Rifleman1

“home made” recoil tube

12 posts in this topic

Hi all,  

A couple of months ago, I decided to make a new recoil tube myself.. for the better stock that didn’t have one.. A bit of a challenge as I have limited skills on my 9 x 19 hobby lathe... and no milling machine,  but with a lot of experimenting and numerous custom part holders, I was able to get a decent result that worked for me.. here are some pictures.   

Bill 

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87F1DCD0-CEAE-4750-8A48-E27F7B16A500.jpeg

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Bill

Would you have a recoil tube for sale ? I've been looking for one with no luck yet.

Thanks

Bob G.

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4 hours ago, Bob G. said:

Bill

Would you have a recoil tube for sale ? I've been looking for one with no luck yet.

Thanks

Bob G.

Hey Bob,

I made three now.. the biggest difference from the original is that I used an M15 x 0.75 thread for the plug.. as I had to use a tap and die...  so the original plug won’t fit my tube.. but I made a matching plug for that..  the other thing is the saddle with the key slot.. the first tube I installed the key wasn’t perfectly perpendicular so I had to tweak that a little... so it takes a little effort to install it right... if you still want one I can either send you one, or you can send me the stock and I will install for you...

CC000687-0EA2-4672-8E1A-26D302DA4D78.jpeg

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Bill

As of now I don't have a stock, I do have a mainspring, and all the parts except the recoil tube. I have been waiting for a buttstock from Murrays Gunstocks for over a year now.

Sent a deposit and all I get is lip service. So really what I need is a recoil tube and a buttstock. 

Regards

Bob G.

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That would be awesome , please keep the forum updated !!

Bob G.

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Murrays Gunstocks is sending me a Johnson buttstock without the mainspring hole drilled. He will sell them that way if you can drill your own hole for mainspring tube.

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I've had good luck reshaping the sporter stocks into military configuration. I've done several. Check my gallery photos to see one which I've done. If you have a sporter stock it's possible to have it re-configured. I retired after spending nearly 50 years as a carpenter.

The Winfield Deluxe Sporter stock below has been refinished after shaping. Might be a bit too glossy but that can be remedied with some fine steel wool. Or remove most of the finish and beat the thing up a bit yourself. The wood has a really odd grain pattern.......might have come from near Chernobyl.

 

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Left side stock.jpg

Butt end of stock.jpg

top of stock.jpg

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Reshaping a sporter stock into military configuration..  that looks good...  nothing wrong with that.. 

Are these sporter stocks (more) available..?  I presume in way better shape than the (scarce) military ones..?

 

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Rifleman,

If someone is trying to "re-militarize" a Winfield Deluxe Sporter, they often just dispose of the Winfield stock with it's cheekpiece, larger heel, and rubber buttpad. Getting the recoil tube out of a Winfield stock, or any older stock, can involve destroying the donor stock just to get the tube out.

My preference is to re-shape the Winfield stock. It can take a fair amount of woodworking skill, sanding equipment, and elbow grease to get the job done. Since original stocks are very scarce and pricey when you do find one....reforming the stock you already have is a viable option. I actually enjoy making a "silk purse out of a sow's ear."

I feel sure that some of the members of this community have old Winfield stocks squirreled away due to lack of demand for them. At one time I remember Joe Scott said he couldn't  give the old stocks away.

Now with the possibility of access to new stocks made on a duplicator, and you guys being able to make new recoil spring tubes.....things are looking better for replacement stocks in the future.

11 hours ago, Bob G. said:

Murrays Gunstocks is sending me a Johnson buttstock without the mainspring hole drilled. He will sell them that way if you can drill your own hole for mainspring tube.

Hi Bob,

I once researched a lot of online "reviews" by people who had dealt with some of the existing stock duplicators. One fellow had retired and sold his equipment to someone else, leaving a big void in the supply.

I was afraid that you might get less than you bargained for. I've given some thought as to how to go about drilling the mainspring tube hole. It seems to me that it will require some sort of fixture or jig to hold the stock and drill bit in relative position. I'm going to see if I can figure out a way to drill that hole without taking a chance on wrecking the new stock..

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According to Joseph Scott and John Darling before him, the difficult part was not shaping replacements to external and internal dimensions so everything fit.  It was properly drilling the stock for the recoil tube.  It took a particular "jig" which John Darling had developed and made and Joseph Scott later acquired.  They both made "drop in" replacements which really worked.  Over the years I have had so called drop in replacements from other makers in which the recoil type assembly could not be properly placed without practically destroying the the hole.

Tanker's post about recountouring Winfield sporter stocks is most timely.  This is not particularly difficult if you have some woodworking skills and time.  The hard part here is redoing the stock key holes which are covered with a wood plug on one side.  The Winfield key is often solid and glued in

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