• This Forum is for adults 18 years of age or over. By continuing to use this Forum you are confirming that you are 18 or older. No content shall be viewed by any person under 18 in California.

Wood Stock Grade

65swede

Silver $$ Contributor
This came off a used gun rack a few years back.
It's a Model 70 LA pushfeed .243 win.
I think the stock is maple. What's best guess on the grade? Could the inlays be ivory? Anyone recognize the work?


IMG_20230918_173056.jpgIMG_20230918_173048.jpgIMG_20230918_173112.jpgIMG_20230918_173107.jpgIMG_20230918_173144.jpg
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20230918_173126.jpg
    IMG_20230918_173126.jpg
    633.5 KB · Views: 51
check out Winslow Arms . They are defunct now and listed in older shooters bible and similar books . The more I look at it , the more it resembles a Winslow .
 
You raise an excellent question about the inlays. If ivory, you won't be able to legally sell the rifle with inlays in place...though personally I would be highly unlikely to want to sell such a beauty!
 
You'd have to shell out quite a Number of, Benjamin's Today, to have that replicated, by a G-S.
I used to build custom Rifles and stocks, back in the Day (1970's to early 1990's ).
A LOT of Hours of work goes into them but, they are,.. a Labor of Love !
 
Nice wood that should be used in something other than a rifle stock. Reminds me of a gold plated revolver that I saw yesterday. I guess that is why several options are available to us.
It appears to me that some's taste is in their mouth only.
 
I would consider that AA or A+. AAA typically has exemplary figure through the entirety of the stock, from butt to tip.
I agree. Hard to say for sure, but it looks like the forearm has significantly less figure, and the butt, while pretty, doesn’t have the strong contrast and movement you see in high grade stocks. I believe this stock would be ranked A grade.

That said, the value of the stock is probably in the checkering and inlay, particularly if they are both done to an exceptional quality that stands out as unique in person.
 
The inlays take away from the wood and are probably imitation ivory. Nice rifle, does it shoot?
I have to think that they covered a check or other defect.

It looks a good bit like a Richards Microfit, athough its a very normal style, so it could be from somewhere else.
 
Beautiful piece of curly maple, those inlets could be ivory or bakalite. The black inlays are most likely ebony. I wouldn’t worry about selling it if that’s want you chose as no government org has time for such trivial matters.. unless your Hunter Biden or Trump.. :cool:
 
Inlays could very easily be bone. If you have a good quality close up pic of the inlays I could tell you with some certainty what it is. I've been working with all kinds of ivory for years.
 
Well then I guess they're absolutely NOT ivory.
This is not true .. you can still buy and sell ivory ... You cannot export or import ..I am friends with David warther the largest broker of legal ivory in the country .. he supplies gun products pistol grips .. parts for billiard cues .. piano keys and to carvers ... And he is an artist in his own right.

 
Mojomfg nailed it.
Ivory was an oft-used material in pool cues, and those cues are still bought and sold every day. Sometimes it is referred to as "good stuff", and sometimes as other euphemisms. You can still get a cue that includes ivory, although those are, more often that not, for purposes other than actual play. And you probably won't get one as a stranger walking into a cue maker's shop, unknown to anyone in the game, and asking for it.
 
I agree. Hard to say for sure, but it looks like the forearm has significantly less figure, and the butt, while pretty, doesn’t have the strong contrast and movement you see in high grade stocks. I believe this stock would be ranked A grade.

That said, the value of the stock is probably in the checkering and inlay, particularly if they are both done to an exceptional quality that stands out as unique in person.
Stock Forearms, in Rifles, SHOULD HAVE "Straight Grain",.. DUE to, end stage, Warping, "over Time", Accuracy and POI, "shifting Problems", that come with, fully DRIED, wood.
I would NOT buy, a pretty Rifle with a Ton of grain structure, in the Forearm area, UN-Less just,..
a "Wall Hanger" !
Old Gunsmiths, figured this out,.. in the 1950's or,.. BEFORE ( Probably back in, the 1700's,.. Flintlock Days )
 
Last edited:

Upgrades & Donations

This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.


Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.

You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.


To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.

Forum statistics

Threads
165,998
Messages
2,207,521
Members
79,255
Latest member
Mark74
Back
Top