Have always wanted to build an adjustable aluminium rifle stock so today (my one day off a week) I bit the bullet and began the project.
My F Class rifle is nothing flash but I get it to consistently print .3 moa groups at 200. It is a Howa 6.5 Creedmoor with the 26-inch heavy barrel.
I am running a Athlon Argos 8 - 34 x 56 scope (mil). So I decided to strip the rifle down to the barrelled action and start from there.
The pics below will show what I am doing better than what I can explain. I have hand cut and filed a piece of 10mm thick aluminium to fit in the action where the magazine follower normally sits. The next piece will be a piece of 60mm x 10mm piece that will be milled to fit the recoil lug and rear tang of the action. I am using a standard router to mill the aluminium. If you take it slow and don't try to cut to deep with each pass it works great. One word of caution though, use a homemade jig and clamp the aluminium down hard. If the router bites in you need these guides to help. The two holes in the piece for the magazine well are there so I can Tig weld is too the action piece. I will update this as the work progresses. I know this isn't everyone’s cup of tea. I just like trying different stuff and mucking about in the shed.
The build took a turn the other day when I realized the quick release mounts for the scope would be fouled by the sides. I also discovered that the 6061 aluminium action section flexed a little. I made another action piece and will Tig weld the 2 together to make a 20mm thick section under the action. Few changes made and the pice looks rough but a lot of elbow grease will fix that when it is complete.
Building an Aluminium Stock with Basic Tools update 3
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Building an Aluminium Stock with Basic Tools update 3
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Last edited by Snow on Tue Feb 06, 2018 5:44 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Building an Aluminium Stock with Basic Tools
Very good !
About 10 years ago I bought the biggest router I could find (3hp Hitachi) and set it up vertically in a fairly heavy v-block slide off a lathe. This unit sits above my lathe and can be simply swung down into place directly over the lathe bed.
I then made a bloody heavy solid steel vice that bolts onto the lathes saddle, in place of the compound slide.
I have machined ( routed ) a whole lot of aluminium and composite materials with this setup. One guy said to me a long time ago "nah ya can't do that because the routers bearings won't last very long at all !". Wrong.
I've made heaps of stuff with it ie. It has opened a LOT of doors re the things I can design and build in ally/carbon/plastics ...
What many don't realise is with the high rotational speeds the router runs at the cutting forces are greatly reduced. Mine stays on 22000rpm.
Ya get to learn lots about all the many different grades of ally and how they cut. Many grades are 'gummy' and don't machine well. Spray on some CRC for cutting lube .........
About 10 years ago I bought the biggest router I could find (3hp Hitachi) and set it up vertically in a fairly heavy v-block slide off a lathe. This unit sits above my lathe and can be simply swung down into place directly over the lathe bed.
I then made a bloody heavy solid steel vice that bolts onto the lathes saddle, in place of the compound slide.
I have machined ( routed ) a whole lot of aluminium and composite materials with this setup. One guy said to me a long time ago "nah ya can't do that because the routers bearings won't last very long at all !". Wrong.
I've made heaps of stuff with it ie. It has opened a LOT of doors re the things I can design and build in ally/carbon/plastics ...
What many don't realise is with the high rotational speeds the router runs at the cutting forces are greatly reduced. Mine stays on 22000rpm.
Ya get to learn lots about all the many different grades of ally and how they cut. Many grades are 'gummy' and don't machine well. Spray on some CRC for cutting lube .........
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Re: Building an Aluminium Stock with Basic Tools
Gyro wrote:Spray on some CRC for cutting lube .........
Cheers Gyro.
I have been using Inox as cutting lube. Seems to work okay however today the cutting piece built up some harsh chatter and the alloy gummed up the cutting bit. My fault as I was rushing it a bit.
Think I might giver serious consideration to buying a used mill, or if funds can stretch a lathe with a mill over.
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Re: Building an Aluminium Stock with Basic Tools
very nice
the mob i work for when using multicutters or routers with aluminium paraffin wax is used as lubricant and stops most of the bogging associated with the lesser grades of aluminium
Snow wrote:Gyro wrote:Spray on some CRC for cutting lube .........
Cheers Gyro.
I have been using Inox as cutting lube. Seems to work okay however today the cutting piece built up some harsh chatter and the alloy gummed up the cutting bit. My fault as I was rushing it a bit.
Think I might giver serious consideration to buying a used mill, or if funds can stretch a lathe with a mill over.
the mob i work for when using multicutters or routers with aluminium paraffin wax is used as lubricant and stops most of the bogging associated with the lesser grades of aluminium
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Re: Building an Aluminium Stock with Basic Tools
When you have finished the stock another great do it yourselfer might give you some battleship grey paint to top it off
Thinking outside the square is how all advances are made
Good luck with it
Thinking outside the square is how all advances are made
Good luck with it
We don't rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training. Archilochos 680-645 BC
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Re: Building an Aluminium Stock with Basic Tools
Did a bit more work last night on the action section and roughed out the pieces for the fore end. The front section is 76mm wide and I will skeleton it to reduce weight once I am happy with how all the rest goes together. For now I have drilled and tapped the holes that will end up being plug welded. Using bolts to hold it together to get everything aligned with other parts saves a lot of headaches later. If I botch something up I can simply unscrew the part rather than cutting it all back down.
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