My GPR build

[hilbily]

I finally got all the parts from Lyman so I am getting started. Don't know how fast I'll move but will keep things updated as I go. Here are just a few getting started photos. I feel like I got a nice piece of Walnut here.

 

[cowpoke1955]

The longest part is sanding the stock. I see you have a real nice piece of walnut and a great caliber. I got a nice piece of walnut with my .54 GPR flint kit also. I didn't want to hide the color, so after final sanding I applied eight coats of boiled linseed oil. It gave the stock a nice warm color that blended well with the metal, which I browned. That kit will come together sooner than you think. Good luck and have fun :thumbsup:

 

[longcruise]

That is nice wood! I second the oil only treatment. Staining that walnuts just seems to muddy it up. Probably was my fault for my choice in stain (BC walnut) but still, they look a lot nicer with oil only. I used Tru Oil on mine and the results were great. Don't have the patience for linseed oil! :haha: :redface:

One thing you might consider is to make sure your breech plug lug and the tang are a perfect fit and then clean them up good and glue them together with a light coat of five min epoxy. Then finalize your inletting of those two together. May not take inletting at all, might need to be bedded instead. And, watch out to keep your lock and patent breech aligned properly while you do them.

 

[OLDPUPPYMAX]

By all means, DON'T stain the stock. I purchased the completed rifle and your stock is far better looking as it is! Stained walnut just looks sort of...brown.

 

[BenCoogle]

You stain cheap wood to make it look like Walnut! The only reason to stain Walnut is to even out color if you have some sapwood in it.

If you do, try a wood dye such as Behlen's SolarLux. Dyes contain no pigments to muddy grain.

 

[mykeal]

I agree with not staining real walnut. However, you do need to fill the grain. I suggest Herter's French Red Stain and Stock Filler; it adds a nice dark red hue to the walnut as well as filling the grain. You can see the process and results on my GPR project last year on the Gun Builder's Bench subforum further down on main forum page. There are several GPR projects documented there that can help you decide how to finish your gun.

 

[excess650]

Good walnut doesn't need to be artificially colored, so if you like what you see, just use an oil finish. I've used Minwax Tung Oil finish on several stocks. My method was just to apply a couple of heavy coats, and then follow up by wet sanding with 320 or 400 wet and dry with the same oil finish. Sand it until the oil feels like its stiffening up, and then wipe it off. This will fill the pores, and is easy to touch up if it should become necessary.

 

[BenCoogle]

Yup!, and Tung oil was known to the old timers as "China Oil". Properly made boiled Linseed will work wonders also. The stuff you get in the Builders Supply will work but should be further processed. Raw Linseed will work too, just takes longer to set up. They are natural varnishes.

 

[dave_person]

Minwax tung oil finish does not contain any tung oil. It may have some derivatives of tung oil but it is a varnish containing driers and possibly linseed oil. The same is true of Formby's tung oil finish. They call them tung oil because the finish supposedly looks like tung oil. It probably surprises folks but there is no labeling law that requires them to list what is really in the can. That said, both Formby's and Minwax's finishes are not bad products. In fact I used Formby's tung oil finish on my pistol case shown in the "Photo" section of this forum under "Pair of Wogdon Duelers". The pistols were finished with true polymerized tung oil purchased from Lee Valley. By the way those stocks were black walnut but dyed to look like English walnut. Sometimes there is a good reason to stain walnut.

dave

 

[hilbily]

I will add a few more photos tomorrow. I have a question though.
How much downward pressure should it take once the tang is set to get the barrel keys through. Seems to be taking to much on mine and once I put the ram rod back in it is hitting the barrel lugs. I have everything else fitting fairly well together, lock, barrel, tang etc. Just at the first test fitting so I have plenty of room for adjustments. Thanks for the info and help in advance.

 

[longcruise]

The barrel should drop right into the barrel channel. If you have to squeeze it an 1/8 inch or so it is not a problem but much more than that puts a lot of tension between the barrel and stock. The more tension there the more likely it will effect the way it shoots. Your fit problem is probably between the barrel and the wood right at the breech end just forward of the tang. Don't do anything to it on my say so, check for yourself and go slow.

If that is the problem, you can put a small shim under the tang right behind the breech with the tang bolt going thru it. Use cardboard from a cereal box and start with one shim and work up to see if it helps your fit. If that takes away the tension and if the lock/patent breech remain properly aligned then then permanent plastic shims or bedding compound is one solution. Another is to releive a bit of wood under the barrel/breech where it rotates as you drop in the barrel. Use some inletting black to check for that situation.

Go slow! Think things through! Sleep on it! Check for the advice of others for other alternatives!

I don't have any suggestions on the ramrod/barrel lug collision. Maybe I'll sleep on it! :haha:

 

[rafterob]

Are you saying the barrel lugs protrude through to the ramrod channel and therefore interfering with the ramrod? If so, you can file the bottom of the lugs down. In this case I would install the barrel and wedges and use a round file in the ramrod groove.If the protrusion is severe enough, you may consider bedding the barrel channel to increase the clearance from the ramrod groove.

 

[rootsy]

Nice piece of wood for sure... Too bad the rear trigger guard mortice is machined waaaay out of position and actually breaks through the edge...

 

[hilbily]

Ghettogun, Yes that is what I am saying. The ramrod channel is only part of my problem though. I can get the ramrod in it just hits a bit. I could not see any marks on the ramrod so it is not sever enough to damage anything I don't think. I think that I also have the problem that marmotslayer is talking about. I am going to check the rear of the barrel channel to see if there is a high spot if there is I will relieve it and check the fit again. I think I will try the shims under the tang first. If that fixes things then I won't have removed wood that I can put back. Anyway here are a few more photos. I'll get more as I go. Thanks for all the advice.

 

[longcruise]

Too bad the rear trigger guard mortice is machined waaaay out of position and actually breaks through the edge...

I had not noticed that until your post caused me to take a second look.

hilbily, i think you need to consider if you want to live with that t guard mortice position. It will look odd if you fit the t guard to it and will look a bit funny if you move it over.

If you really like the stock as it is, you could fill the existing mortice and then re-inlet the t guard at the back. If you do, give some careful thought to what you use as a filler.

 

[hilbily]

I'll check it again when I get home but I think the angle of the photo exaggerates it a bit. Since this will be a working gun I'm not really worried about it. I figure the first few times I fall on my butt in the woods it will take a few good licks anyway.

 

[hilbily]

First of all I am sorry Mods for posting this in the wrong place. Thank you for moving it for me. Second I looked at the mortice once I got home and the photo shows it true. Now that you brought it to my attention I can't stop worrying about it. What I may do is start at the top of the stock and thin it down untill I can match both sides. I will sleep on it.

 

[MSW]

hilbily, i agree with the consensus; that's a righteous piece of walnut ..do not stain it upon pain of death by woojieboogie... (very bad joke- tell 'ya later).

go slow, sneak up on it, then

MAKE GOOD SMOKE!!

 

[longcruise]

What I may do is start at the top of the stock and thin it down untill I can match both sides. I will sleep on it.

That will leave a scallop in the side of the stock unless you take it all the way back to the buttplate. If taken all the way back, the toeplate will be out of whack and the buttplate will have to be filed to fit and will look funny. Look at your butt platte from the back and imagine the bottom corner of it filed to the side.

Hope I'm making this clear.

Starting at the beggining again. if you leave it as as, you will have to bend your trigger guard to fit and it will look odd from nearly every point of view. If you fill the existing mortice and then re-inlet at the proper position it may look a bit odd if carefully inspected but most likely the fill job would go unnoticed.

I would vot for the fill and re-inlet route. If that does not appeal to you then you may want to have Lyman send you a new stock.

 

[rootsy]

If it was mine and I didn't want to part with the wood due to figure, etc, I would make a tracing of that mortice and cut a piece of walnut to fit and glue it into the mortice with a thin film of titebond III (waterproof). If you make sure the plug matches exactly the side that is breaking through you will barely see the repair when you move the new mortice over and remove most of the plug you put in when re-inletting. Especially after finishing it.

BTW, the last GPR I built the same mortice was off center but there was still 1/8" of material between mortice edge and the butt / heel line (where your's is breaking through).