, clean, oil and stick back in the drawer. So, if it cracks, so what, one more conversation piece. With the new mold materials available, it shouldn't require that much work to mold an existing stock. I suppose also, if a guy were real industrious, perhaps a steel rod could be molded in to strengthen the handle portion, Hhmmm.

 

[Stophel]

I've seen ivory stocked wheel lock rifles. :wink:

 

[Pork Chop]

Maybe you could build the stock undersized in wood and cover it with some of the simulated ivory. The Tagua nut could be used - cut slices and glue it on. If done well, you could hide the seams and it would look like an ivory stock.

 

[ohio ramrod]

The older piano keys ( before 1900) are ivory, the more expensive piano keys were also ivory up until the passage of laws against trade in Ivory. You can tell the real stuff from the fake by taking a red hot pin to the back of a piece. Real Ivory smells like burning hair or antler. The fake smells like burning plastic,which is what it is. Real ivory is brittle. I use it for front sights and will continue to as long as I can find pianos in church basements etc. that are being thrown out.As they say : " One man's junk is another man's treasure" .

 

[flintlock75]

I have seen several guns made with ivory stocks.
One set was a Winchester 73 with an elephant ivory stock and a matching colt pistol, very nice.
I have worked alot with real ivory on projects and there are ways to keep cracking to a minimum.
Youe best source for real ivory is Walrus Tusks. They are available at several places on line. I have seen them on Ebay. Contact the Alaska Fur Exchange in Anchorage Alaska, they have a large supply of new and fossilized ivory for sale.
Good luck with your project.