The FX Wildcat .22 arrived my doorstep in Norway late may 2015. With the Bobcat - also synthetic stock - I wanted to do something special about the Wildcat.
Luckily I had some flame birch intended for knife handles stored, and now I got the opportunity to make a wooden stock – something to puzzle with in my summer vacation. This is my first attempt to make a rifle stock, and you have probably seen the topic with some picks on this forum me asking you guys for advice when I got stuck in deciding what color to use on the wood.
Short story: I looked up pictures and paintings/drawings of the animal itself - the Wildcat - and then it struck me that the stains/stripes/spots in the wildcat's fur isn't that far from how the birch wood pattern often stand out when it is polished. But I also realised that I had to add some color to the wood to obtain such an effect.
Please note: This is not "HOW TO DO", but HOW I DID IT.
1: The FX Wildcat .22 provided from Børselars - Norway.
PS: I have observed that the shroud is longer on my version than the one for the American market, and probably the reason why there have been some disagreement from the Scandinavians in the loudness question.......:
2: I had this birch wood stored, ready for processing.
3: But how to get there? Here are some picks showing the process.
gundog made it clear to me: "from this moment you use gloves in all handling to prevent stains from (sweaty) hands to retract the structure".
I wanted to extend the fore end of the stock with 3 cm, and had to compromise....
4: The action fits perfect to the stock, but NOW comes the hard part. How can I get the colouring of the Wildcat`s fur into the stock??
A trick to lift the wood pattern is to make a very strong instant coffeemix, and apply it lightly into the wood with a sponge or a cloth. Repeat if necessary, and sand between the layers when dried out. This will also rise the wood structure between sanding, and therefore you must use finer and finer sandpaper.
Sanding/polishing the wood: You use rough sandpaper (40) when forming the stock in the start. Take it up to about 280, and when the watermoistering/humidification (in this case “coffying”) of the wood starts, never use rougher paper than 280. Gradually use finer paper until the surface is silky smooth between the watering/coffeeing. 4-8 rounds. My final paper in the last sanding process, the polishing part, would be with 1200 paper. (Emery paper). When the structure in the wood no longer rise, apply the woodoil. Combined with the oiling, use steel wool (000-grading) to polish the stock several times pr day, up to a week if needed. Ensure that the wood is soaked with the oil all the time, until the wood doesn't take any more. Now it is time to dry the oil remainings with a cloth. The wood is perspiring, so it has to be wiped a few times the next days to let the stock breath. The hardening (curing?) is a chemical process, and will take a few days. Nothing can be done, or should be done, to shorten this prosess.
Oil to use: There are many brands on the market. I mix my own for knifehandles, and have used the same for this stock. I am on thin ice here, and do not know the exact English words, but in Norwegian terms I mix:
50% Rå linolje (Rå = raw – not the boiled version)
25% Benar (I.a. used on wooden boats)
25% Amerikansk terpentin (or Akol Pro)
For better deepening in the wood, add some extra terpentin to start with.
THE COLORING PROCESS:
The colouring should be combined with sanding/polishing until ready for the oiling/lubrication-process.
Here we go:
Layer 1: Coffee
Layer 2: Herdins yellow
Layer 3: Herdins (Mix of English red & mahogany)
After sanding the 3 layers...
Oiling and polishing
Drying.......
And now it is due to compare the result with the original syntetic stock.
Do not misunderstand, I like the synthetic stock from FX. There are benefits that is absolutely present in a synthetic stock, but again - I just have my weakness when it comes to classic wood. (Norwegian Wood in this case...)
But how does this look when all is set and done? As you kan see the forend is a bit longer, but what about the tiny details?
I have rounded off the lines a bit, customised the grip exactly to my hand, and are now preparing a clip/fixing for an extra magasin underneath the rear screw. (Not yet finished, and I do not know if it will function).
To show the details better, following picks are taken with a descent camera, not my I-phone used above.
The photos underneath: Kjetil Rensel, Oslo (Thanks to you Kjetil!)
Thanks for watching!
And thanks to the Wildcat!!
Luckily I had some flame birch intended for knife handles stored, and now I got the opportunity to make a wooden stock – something to puzzle with in my summer vacation. This is my first attempt to make a rifle stock, and you have probably seen the topic with some picks on this forum me asking you guys for advice when I got stuck in deciding what color to use on the wood.
Short story: I looked up pictures and paintings/drawings of the animal itself - the Wildcat - and then it struck me that the stains/stripes/spots in the wildcat's fur isn't that far from how the birch wood pattern often stand out when it is polished. But I also realised that I had to add some color to the wood to obtain such an effect.
Please note: This is not "HOW TO DO", but HOW I DID IT.
1: The FX Wildcat .22 provided from Børselars - Norway.
PS: I have observed that the shroud is longer on my version than the one for the American market, and probably the reason why there have been some disagreement from the Scandinavians in the loudness question.......:
2: I had this birch wood stored, ready for processing.
3: But how to get there? Here are some picks showing the process.
gundog made it clear to me: "from this moment you use gloves in all handling to prevent stains from (sweaty) hands to retract the structure".
I wanted to extend the fore end of the stock with 3 cm, and had to compromise....
4: The action fits perfect to the stock, but NOW comes the hard part. How can I get the colouring of the Wildcat`s fur into the stock??
A trick to lift the wood pattern is to make a very strong instant coffeemix, and apply it lightly into the wood with a sponge or a cloth. Repeat if necessary, and sand between the layers when dried out. This will also rise the wood structure between sanding, and therefore you must use finer and finer sandpaper.
Sanding/polishing the wood: You use rough sandpaper (40) when forming the stock in the start. Take it up to about 280, and when the watermoistering/humidification (in this case “coffying”) of the wood starts, never use rougher paper than 280. Gradually use finer paper until the surface is silky smooth between the watering/coffeeing. 4-8 rounds. My final paper in the last sanding process, the polishing part, would be with 1200 paper. (Emery paper). When the structure in the wood no longer rise, apply the woodoil. Combined with the oiling, use steel wool (000-grading) to polish the stock several times pr day, up to a week if needed. Ensure that the wood is soaked with the oil all the time, until the wood doesn't take any more. Now it is time to dry the oil remainings with a cloth. The wood is perspiring, so it has to be wiped a few times the next days to let the stock breath. The hardening (curing?) is a chemical process, and will take a few days. Nothing can be done, or should be done, to shorten this prosess.
Oil to use: There are many brands on the market. I mix my own for knifehandles, and have used the same for this stock. I am on thin ice here, and do not know the exact English words, but in Norwegian terms I mix:
50% Rå linolje (Rå = raw – not the boiled version)
25% Benar (I.a. used on wooden boats)
25% Amerikansk terpentin (or Akol Pro)
For better deepening in the wood, add some extra terpentin to start with.
THE COLORING PROCESS:
The colouring should be combined with sanding/polishing until ready for the oiling/lubrication-process.
Here we go:
Layer 1: Coffee
Layer 2: Herdins yellow
Layer 3: Herdins (Mix of English red & mahogany)
After sanding the 3 layers...
Oiling and polishing
Drying.......
And now it is due to compare the result with the original syntetic stock.
Do not misunderstand, I like the synthetic stock from FX. There are benefits that is absolutely present in a synthetic stock, but again - I just have my weakness when it comes to classic wood. (Norwegian Wood in this case...)
But how does this look when all is set and done? As you kan see the forend is a bit longer, but what about the tiny details?
I have rounded off the lines a bit, customised the grip exactly to my hand, and are now preparing a clip/fixing for an extra magasin underneath the rear screw. (Not yet finished, and I do not know if it will function).
To show the details better, following picks are taken with a descent camera, not my I-phone used above.
The photos underneath: Kjetil Rensel, Oslo (Thanks to you Kjetil!)
Thanks for watching!
And thanks to the Wildcat!!
