doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com hiding cast in the comb nose of a stock??

I'm in the "prettying up" stage of making a pattern stock for a Fox. The gun has a modest amount of cast, a touch over 1/4" at heel and also needs a smidge at the comb. Problem is, with the desired thin comb the comb nose appears slanted to the off side if you look at it from the muzzles. It may just be my hyper-anal-retentiveness, but I am not 100% sure I couldn't do more to disguise this and make it look a bit more even there--the cast at the heel and even more at the toe does't seem to offend my sensibilities, but this area just isn't quite perfect. It's a subgauge gun and a pretty slim-wristed stock, so not a ton of material to work with here, either.

Does anyone have any tricks or tips for making cast look as even and smooth as possible at the comb nose?

Here's a photo, perhaps that will help. The cast at toe makes it look a little wacky, but I think you can see the comb slanting to the off side a bit--I'n not referring to the overall cast, but the slant from the grip near the hand pin up to the nose of the comb itself. Does anyone have any tricks or tips for making some cast here look as even and smooth as possible?



Thanks a ton for any feedback,
Dave

David:
Really, a 1/4" at the heel is a fair amount; I don't know that you're ever going to be able to completely hide the comb nose slant when looking from the muzzle. Since it is a pattern stock, I'd try adding some material to the right side of the comb to in effect make it a little broader in cross-section, then re-shape. Even though it's a smallbore, IMO it wouldn't look "incorrect" if the entire comb had a fuller appearance; I've seen plenty that were fairly hefty through the front of the comb.
Craig Libhart

Cast starts at the butt, if you can believe that. In other words, start with a proper shape at the butt with the cast already set. I do this with the help of a properly shaped buttplate. I mark a vertical line on the butt at the 0 cast, then mark a parallel line at the amount of cast I want. Center the buttplate on the new cast line and layout. Then build up on the side needing material with bondo and start shaving down. The fore and aft shape of the comb and entire butt should be straight lines to the grip. You can use a straight edge to ensure your fore and aft lines are straight.

In the picture, you have a bulge in the left side of the picture (right side of butt).

Often, I'm starting with a stock thats too short, which makes the cast setting easy. I cut a wood extension that is the shape of the buttplate and glue it on the stock at the offset for the cast desired. Or you can do the same with a buttplate itself. This serves as a guide to shape the stock like I described above...straight lines fore and aft. NO BULGES

From the look of the butt area compared to the extension rib, there is much more than 1/4" of cast at the heel, or the camera is not telling us the truth. I agree with Craig that the thin comb nose may not be the most attractive alternative in the world of custom stocks. Serious custom gun collectors and builders as well as serious shooters do not look at a thin comb with great favor. Original Parkers and Fox stocks were not neccesarily designed all that well for looks or shooting.

David, you didn't mention how the existing dimensions relate to your stock fit. IMU, the cast at butt-heel is to fit shoulder width and the cast at face is to fit to your cheek fullness (or lack of). Cast at comb can be zero or whatever works aesthetically. The Monte Carlo was invented to deal with big differences between needed drop at face and drop at heel. Too often cast at face is controlled by cast at heel with the comb set as zero. This is not necessarily the best approach as it can fit either at the expense of the other or be a compromise that fits neither. Keep in mind that comb thickness must be factored into fit at face. You may have to decide on a priority between fit and aesthetics if the fit is tto far off standard.

From my worksheet,Perazzi,the factory needs:length of pull,pitch in degrees,distance of grip(from middle of trigger to front,bottom of grip,pistol),beginning of comb(from breech),drop at front of comb,drop at rear of comb, drop at heel(if Monte Carlo),cast at front of comb,cast at heel; cast at toe.The need for comb cast(fore and aft) is why many shooters later ask for a movable comb.So,on a custom stock, it is desirable to get all three casts right at the beginning.

David, You are bringing the comb centerline all the way down to the grip centerline. Stop the line on the top of the comb, and the grip center at the bottom of the comb nose. Then draw a line straight down the comb nose between the two. This should straighten things out a bit.
Do you best to shape things to LOOK fairly even but remember, cast stocks always look a bit cattywampus-- because they are!
Steve
Also, at some point spray paint the stock a solid color, then look at it again. The multicolors will more than distrract the eye. When you do more work on it you will be able to tell exactly where you are filing and how much is coming off.

Amen to that.

Holland and Holland bends the action/locks(!) then the stock is still straight to the action. If you wanted to go down that road, mill off a very thin wedge from the back of the action. Would be easier on a boxlock than a sidelock.