Workholding- wood stocks on the milling machine.

[tobnpr]

Interested in seeing how others tackle this. Easy enough for me to clamp the forend in the vise for work at that end, but I just had to mill a bolt slot in a high-comb thumbhole and I was sweating bullets as I had to hold the comb with my hand to minimize vibration and took light cuts as there was no way to hold it in the vise.

Thinking about fabricating a vertical fixture of some sort that would clamp into the t-slots to hold the buttstock while the forend is held in the vise.

 

[xr650rRider]

Search is your friend.

https://forum.accurateshooter.com/threads/holding-a-rifle-stock-in-a-milling-machine.4122828/

https://forum.accurateshooter.com/threads/inletting-a-flat-top.4079191/

and there are several more

 

[tobnpr]

Thanks.
Some good photos/ideas in the first one.

 

[Walt Krafft]

Forend in vise, angle plate and clamp on side of the buttstock.

 

[tobnpr]

Forend in vise, angle plate and clamp on side of the buttstock.

Definitely the easy button there...thanks.
Angle plate didn't even occur to me. Mill is used so infrequently compared to the lathe, workholding isn't my strong suit

 

[DR_2297]

Better yet, what methods does everyone use to square stocks up, especially cross stock?

 

[Walt Krafft]

Machine level.

 

[DR_2297]

Machine level.

Well yeah, but what geometries do you trust to be square to say the action screw holes. Many stocks don’t lend themselves to being leveled as the only thing to register off are the top of the barrel / action channel.

 

[Walt Krafft]

Well yeah, but what geometries do you trust to be square to say the action screw holes. Many stocks don’t lend themselves to being leveled as the only thing to register off are the top of the barrel / action channel.

Totally depends on the stock design. Usually, on most of the stocks I do, it is the top along the barrel channel. Some taper there, so the top in the action area gets used. It is hard sometimes, but I try not to let the toolmaker perfection in me, get in the way of making progress when working with wood.