Sako Replacement Stock and Repair

[azjohn]

This is my first post. I have only one Sako that I bought in 1979. It is an AIII Finnbear in 270 with a sporter high stock. That what it has on the hang tag. Earlier this month while deer hunting I fell and scratched and gouged the stock. My question will a stock for a L61R work as a emplacement? I was looking at stocks from Boyd's . Would like your opinions on their stocks if anyone has used them. Thanks John

 

[bigcountry4me]

This is my first post. I have only one Sako that I bought in 1979. It is an AIII Finnbear in 270 with a sporter high stock. That what it has on the hang tag. Earlier this month while deer hunting I fell and scratched and gouged the stock. My question will a stock for a L61R work as a emplacement? I was looking at stocks from Boyd's . Would like your opinions on their stocks if anyone has used them. Thanks John View attachment 17450

That’s too bad , but you could use an L61 stock or a Boyd’s. Boyd’s are serviceable decent quality stocks, but not much for character. As a laminated product you do get a little more in the way of weather durability and if it get scratched or dinged it’s not that big of deal.

In my opinion your unfortunate damage is very repairable. A qualified stock person or wood worker would be able to repair the damage and you’d never know it happened. Good luck, hop this helps.

 

[icebear]

In my opinion your unfortunate damage is very repairable.

What he said. I've fixed worse scrapes than that. No need to spend the money for a new stock unless you wanted a laminated stock anyway.

 

[BridgerHollow]

azjohn, did you end up replacing your stock? If so, would you be interested in selling your old (damaged) stock?

 

[Bob LaRue]

I may be selling a nice 1971 L61R Deluxe Stock in a couple months

 

[misako50]

Arizona- There are qualified folks on here that don't see a big deal making your stock look good again. Even I have done some of those. Doesn't look like much wood loss, just smashed in. A little steaming and sanding and a refinish and you have "YOUR' rifle back. Should cost less than a Boyds or a quality Composite.

 

[HBHUNTER]

Good advice all around, if your using it for hunting and shooting you now have character. I have repaired some dents and scrapes like that. The original polyurethane finish is a good finish and very protective. However the original coating is very hard to find or may not be around at all. You may try to remove some around the edges of the scrapes and steam the wood with an old iron if you have one. I've used this method on some old Garands, and it worked well. It may take a couple of treatments to raise the wood grain. Once you do this you need to sand a little and then blend the coats of poly/spar varnish material. This application may take several coats and sanding with steel wool or fine grit sandpaper (wet paper) to get your desired texture and look. You may even have to use a wood filler it the gouges are too deep. If you have to match the stain for the area of the deepest scrapes you may want to use a comparable walnut stain like Birchwood Casey's True Oil Stain. You can actually cut the stain if it appears too dark as well. I would be more concerned about any cracks and check out the inside of the stock. There are some products out there to match the poly coat, but you may have to look for those products not so readily available in some States. The Garand websites have a good step by step process for steaming the stocks. I hope this helps your decision.

HBHUNTER

 

[Bob LaRue]

I would have a good stockmaker fix up that scar! It looks worth saving.