maple_leaf_eh
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Some additional progress:
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Nice safety socks.
"Save" a ratty israeli fibreglass M14 stock.
- Thread starter Claven2
- Start date
Nice safety socks.
Yeah, they are grey-fabric toed for extra protection.
No worries, when using machines or tools, the shoes are on - lol.
Update:
cheek piece plugs filed flush and sanded smooth.
Time to build "dams" around the area where I need compound to rebuild the butplate "wings" the Israelis had machined off. The wooden spacer was wrapped tightly in thich plastic packing tape so it would not bind to the JB Weld. Kinda like releasing agent on metal parts when bedding.
Filed to shape and sanded smooth:
Here we have a USGI buttplate sitting on the stock to show fit. Not bad, it will look the part.
Here's the selector cut after filing the patch to shape and levelling the heel seat. There are a couple air bubbles in the JB Weld, I filled those with epoxy after taking the photo. Not a bad patch IMHO.
Now I just have to take off the nasty black paint on the swivel and ferule and re-paint the stock.
cheek piece plugs filed flush and sanded smooth.
Time to build "dams" around the area where I need compound to rebuild the butplate "wings" the Israelis had machined off. The wooden spacer was wrapped tightly in thich plastic packing tape so it would not bind to the JB Weld. Kinda like releasing agent on metal parts when bedding.
Filed to shape and sanded smooth:
Here we have a USGI buttplate sitting on the stock to show fit. Not bad, it will look the part.
Here's the selector cut after filing the patch to shape and levelling the heel seat. There are a couple air bubbles in the JB Weld, I filled those with epoxy after taking the photo. Not a bad patch IMHO.
Now I just have to take off the nasty black paint on the swivel and ferule and re-paint the stock.
This is inspiring. I also have an IDF stock. Its not too bad but could be much better. There are repairs and blemishes. I keep thinking "its cooler if its all beat up and battle worn" but then I see a nice clean m14 and I get jealous ha.
I tried filling the selector hole and it popped right out once it dried. I used the quick set JB and perhaps i didnt roughen the surface enough before applying it. That stuff doesn't seem to stick too well.
I was also going to smooth the sides out as they are uneven. After playing around with some ideas I ended up saying F*** it and just sprayed a coat of the darkest brown paint I could find ans called it a day.
What is a good durable paint to use on these fibreglass stocks? I have tried Krylon plastic paint in the past and tried some rust olem this time. It says its ok on various materials. they both just seem inadequate. soft ans sticky even long after drying, and they wear off quickly.
I tried filling the selector hole and it popped right out once it dried. I used the quick set JB and perhaps i didnt roughen the surface enough before applying it. That stuff doesn't seem to stick too well.
I was also going to smooth the sides out as they are uneven. After playing around with some ideas I ended up saying F*** it and just sprayed a coat of the darkest brown paint I could find ans called it a day.
What is a good durable paint to use on these fibreglass stocks? I have tried Krylon plastic paint in the past and tried some rust olem this time. It says its ok on various materials. they both just seem inadequate. soft ans sticky even long after drying, and they wear off quickly.
I use the brown flat camo krylon from Cambodian tire. Works well, is not sticky and is reasonably durable.
The original liquid 2-part JB weld epoxy is really tough stuff and will stick to anything once it sets up. To help it along, get a fine drill bit and dimple theating surfaces in a few places. It won't ever pop out.
Thin areas are better off if they are re-enforced, like the nails I added to the buttplate wing repair.
Well the stock is basically ready for use now. Not sure which project I'll use the stock on yet, but it's been saved and is definitely now very serviceable as an M14 stock.
I finish sanded the fibreglass and shot the stock with 3 coats of krylon flat sand camo paint. The photos make it look whiter than it is, it's really more of a sand color. It may be too light for practical use, not sure yet, but this paint will serve as an excellent primer if I decide to go with another color.
I taped off all the metal first and stripped the ugly black enamel of the sling swivel and ferrule. The ferrule park is in decent shape and the swivel's finish is worn, but not too badly. It looks good overall. I threw on a NOS USGI buttplate assembly for the pics. The handguard is an unissued GI one from Treeline a ways back when they still had them in that grade.
Where I had to re-cut the checkering and fill the selector cutout:
Where the side swivel was:
Wing repairs. The ripples in the finish are just the original surface of the fibreglass - they were never perfectly smooth to begin with.
Where the cheekpiece holes used to be:
Heel area and selector cutout.
So there you have it. When I started, this was basically the worst condition IDF stock I had seen so far. It was not really good enough to use in an IDF sniper clone as there were many much better examples out there, but after a LOT of work, these can be resuscitated as a usable GI stock for your M14 clone.
I finish sanded the fibreglass and shot the stock with 3 coats of krylon flat sand camo paint. The photos make it look whiter than it is, it's really more of a sand color. It may be too light for practical use, not sure yet, but this paint will serve as an excellent primer if I decide to go with another color.
I taped off all the metal first and stripped the ugly black enamel of the sling swivel and ferrule. The ferrule park is in decent shape and the swivel's finish is worn, but not too badly. It looks good overall. I threw on a NOS USGI buttplate assembly for the pics. The handguard is an unissued GI one from Treeline a ways back when they still had them in that grade.
Where I had to re-cut the checkering and fill the selector cutout:
Where the side swivel was:
Wing repairs. The ripples in the finish are just the original surface of the fibreglass - they were never perfectly smooth to begin with.
Where the cheekpiece holes used to be:
Heel area and selector cutout.
So there you have it. When I started, this was basically the worst condition IDF stock I had seen so far. It was not really good enough to use in an IDF sniper clone as there were many much better examples out there, but after a LOT of work, these can be resuscitated as a usable GI stock for your M14 clone.
FWIW, if anyone is collecting buttplate hardware for a nice synthetic stock that is missing parts, the sling swivel and lower screw on the synthetic stocks is identical to a wooden M14 stock, which in turn is identical to the M1 garand parts. So they are easy to find. Springfield Armory screws are even available from brownells for the lower buttplate screw, and the right upper screw for a wood stock is also available. Oddly SAI doesn't sell the swivel separately, but there are lots of surplus ones around.
GI buttplates are all the same, the wood and synthetic stock buttplate interchange 100%.
HOWEVER...
The upper buttplate screw and nut assembly for the synthetic fibreglass GI stocks are nearly impossible to find. For whatever reason, when you find one, it's almost always installed in a stock. The screw has a unique profile, a slotted head and a 10-32 thread. The nut is just a square 10-32 nut with a piece of sheet metal bents around it to jam it into the recess in the stock. Even if you don;t have a square 10-32 nut, you can just cut a piece of steel scrap to the right size, drill a hole in it and tap it 10-32. You don't need the sheet metal retainer as the nut will stay in place once the buttplate is installed.
The screws are harder to make and basically require a lathe. A more patient man could have copied one exactly, but this one I just made will be good enough to replace one I'm missing. The one on the top is an original GI screw. The IDF sniper stocks re-used this screw, so if you are fixing up an old IDF stock, you're in luck. I have another fibreglass stock that is missing all the buttplate metal though, so although I can order everything else, I had to make an extra screw.
The head under-bevel is 45 degrees, the point on the end of the screw is 60 degrees. The diameter is stepped to match the inlet in the fiberglass stocks and the .210" upper shaft is only a few though under the diameter of the buttplate hole to ensure the buttplate stays centered on the fibreglass stocks, which are generously inlet.
Not my best ever work, but it's a buttplate screw and once parkerized and installed, nobody will ever see it again
The original screws were "rolled" in a mass production fastener die, so they always look super consistent. I made this one by hand (in a manual lathe) out of a grade 8.8 socket head cap screw. I usually make missing milsurp fasteners out of good (larger diameter) grade 8.8 fasteners, despite the metal being harder to machine than something like 12L14 or 1020 mild steel, because you end up with more or less the right hardness and toughness in the finished fastener and I don't have to worry about hardening the end product.
GI buttplates are all the same, the wood and synthetic stock buttplate interchange 100%.
HOWEVER...
The upper buttplate screw and nut assembly for the synthetic fibreglass GI stocks are nearly impossible to find. For whatever reason, when you find one, it's almost always installed in a stock. The screw has a unique profile, a slotted head and a 10-32 thread. The nut is just a square 10-32 nut with a piece of sheet metal bents around it to jam it into the recess in the stock. Even if you don;t have a square 10-32 nut, you can just cut a piece of steel scrap to the right size, drill a hole in it and tap it 10-32. You don't need the sheet metal retainer as the nut will stay in place once the buttplate is installed.
The screws are harder to make and basically require a lathe. A more patient man could have copied one exactly, but this one I just made will be good enough to replace one I'm missing. The one on the top is an original GI screw. The IDF sniper stocks re-used this screw, so if you are fixing up an old IDF stock, you're in luck. I have another fibreglass stock that is missing all the buttplate metal though, so although I can order everything else, I had to make an extra screw.
The head under-bevel is 45 degrees, the point on the end of the screw is 60 degrees. The diameter is stepped to match the inlet in the fiberglass stocks and the .210" upper shaft is only a few though under the diameter of the buttplate hole to ensure the buttplate stays centered on the fibreglass stocks, which are generously inlet.
Not my best ever work, but it's a buttplate screw and once parkerized and installed, nobody will ever see it again
The original screws were "rolled" in a mass production fastener die, so they always look super consistent. I made this one by hand (in a manual lathe) out of a grade 8.8 socket head cap screw. I usually make missing milsurp fasteners out of good (larger diameter) grade 8.8 fasteners, despite the metal being harder to machine than something like 12L14 or 1020 mild steel, because you end up with more or less the right hardness and toughness in the finished fastener and I don't have to worry about hardening the end product.
