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Its a takedown gun so if the takedown needed to be tightened you have to remove the forearm wood to access the screws and they did take the stock off to take pictures so its probably been apart a few other times as well just to settle someones curiosity.
Bob
WACA Life Member--- NRA Life Member---- Cody Firearms member since 1991 Researching the Winchester 1873's
Email: [email protected]
You guys know I always bitch and whine when the subject of wood shrinkage comes up. Well an 80+ year old collector/restorer friend of mine has set me straight. He agreed with me about straight grain not shrinking in most cases but he did not agree when it came to fancy wood, especially really fancy wood. He said that he has seen wood that had no visible cracks on the outside but when the stock was removed there was a crack. He even said that sometimes there is an internal crack that can’t be seen but when the stock was removed and cut open for inspection there was a crack. These cracks are caused by too much shrinkage. So I guess I’ll have to watch what I say when it comes to fancy wood. I apologize for being so hard headed. I still won’t buy one that has too much shrinkage.
I forgot to add another tip he gave me. When he fixes a forearm that has shrunk he makes a new tenon so he can drill the holes where he needs them to tighten things up.
November 7, 2015
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I’m inclined to agree with your friend, Chuck. I had a Legendary Frontiersman (I know, made 1979) with pretty awesome wood but the gap around the tang was almost unsightly. A bit of Bore Butter helped considerably but I always wondered why a rifle with this level of fit & finish would have gaps like this.
Mike
Any woodworker will tell you that wood shrinks across the grain as it dries (and swells the same way when wet), but the length barely changes. That would support the opinion that a gap is due to a re-assembly error.
The wild grain pattern of the walnut used in deluxe guns makes the wood very attractive, and is consistent with cross-grain shrinkage, as that comes from the crotch of a branch or the tree’s root.
I’d like to know which Gunbroker dealer we’re talking about, but the linked listing is no longer available. Would someone be able to post a current link to an active item from that dealer, or provide the seller’s Gunbroker name so we can see who that is?
You might want to remember that in the “old days” they had craftsmen that could make wood fit perfectly, and they did just that. I have a number of 100 year old Winchester levers and slide actions that have never been refinished and the wood to metal is still perfect. I don’t know exactly when that craftsmanship went to hell, but I would guess in the 40’s. I have yet to see a gun from that era that had a wood to metal fit problem because of shrinkage.
Online
[email protected] said
Any woodworker will tell you that wood shrinks across the grain as it dries (and swells the same way when wet), but the length barely changes. That would support the opinion that a gap is due to a re-assembly error.
This summer we put in a new floor of treated 2x6s at our club range. Because there was already a problem of .22RF cases sticking in the gaps between the planks in the tops of our benches, great effort was made to pry the floor planks edge to edge using a steel bar before they were nailed. All to no avail–when the boards fully dried (less than a month!), the cracks between them were wide enough to swallow a RF case! Wouldn’t have believed so much shrinkage so soon, but it damn sure happened!
This spring I made a new door for my shed. It was a double layer wood door with each layer layed crossways to the other. I was using treated tung and grove board and my co worker who was a wood worker said its going to shrink when it dries out so I put the board tight to each other. Funny thing when it started to rain for a week it swelled up in the frame and started to bow out. I was really proud of my work up until then.
Bob
WACA Life Member--- NRA Life Member---- Cody Firearms member since 1991 Researching the Winchester 1873's
Email: [email protected]
Treated lumber in my part of the world is usually spruce…a very soft, porous, and punky wood. It is partially dried and then pumped full of the preserving chemicals and then bundled very wet. If it is not installed and well secured very soon after obtained it will warp badly. Because of all the moisture it has, it shrinks badly. Unless you somehow dry it before you put it up, it will always shrink a lot. Of course, if you try and dry it, it will have warpage and maybe be unusable.8
1873man said
This spring I made a new door for my shed. It was a double layer wood door with each layer layed crossways to the other. I was using treated tung and grove board and my co worker who was a wood worker said its going to shrink when it dries out so I put the board tight to each other. Funny thing when it started to rain for a week it swelled up in the frame and started to bow out. I was really proud of my work up until then.Bob
That’s why ship lap or tongue and groove works so well. Properly fit it has room to swell when wet and shrink when dry and never show any gaps. Putting things cross grain to each other adds strength but maybe not so good for expansion and contraction? A good example is then fancy boxes are built for pistols and such. Often times the end grain is banded with a nicer piece to hide the end grain. This band is cross grain to the main piece. In time many of these tops crack because the expansion and contraction due to humidity changes is no longer possible. Thus the crack.
Chuck,
I had made lapped wood doors out of plain untreated pine with no tung and grove and put them tight together but painted them right away and had no problems but it was the advise I was given and told I should let the wood dry out before I paint. Now I know better. At least it was a shed door and not a deck. Either way it was a 100% improvement to the looks.
Bob
WACA Life Member--- NRA Life Member---- Cody Firearms member since 1991 Researching the Winchester 1873's
Email: [email protected]
1873man said
Chuck,I had made lapped wood doors out of plain untreated pine with no tung and grove and put them tight together but painted them right away and had no problems but it was the advise I was given and told I should let the wood dry out before I paint. Now I know better. At least it was a shed door and not a deck. Either way it was a 100% improvement to the looks.
Bob
I generally let wood dry inside before I cut it up. Some times I let it sit for awhile after I cut it. Even sitting on dry concrete will cause it to cup on one side. Always use stickers between the floor and the layers of wood. I didn’t realize that the wood was not sealed before the rain.
Door looks a lot better than the old one.
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