doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Drilling Cheekpiece - What's its purpose?

Both of my Merkel drillings have cheekpieces with drop to comb of about 1-3/4 inches. Does a cheekpiece act to raise or lower the effective drop to comb, or is it just another extraneous Prussian or European feature? Do the LOP and drop to comb and heel typically follow traditional SXS measurements? Thanks

Better stockweld. Cheek to stock.

Plus it allows slimmer/thinner/lighter stock.

One of the things the Germans learned very early was that a cheekpiece, while not the prettiest attachment, certainly does minimize cheek slap. This component of recoil is spread over many more square inches. I have a 104 year old Sauer drilling that is a real pleasure to shoot.

Johnpe

I wouldn't quite term it like that, although, I might tend to agree with you on the Tirolerschaft or Wienerschaft/Viennese style stock at first glance at one. But when you shoot a Austrian/German target for a bit you come to expect it. Otherwise, I believe the Austrian and Bavarian to be a bit more angular than the often referred to "pancake" German style. If the gun fits you, when you feel the cheekpiece touch you cheek, you instinctively squeeze off a round. I guess a lot of it could be attributed to personal preference.

Kind Regards,

Raimey
rse

Might have something to do with cast, too.

It very well may and would be seemly art in the form of function. Or something art like or looking but has a practical application or benefit.

Kind Regards,

Raimey
rse

Looking at the shadow line cheekpiece on a Flues SBT (a shadow line is certainly crafty if not ahtistic) you'd think that comb is just too thick for me as I don't have eyes on stalks. I soon learned that by raising my right elbow a la the Joe Morgan "pump" (a good habit for any shooter as it raises the pocket and lifts the comb also) I somehow got my eye over the centerline of the gun. At least this is what appeared to happen as I began to break 16 yd targets with consistency. Could be just post hoc fallacy; I've spent a lot of time sitting around cranking my elbow up and down while trying to feel what happens to the pocket with my left. I still can't see how a high elbow "simulates" the conditions on a cast-off stock but in my case it appears to.

jack