I have a 1926 fox sterlingworth that I'm restocking, which of course has about a 3" drop on the (non-original) wood...it will eventually wear new wood, although I'm not sure if that will be a straight stock, a POW or semi-pistol. I drew out a pattern on a big piece of paper today to aid in shopping for blanks, and realized in looking at the difference between where the comb is and where I want it to be, that the nose of the stock has the potential to be quite...protuberous, shall we say. I now understand why some choose to bend tangs...even for a pistol grip. On the other hand, someone recently showed me a straight stock (off the gun) for an unbent fox...
One friend says that he's never bent a tang on his several foxes, and having seen his stocks they look smashing. Another guy says he always bends the tangs, but in a way that I can't quite wrap my feeble mind around. Are these guns tangs different enough between various individual guns that some would need it and others wouldn't?? Or is this the personal preference of the owner?
So, I'm hoping to hear all sides of this coin...what do you think about this, and does anyone have more info on this tang-bending stuff?? Cost, before/after photos so I can understand (and usurp your project ideas), dangers, is this something I can do myself (beginner wood guy, not a metal guy--imagine there's more than simply bending involved), etc??
Thanks in advance,
Dave
