Armory Sponsor
Posted: 12/21/2019 3:17:35 AM EDT
|
I couldn't find a how-to with pictures still intact so hopefully this can help someone with the same goal as mine. The fit of the OEM feels almost perfect to me except for the LOP was way too long with a pistol grip. Used basic tools to get the job done and improvised where necessary. I researched the Mesa stock, but it didn't seem to get me where I want to go. The drop of the comb is reported to be at a greater angle than the Benelli OEM and they add an adjustable cheek riser to get a proper cheek weld. To me it seems this stock was designed for folks that use a ghost ring or optics on their SG. Since I already had a stock, figured there was not much to loose cutting it and seeing if it gets me where I want to go... I've screwed up my shoulder pretty good with a couple surgeries and another major rotator cuff tear since. I want to move the butt of the gun off the shoulder and mount it more on the edge of my chest. Cutting the stock by 2" seems to be about right to accomplish this. Below is before the stock modification. I had already added a Limbsaver butt pad. 
With the butt pad removed you can see the attachment points for the screws. When the stock is cut, those are no longer available so I made an attachment plate out of plywood that will be shown. 
Used 1" wide painter's tape starting at the edge of the stock to get a straight line and wrapped it all the way around the stock. Then a second piece in parallel to the first one. This provides a line to cut that's parallel to the original butt of the stock. The butt is not quite at a right angle to the comb. 
Here is setting up the cut on a miter saw. Used some scrap rubber pieces to elevate the grip on the stock so the but was perpendicular surface of the saw table. Then used scrap wood to stand off the comb from the saw rail and adjust the angle of the cut to be on the edge of the tape which is parallel to the original butt. I didn't want to do any second operations to get the new butt angle perfect so this was the most critical part of the job. 
Cut was on the tape so LOP was reduced exactly 2". 
|
Cut was very clean using a 12" titanium coated blade. The heat generated did cause the plastic to melt and balled up on the edges. The debris was pretty easily to broke off using just fingers. I didn't want to use a knife and accidentally gouge the edge.
Used the cut piece as a template to make the plywood insert that the new butt pad with screw into. 
Held the piece in a vise and used a jig saw to cut out the insert. A scroll saw or band saw would be easier. 
Cut the 2 ribs on the inside of the stock with a dremel tool so they would form a stop for the wood insert. Also trimmed the top and bottom to form a shelf. This was done at the same time as forming the wood insert so a perfect fit was accomplished. I am using superglue to hold the insert in place and the working time is only a few seconds so I wanted everything to fit easily and I had the practiced it several time to get the resulting wood piece flush with the stock. 
Put my hand held belt sander in the vise so I could use both hands to finish forming the insert. 
Marked the hold to that will be made to access the 13mm bolt by running a metal rod with a sharp edge on the end through the stock and turning it to mark the wood. 
Used a 3/4" Forster bit in a drill press to make the hole because I was afraid of splitting the plywood with a spade bit. 
Final fitting before gluing. 
Roughed up the inside for the glue to have more bite on the plastic. Cyanoacrylate is used in wood working to keep fragile wood with knots and such together while machine forming them with something like a lath. Figured it would be perfect for holding the wood to the plastic stock. 
|
Coated the outer edge of the wood inset first with super glue, then coated the first 1/2" on the inside of the stock. Quickly pressed the wood into the stock and held it for several seconds and it was bonded. Ran some more glue around the edges of the wood piece to fill in the gaps.
Screwed on a new grind to fit Limbsaver pad (size small) Left. Here you can see the difference in pad size from the OEM size Limbsaver pad. Right 
Here what the stock looks like on the SG. It feels really good at this length and the butt fits inside off my shoulder better. Head is down and have a good cheek weld with eyes on the sights. 
I'm wondering if I should try it like this before forming the butt pad to the shape of the stock. I thinking the wider butt pad might have less felt recoil since its spread over a wider area. Once it's formed, the area will be smaller than the OEM stock pad by at least 1 square inch. Be interested on peoples thoughts on this. I'm not so worried about how it looks as much as how it functions. |
|
Great job OP!
I prefer a shorter than factory LOP on almost every shotgun I own (13.25” is my usual best fit) so I have a bit of experience shortening buttstocks. With your set-up, is the cyanoacrylate glue the only thing holding the buttplate/pad assembly on the stock? If so, I would be a little worried that the glue would fail at some point and possibly the assembly would pull-out. Maybe (and this is just a thought, not something I have tried) consider installing a small screw on the top or sides or even a screw-in sling swivel on the bottom in order to give the assembly a mechanical attachment to prevent it from pulling out. I don’t know, just thinking. |
|
Quoted:
Great job OP! I prefer a shorter than factory LOP on almost every shotgun I own (13.25” is my usual best fit) so I have a bit of experience shortening buttstocks. With your set-up, is the cyanoacrylate glue the only thing holding the buttplate/pad assembly on the stock? If so, I would be a little worried that the glue would fail at some point and possibly the assembly would pull-out. Maybe (and this is just a thought, not something I have tried) consider installing a small screw on the top or sides or even a screw-in sling swivel on the bottom in order to give the assembly a mechanical attachment to prevent it from pulling out. I don’t know, just thinking. |
|
Quoted:
Great job OP! I prefer a shorter than factory LOP on almost every shotgun I own (13.25” is my usual best fit) so I have a bit of experience shortening buttstocks. With your set-up, is the cyanoacrylate glue the only thing holding the buttplate/pad assembly on the stock? If so, I would be a little worried that the glue would fail at some point and possibly the assembly would pull-out. Maybe (and this is just a thought, not something I have tried) consider installing a small screw on the top or sides or even a screw-in sling swivel on the bottom in order to give the assembly a mechanical attachment to prevent it from pulling out. I don’t know, just thinking. I thought about using delrin, but would have had to order some and add another $20 to the project. If the wood fails somewhere down the road, I'll order some for the insert. Cyanoacylate can be used for delrin as well.https://www.doityourself.com/stry/how-to-glue-delrin I did drill pilot holes in the plywood so it would not split when the screws were inserted and reinserted/tightened. It was a bigger concern for me than the piece falling out. |
|
Quoted:
Very nice job man. I wish Benelli offered a shorter stock so this sort of thing wasn't necessary. Not sure why Italians would put such a long LOP on a stock when average height for a male there is 5' 9"?? |
|
Quoted: I researched what adhesive would be best on a wood to plastic application and found cyanoacrylate is commonly used in woodworking. When applied to the insert, it was absorbed deep into the wood. Applied another layer on the roughed up plastic before mating the 2 pieces and it provided a little more time to press the insert into place. I've learned this when using cyanoacrylate in the past to fuse broken pieces together. The wood insert is on there solid! I thought about using delrin, but would have had to order some and add another $20 to the project. If the wood fails somewhere down the road, I'll order some for the insert. I did drill pilot holes in the plywood so it would not split when the screws were inserted and reinserted/tightened. It was a bigger concern for me than the piece falling out. 
|
|
Shaped the butt pad tonight. Definitely a messy job. A garbage can under the sander helped a lot. Used 36 grit paper to rough it out. When I used Blaster spray lubricant on the belt, the belt came apart at the seam. Put on a new belt and did the rough work dry. Then 100 grit to make it smooth with Blaster spray lube on the belt and pad. 
Shaped the top and bottom of the pad to reduce the chance of catching on clothing when shouldering the weapon. 
I kept the pad width wider than the stock at this time, but its not easy to see this at this camera angle. The thought is to have more area of contact with the shoulder to reduce felt recoil. I can easily form the sides to the shape of the stock in the future if desired. 
|
Armory Sponsor