Thread: Stock Doctor

A symbol of what the future holds…..

if you want to DIY...spread crack SLIGHTLY with small flat screwdriver..fill cavity with as much wood/pva glue as you can get in there...or flash glue if so inclinded..clamp it shut,the excess will ooze out,whipe off now... leave it day or three to dry/set and it should stay shut permanently...the fact that 3 of these have all popped up at same time SUGGESTS lack of maintainence on these stocks is issue..they might have been kiln dried too much and need a bit of oil put back in... heck we used to drill small hole in end of hockey sticks and add linseed for the same reason.

Have done a few by using a sharp screwdriver to open the crack up a bit and using a syringe fill the crack with super strong araldite. Clamp the two sides fairly tightly and the excess will squeeze out. Wipe off the excess and leave 2 days to set. Then remove clamp and gently wipe over the crack with fine steel wool to smooth out any bumps and the wipe on a drop or two of stock finish.

A bit more on topic.
The advice above for repairing the split is reasonably sound. I would add that you should try and include a mechanical fastener across the grain at the split. This can be a small bolt with a nut on the end carefully inletted across the grain from the action inletting or butt plate. Done right it shouldn't be seen once assembled.

However, you do need to investigate the cause of the split. Just drying out is a potential but I find it being the sole cause unlikely.

A very often common of cracks, aside from physical damage/impact, is a failure or fault in the bedding surfaces of the stock. This results in recoil forces going somewhere they were not intended. You can repair the crack in this situation but it will reappear.
If the crack is through the middle of the stock on the tang most likely the metalwork is climbing up out of the bedding and acting against the stock like a wedge in the action screws or at the rear of the inletting.

Lots of old military rifles are terrible at doing this and they'll literally shoot themselves apart if the bedding is not addressed. Modern firearms are not much better and when stored barrel up and oil soaks the stock in the bedding surfaces and weakens the wood.

Post a picture of the split and associated surfaces.

I use a small puff of compressed air to drive the glue in. Low pressure and thru air/water trap filter.
If using a 2 part glue (araldite) leave in the sun for a while b4 using.

Have found rear tang cracks can be secured with a bit of internal drill work and the use of bedding compound, find this method creates permanent fix in conjunction with gluing.

@PeteD I could take a look at it for you mate. It could be as simple as a quick bit of epoxy and clamp. If it’s a double, it may need a quick bedding of the receiver to stock joint. Sometimes the wood can get soft with oil an the recoil can get concentrated in the wrong place causing splitting. Won’t know till we get eyes on it.
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