Fixing a hole in a gunstock

[jazzpicker]

I am buying a used project rifle to work on during the winter. The previous owner installed placed the lower sling swivel stud (closest to the butt) about halfway between the trigger and the butt plate, way too high in my opinion. I would like to remove the stud screw, repair the hole and remount the stud in a proper place.

If I do that I will have a unwanted extra standard sling swivel stud size hole in an otherwise nice stock.

Being a bit obsessive compulsive about my rifles, I am wondering if there is a way to repair this hole and make it nearly invisible? I have a fair amount of experience refinishing wood but wanted to get some real advice before I make the problem worse than it already is.

I've seen rifles with small, round, mother of pearl medallion inlays in the same areas, perfect size to hide the defect but I wore out google trying to find one. I would prefer a good repair.

I would appreciate any wood working/hole hiding advice.

 

[seanie!]

One thing I use to fill on screw holes on guitar bodies is a fine sawdust/wood glue combo. Don't know if that's much help to you at all.

 

[Chawbaccer]

You could use one of the bulls eyes that Marlin uses on their lever guns, also you can use a plug cutter and cut a piece of wood out of the stock under the barrel or receiver or some other place that it can be spared, match up the grain and glue it in.

 

[X-Rap]

You could drill a 1/4" or so hole and keep the dust and supplement with some from another unseen location and mix a paste to plug the larger hole. refinish the stock when complete, stain to match.
If you can find any dowel material that matches the species that your stock is made from just drill a hole the same diameter and use the dowel to plug. Run the grain parallel and I bet you wont see it without looking very hard.

 

[rmfnla]

Either the dowel or sawdust method will work.

To get matching sawdust just drill into the butt end where the butt plate will cover.

 

[rcmodel]

In my experiance the grain matching wood plug will stand a far better chance of not showing then sander dust and any adhesive mix you could use.

They always come out much darker then the wood when I have tried it in the past.

rc

 

[rmfnla]

Yeah, the glue tends to discolor the sawdust so it comes out darker.

I kinds like the bulls-eye idea, or maybe an inlayed shield...

 

[jazzpicker]

Thanks for all the help. I called Marlin this afternoon and bulls eyes were cheap and available. I ordered a few and this will be a neat way to repair the hole.