Winchester Gunsmith Recommendation

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MJL

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Dec 22, 2019
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Location
Phoenix
Looking for gunsmith to repair a crack in the stock of a Model 1894 Winchester. I don’t want to replace the stock for sentimental reasons, all original and has been in the family for 100+ years. I’m located in North Phoenix, but looking for any recommendations. Thanks82C7FB7D-35A6-4045-BE14-3AFAB1A3AB55.jpeg
 
You don't necessarily need a gunsmith to repair the stock. A good woodworker can handle that easily. I am a retired cabinet maker who went into making pistol grips for the last ten years. Along the way, I repaired and restored bunches of Winchesters and other rifles. I am no longer doing woodworking or gunsmithing type of work but just wanted to let you know that a repair like that is a fairly easy one and a gunsmith is not your only means of getting the work done.
 
I agree,...Wood repair = Wood worker.
But I would be very cautious. That break is in a very precarious/high stress area.
If you only want a repair to retire the piece,..., that is an easy path.
If you want to continue shooting it, then things get more involved,...imo.

I made period reproduction furniture utilizing Japanese joiner,... no glue, screws, or nails,... for over thirty years.

You may wish to consider,... glue repairs, even considering the advent of the current selections of space age adhesives,... are only as strong as the material they are bonded to.

Good luck!
 
Thanks to all for the recommendations and suggestions, much appreciated. Gives me some good options to start.
 
shooter444 said:
I agree,...Wood repair = Wood worker.
But I would be very cautious. That break is in a very precarious/high stress area.
If you only want a repair to retire the piece,..., that is an easy path.
If you want to continue shooting it, then things get more involved,...imo.

I made period reproduction furniture utilizing Japanese joiner,... no glue, screws, or nails,... for over thirty years.

You may wish to consider,... glue repairs, even considering the advent of the current selections of space age adhesives,... are only as strong as the material they are bonded to.

Good luck!
Click to expand...



I agree that this repair is in a vulnerable spot on the stock. Glue by itself is not a good solution if the rifle is going to be used as intended. I more or less assumed it would be kept as a show piece and glue would suffice. If it is to be shot, the repair should include some sort of spline on the inside (back) of the cracked area. That could be done using hand tools and would take some patience and skill but could be achieved. The spline would be glued in a grove and would strengthen that area much more than just gluing the two pieces together.

If this were not a collector piece, I would suggest replacing the stock. You can find used replacement stocks on ebay which would then be considered an original stock although not the original for that rifle. But who would know or even care. I do understand how things like this can be controversial so I'll just shut up.
 
A spline would help,... if, cross pegs are also used, with offset holes in the spline so that when the pegs are inserted, they draw the tow parts of the stock together. That way, if the glue dries out and fails, the spline and pegs would still hold.

I prefer double dovetail plugs, to join two pieces of wood, with a pegged blind spline.
 
no doubt in a rough spot, and lateral pressure will create another breakage, might be prudent to find a period replacement stock, lotsa used ones available if one looks hard enough, and most likely most would never know, if as noted is same era ect.
best of luck,
 
Great grandfathers initials are carved in the back corner of stock, sentimental as a family keepsake to be handed down, in the family for 100+ years as originally indicated. Otherwise yes, I would replace the stock.
 
Rifle is on display in a second home in Flag 9 months of the year. The home is off grid and gets shut down for ~ 3 months a year due to winter conditions / access. For those 3 months it’s brought back to Phoenix and stored in gun safe, it cracked in transit, even though it was in a pelican case. Outside of handing it down to grandson, which would involve a tradition of a hunting trip, it would not be used.
 
How about getting that stock repaired the simple way with glue to preserve your sentimentalism and for display and then find a used stock that is solid enough to use for the grandkids hunting trip. Changing out the stock is not difficult and I've seen some on ebay that aren't that expensive. Many of the Winchesters I have worked on have had tight fitting stocks so that is the only challenge. Otherwise, you just remove the tang screws.
 
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