The Savage-Stevens 325A Project Phase II Part 1

This is the continuation of a project I started some months ago. I started by making the gun into a "Post Apocalyptic" themed rifle, the finish already looked like it had been through a war, so it was an easy build. 


Here are the links to that part of the build
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3


Now onto the second phase.....I will attempt to build the factory stock into a thumb-hole stock.

First Step: Collecting the parts & pieces

Here is the stock I am using, it is the one that came on the gun.

The stock has a bunch of strange holes fore and aft, one of the ones on the toe I will use as the pilot for the sling stud, the other will be filled and sanded

Home Depot supplied a 4ft section of 1x6 birch wood. I'll use it to make the cheek rest, the taller section of the comb and the expanded grip.

I found these camo flip flops on ebay for $5, they will make a perfect recoil pad for our custom stock

I also found this factory Savage front sling swivel stud that replaces the front barrel band screw, Gun Parts Corp had them for $2.60

I also had this camo sling that came on my Arisaka Project
This sling is an Outdoor Connections Super Sling and came with Talon Q-D swivels 

Let's get started with this build

We'll start by prepping the stock for sanding, which means removing the old finish. I like to use Citristrip brand stripping gel

After a few minutes the old finish starts to bubble, I usually give it 30 minutes per side

Try to get as much of the old finish off as you can, it will save time and sand paper later as the old finish will clog up the paper and delay your progress.  A little extra time here saves mucho tiempo later

Once we had the old finish removed, it was time to install the recoil pad.
I originally thought about using the camo side, but because it has very little texture and I am going with a different style of camo, I decided to use the back side, which is a nice shade of Olive Drab Green.

Before gluing I rough up both surfaces with sand paper and or a knife, this creates areas for the epoxy to stick to

I prefer to use JB Clear Weld, which is a 5 minute epoxy which dries fast and clear.

I forgot to take a picture of the butt pad while it was drying, but here it is before being fitted. I am also filling the random holes in the stock with a mixture of wood glue and saw dust

Next step is measuring and making templates

We will need to cover the top of the wrist before enlarging our thumb hole, we also will need to extend the grip as our hand position will now be lower.

I transferred the templates to the piece of birch wood

In Part 2 we will cut and fit some new wood to the old stock