# Laminated Hardwood Gunstocks- which bits??



## tobnpr (Feb 5, 2013)

Good evening...

New to the forum, hoping for some advice on router bit selection.

I've decided to take my hobby (firearms), and my carpentry "skills" and meld them into another business venture....gunstocks, and pistol grips.

I've been a "contractor" carpenter for decades...no cabinetry type shop work- so while I've created innumerable tons of sawdust through the years, my experience with routers has been pretty minimal. Laminate trimming, easing edges, minimal stuff....

So now I've got this stock duplicator- or pantograph, which basically dupes whatever pattern you can fit between the headstock and tailstock and rotate it in sync with a blank.

After playing for a couple of days, it's apparent, this is easier said- than done- but I am getting the "feel" for it. Definitely, much more to "it" than I thought...

I've made some "practice" blanks by laminating "furniture grade" A/A pine plywood together. The "real" blanks are Stratabond laminate....I've not had the cojones to try cutting into one yet...and the manuf. doesn't specify the type of hardwood used. But, it's tough stuff...

What manufacturer would you recommend for the sharpest, longest lasting carbide bits to tackle this stuff? Even if I trim the blanks to be fairly close to the pattern, there's still some hogging to be done in some areas. 

Then, there's bit shapes... there is some inletting which requires square bits, but seems that the majority of the time round nose bits are used due to the complex curvatures of a rifle stock. Because a RN bit only contacts the surface at the tip, I tried using a square bit and the result was *horrible*...

I'm using a PC 690, and 1/2" bits to minimize flex and chatter. The bits that the manuf. of the machine supplied look like cheap azz Ryobi (blue). I picked up a Freud/Diablo at HD, but still was getting some burning of the wood. I go slow, the wood burns... I go faster, the wood burns....

The router isn't stressed, it's not a power issue.

Who's got razor sharp, carbide hard-as-rock bits that'll eat this hardwood plywood up like butter?

Of course, if any of you actually have experience on a stock duplicator, I'd appreciate any input as well.

Thanks in advance for any help.


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Welcome to the forum, Mike.

Co-incidentally, lately there seem to be a number of new members starting to make gun stocks. 

Have a search through the forum and make contact with these members.


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## OPG3 (Jan 9, 2011)

Mike, Welcome to the Router Forums! We are glad to have you as a fellow member. I was recently approached by a very good friend about making custom gunstocks, but I respecfully declined. I told him it was highly specialized work, in my opinion; and I have zero experience in it, nor did I feel I could spend the necessary time. James has given you an excellent suggestion about searching this forum for fellow members who may have experience in this arena. Also there is a young man in Canada, named Matthias Wandell; he is quite likely a literal genius and his website/tutorials may provide some insight for this topic. He will be easily located via "Google", etc.
Having never done this before, I may be way off base; but it seems to me that the bulk of the wood removal should be done *with anything but* a roundnose bit - due to the minimal contact point restraints. I am sure that there are likely to be some areas where that may be your best bit choice, but not for bulk wood removal.

We all wish you the best of luck. Your articulation of the needs were very concise, so I feel certain you could become a very helpful fellow member to the rest of us.

Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia


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## tobnpr (Feb 5, 2013)

Thanks guys. I'll try the search function- should have done that first.

After the first blank, it became apparent that I need to remove as much bulk material as possible first- just in the interest of saving time (and mess!).

Rough it out with a pencil first, trim with a bandsaw, then I'll use a 3/4" square bit. I think I'll try setting the bit about 3/16" or so higher than the stylus to remove the bulk material. Then come back with the round nose.

After thinking about it, the round nose must be the way to go due to all the complex curves, first a large one (7/8") and then a smaller 3/8" to make sure all the radii are tight. I think...


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