Hand carved stock

[cfxdragon]

I recently cut down a big old burr oak on my property. I am thinking of making a custom stock for the cfx using some wood from this tree. It will probably be a project for this winter when the snow is flying. I am not a woodworker. I usually prefer metal to work with... if I take too much off I just weld some back on

Does anyone have any advise for someone embarking on such a project for the first time? I have this image in my head of my CFX with a beautiful burr oak stock and handmade leather sling.

[yel01z06]

you should prob. make one out of some other cheap wood first to get your hands wet and then move on to the good wood as to not mess up the nice piece of wood you will also have to make sure that the wood is dry enough to work with

[SDale]

I second that! Practice on some plank material first, then go on with a nice piece of wood. a couple 2x6's laminated together with a good urethane glue makes for a really good stock blank.

If I were you, I'd cut a few pieces of that wood into good stock blank sized logs, leave the bark on it, wax the ends and put it in the garage or someplace DRY for a couple years to season before trying to make a stock out of it.  If it's still green it'll be prone to checking, splitting or warping once it's carved into a stock.

[johncedarhill]

The wood needs to be seasoned--there are commercial coatings for the ends and then let it dry slowly. Cut some pieces very oversized and then dry them. An Attic comes to mind. I may be off base but slow drying down and stabilizing to your particular climate could take a year. If the wood is too wet then it will crack as it drys quickly after you shape it and increase the surface area. I think about 10 to 15 percent moisture would be OK. The reverse is true too dry can expand by absorbing water.

[cfxdragon]

Thanks for the advise on seasoning the wood everyone. There are a couple of the larger limbs that should give me ample diameter with sections that would be free of knots. These would make it easy to treat the ends, leave the bark on, and let them set for a year or two. Just out of curiosity does anyone make aftermarket stocks for the CFX?

[johncedarhill]

I asked about the cfx wood stock couple of months ago--so far no one makes them. The stock maker needs a gun to fit.

[howie1a]

When I used to make anchor pulpits out of teak we would rough cut the teak boards over size and stack them in layers with spacers between them to let them dry out good before  building  a set of pulpits we are looking at $1000. per pulpit when finished added to the sail boat , so we would build about 10 per mo. and we would cut up the set for next mo. and use the set that was dried , you need to know that in Florida it is nice and hot so the drying doesn't take to long also the teak was not raw lumber when we got it.And the  drying coop looked kind of like a rabbit hutch.  but it would help to keep it from warping or checking (spliting)  I would pre cut your oak  over size and air dry it  with spacers between the pieces also I would think about when making the stock to laminate  and not make it from one piece this way you will prevent warping as well as checking you will need to turn the boards end to end filp them so the grain doesn't run the same way to keep from warping.   it wouldn't hurt to put sone weights on the top of the pile while it drys a couple of cement blocks would be fine. and I would cut them into 1 inch  thickness  un dressed size then when you are ready to use them  have them planed down to the thickness you want . howie

[palonej]

Season, season, season!!!!! Oak just LOVES to 'check'!!!
Joe