Checkering Tools
The best tools are the carbide tipped ones that are made by Ullman Precision Products. As for a cradle to use, I keep hoping to find a good one from someone retired from the business. I do know this much, and Monty Kennedy says it in his book on checkering, it must be heavy and sturdy. It doesn't have to be mounted on a stool or bench if a heavy vise can clamp it , but it has to clamp the stock tightly to keep the lines straight.
This is such a dying art. Most of the stocks we see today are all composite with the grip in the finish. Wood is just so yesterday's news. Pretty, Classic, but nowhere near the utility of a camo paint scheme. Time marches on, I guess. I dread to think all that gorgeous english walnut stock wood will just rot on a shelf somewhere, or go for fire sale prices to get rid of it. It seems to be happening, though. And NO, you cannot checker a synthetic stock.
The best tools are the carbide tipped ones that are made by Ullman Precision Products. As for a cradle to use, I keep hoping to find a good one from someone retired from the business. I do know this much, and Monty Kennedy says it in his book on checkering, it must be heavy and sturdy. It doesn't have to be mounted on a stool or bench if a heavy vise can clamp it , but it has to clamp the stock tightly to keep the lines straight.
This is such a dying art. Most of the stocks we see today are all composite with the grip in the finish. Wood is just so yesterday's news. Pretty, Classic, but nowhere near the utility of a camo paint scheme. Time marches on, I guess. I dread to think all that gorgeous english walnut stock wood will just rot on a shelf somewhere, or go for fire sale prices to get rid of it. It seems to be happening, though. And NO, you cannot checker a synthetic stock.
