A Lee Speed stock

First working of the tang safety

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/sdzuV0p1sLY

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Von Gruff Knives

Starting the next stage requires a grip cap and as a horn cap was wanted I needed to look through some cape buffalo horn to find a nice piece to give me the thickness needed after grinding the back flat and the bark off the front to get a even thickness over the square.

https://i.imgur.com/O2snIXWl.jpg

I have a brass pattern so mark the two pins positions on both the horn and the grip area of the stock and drill in for the locating pins. I prefer the hidden pins over the central screw fixing method as it leaves a cleaner look to the finished cap.

https://i.imgur.com/24TzSZWl.jpg

I mark a line round the edge and another on the face to guide me in the filing in of the shaping then start with a file having a safe edge ground onto it.

https://i.imgur.com/FEKKi5Cl.jpg

After filing sanding is needed and a hardwood stick with nice sharp edges is used to get into the corner with 320 starting grit and going up through the grits.

https://i.imgur.com/GjGYej8l.jpg

After sanding a good go on the buffer brings it to its finished state.

https://i.imgur.com/jaAqeP8l.jpg

With it sitting over the locating pins I can mark round the edge to give me the start of the stock shaping lines.

https://i.imgur.com/7RoCCw3l.jpg

A preliminary shaping of the wrist and down to the grip cap on one face of the stock is the starting place.

https://i.imgur.com/14CvELYl.jpg

The rest of this face of the butt stock is then giving its preliminary shape. I use the french Logier and a good quality horseshoe rasp.

https://i.imgur.com/Dukbc6Zl.jpg

---

Great work, looks to be coming up awesomely, can't wait to see it finished !

I recognize that Buff horn, it would be Water Buffalo & I think I know the guy that supplied that !

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Scout

Great work, looks to be coming up awesomely, can't wait to see it finished !

I recognize that Buff horn, it would be Water Buffalo & I think I know the guy that supplied that !

---

No that is cape buffalo from South Africa although I do use mostly water buffalo horn for knife handles that I source from a US firm who get it from an Indian bulk supply house.
Have had a lot of knives with short timeframe requirement so the stock is sitting waiting for fine sanding and finishing but will get back to it as time allows.

Sanded from the 120 grt through 320 and 600 and the first wet sand at 600. will do another at 600 and then go to 1000grt.

https://i.imgur.com/2HwJXmMl.jpg

Have wet sanded to 1000grt and will now sit like this now till I am ready to apply the red oil. I had got a different lot of alkanet root this time (bark and root instead of powder) and it hadn't coloured as deep as I wanted so ground substantially more of the bark and root and added that to the jar with a little more oil. I keep heating the oil in a hot water bath and giving the jar a good shake and it is really starting to take a better colour but it may well take another day or two for the infusion to get it to the depth of red I want it to be. In the summer I would sit it in the sun and shake it every time I passed it but the colder weather needs other means to help the infusion take place.

https://i.imgur.com/fZCxbGQl.jpg

Last thing yesterday I brushed over the stock with a coat of BLO and rubbed it off immediately to get a base colour to work from and see how much tone improvement the red oil would bring.
This was the result

https://i.imgur.com/kTZMnuVl.jpg

Then the red oil was brushed on (liberally) and after 10 minutes wiped off and rubbed hard. Some added toning to the grain colouring.

https://i.imgur.com/rTjRMXCl.jpg

Tomorrow there will be another coat of red oil then it will be left for a few days to completely dry before the finishing oils are applied.

Looking forward to seeing the completed rifle

Looking good!

On the home stretch now with the hand rubbed coats going on every few days.

https://i.imgur.com/zlyFZVul.jpg

Finished and ready to be delivered. Horrible light to get best pics so not best for for glare etc as without the window light I needed the overhead light and that was just too reflective.

https://i.imgur.com/ZL5pCwSl.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/mL3d9tYl.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/2N8o4HDl.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/YKPT4TDl.jpg

Nice work.
Hate to say you are right about the pics.
Some of your stuff on other forums are simply stunning.

Maybe these show it better. Afternoon sun though.

https://i.imgur.com/I0mUumcl.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/8iVI8UUl.jpg

That's more like it!

Fantastic work as per usual Mr Gruff

Sheesh that's a bit flash for the rough Aussie fella!
Lovely work! Even with the comprehensive build thread, the true amount of work and hand skills involved in these builds is lost on many.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Wingman

Sheesh that's a bit flash for the rough Aussie fella!
Lovely work! Even with the comprehensive build thread, the true amount of work and hand skills involved in these builds is lost on many.

---

Thanks Wingman. the Enfield 2 piece stock has a few tricky areas that most one piece stocks do not.