Re-sizing a Buttplate

[762Russian]

Wondering if there is an effective way of making a buttplate slightly smaller around to fit on a firearm that's been refinished.

I took apart my Mossberg 183D-C last year and sanded it down to remove the worn-out varnish and the many nicks and scrapes it had acquired over its half a century of use in the wilderness of North Ontario. Took awhile to get it done, but in the end I had fought it down to bare wood, which I then treated very carefully with some 600-grit sandpaper and more than a few coats of BLO. End result is a stunning rifle with a butter-soft stock. Very pleased.

The only problem is, fighting with the varnish on the stock meant that I had to lose about 1/16 of an inch of size all around, and about 1/8 of an inch at the top in the little divot. So now there is a slightly uncomfortable sharp edge on the plastic, and the al-around looks are suffering.

Anyone ever worked with such a problem before? How was it solved?

Cheers.

 

[wolf19534]

i had the same problem when i ordered a new butt plastic plate for an older winchester 30.30... there was alot of excess material...he used a belt sander to fit it size for size...however i'm very sure that it wasn't just a standard belt...the finish on the edges looked factory...mirror finish

 

[Why not?]

The best way to do it, is to shape the butt plate or recoil pad with it attached to the stock, sanding it down with the wood, before you oil the stock.

Since you have already finished it, I would take two wraps of masking tape around the stock tight against the plate, but not covering it, then carefully sand the plate down, following the lines of the stock, until you are through the first layer of tape. That will get it almost as good as if you had sanded it with the wood.

Ted

 

[BigUglyMan]

What Ted said. I've done this with several recoil pads and it's the only way to go.

 

[44Bore]

You can speed up the process by rough shaping the butt plate with a fine cut file--same process--two wraps of tape and file to the tape and then finish sand. saves some sanding time.

 

[rgg_7]

Remove the butt plate from the stock. Make a template from double sided tape by tracing the stock outline and hole locations. Once you're satisfied with the pattern transfer it to the buut plate. The tape should hold however mark the outline with an exacto knife. Dry fit to the stock to double check your layout. Once you've got the alignment use a belt sander to take it down to the scribed line. Wet polish the edge with 400 grit wet and compound. Reinstall on the stock and you're good to go! Ron

 

[vagrantviking]

Either the tape and file trick or use an awl to scratch a line all the way around so you can take it off and sand it down to fit.

Test fit often.

 

[762Russian]

Great, thanks for the options boys. I'm going to give those some thought and get to work.