Wood Stippling: Its Ugly, but It Works!

[12GAUGE]

AoA Everybody

What is Wood Stippling? Well!.....Its checkering's ugly cousin which is done to impart a better gripping surface on wood stock for a better hold/handling of a firearm.

How its done? Hmmm!.......compared to checkering, a complex procedure, wood stippling is pretty much an idiot proof technique. almost anybody with a nail and a hammer coupled can do it quiet successfully due its very forgiving nature. since the whole philosophy behind stippling is "Uniform Randomness". you are not working with set patterns which one can screw up by stepping out of line. its pretty very forgiving because of this reason. totally unlike checkering where a small mistake can practically flush the whole project down the drain.

what do you need in order to stipple?

Option 1: A nail and a hammer to make small taps/dents on wood as you go along and stipple the area you fancy. be as random as you can be.

Option 2: A Dremel tool (die grinder) with a diamond cutter bit attachment. lightly touch the wooden surface with the dremel tool as you go along making small dents/dimples in an extremely random fashion.

Which one is better?

In my humble opinion, stippling with a dremel tool is a better option as it basically grinds away wood instead of compressing (punching) it with a nail and a hammer. you do not get splintered wood and the dents are much smoother. make sure you run the tool at medium speed as at higher speeds, the wood gets burned, turning the dents/dimples black with excess heat of the cutter bit. another very import benefit with a dremel tool is that it makes a short work of an otherwise very lengthy process. be warned! even with a dremel at your side, stippling is quiet a tedious process.

So how do we go about it? A little disclaimer first.

The following content is for informational purposes only. The author assumes no responsibility and/or any liability in case of an injury, accident, loss of life and/or property that may and/or may not occur as a direct and/or indirect result of exercising the information provided below. The reader assumes full responsibility and liability of the foreseen and/or unforeseen consequences that may or may not occur therefore he/she is advised to proceed with full caution. In other words, if you screw this up, don't blame it on me.

Well.....just get the tools that tickle your fancy and get yourself a few scrap wood pieces to practice on. get/develop the feeling and your method of making a random pattern then hit the firearm that you intend to stipple.

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/12022012361.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/12022012358.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/12022012359.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/12022012357.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/12022012360.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/12022012356.jpg

Just make sure that you practice (small areas) different sized cutter bits, various tools speeds and different patterns along with touching the tools at different force levels to get the feeling of the tool and its effects on wood and depth and size of the dents/craters/dimples that result from varying all these things. once the touch/feeling is developed, its time to hit the firearm.

Continued.......

[12GAUGE]

In my humble opinion, the most important areas of a shotgun where an increase in gripping surface would benefit the user are:

1. Foreand
2. Pistol Grip
3. Tang of the Grip

So... keeping that in mind, I hit the above mentioned areas with a diamond cutter bit attached to a dremel tool running at medium speed. touching just enough (and just long enough) to make small impressions/dimples/dents in the surface of the wood. taking extreme care as to not make the tool run or slip to any side or direction that I do not intend to stipple. Remember! thing with power tools is that need a firm control. do not let them run you.

Here are the results:

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/10022012355.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/10022012354.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/10022012353.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/10022012352.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/10022012351.jpg

NOTE:

Make sure you do this outside the house and not in your study/bed room. you will be sorry when your wife finds everything turned white by the wood dust. lols!

Continued.........

[12GAUGE]

Now you must seal the wood exposed by the stippling process. there might arise a need of staining the areas hit with the dremel tool to blend it in or to make it stand out (if thats the path you wish to take) before sealing. make sure you first clean the stippled area with a stiff tooth brush to rid of any wood dust before applying any stain or sealer.

as far as sealing goes, there may be more than one solution which may include multiple thin/light coats of linseed oil or a polyurethane wood sealer commonly available at most paint and hardware stores or your favorite stock finish. you may go with a branded stock finish such as Truoil (by Birchwood Casey). it will also need to be thinned. objective here is to cover everything but not to a point that it builds up into a thick layer and totally destroys the whole purpose of stippling.

In my view, linseed oil gives the best appearance and natural feel when touched however it takes like forever to dry. polyurethane finishes are quick to dry but they don't feel natural to the touch. Truoil is probably the best ready-made solution out there. if you can get your hands on the one made by Birchwood Casey then you are pretty much set for the finishing process, otherwise you can always make your own Tru-Oil. This is how I made mine:

Home-Made Tru-Oil:
1. Three Parts Paint Thinner
2. Two Parts Polyurethane Wood Varnish
3. One Part Linseed Oil (Boiled for 10 minutes)

Now, your Tru-Oil stock finish is ready. apply with a small brush. a little goes a long way. your focus should be on extremely thin/light coats. you may thin it further by mixing it 50:50 with paint thinner. two may be three should be enough to cover the whole area. each coat may take up to 12 hours to dry. wipe off any unwanted areas immediately with a clean cloth/towel.

Here are the results:

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/IMG_1336.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/IMG_1338.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/IMG_1337.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/IMG_1339.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/IMG_1340.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/IMG_1341.jpg

http://i998.photobucket.com/albums/af103/12gauge-pakguns/Wood%20Stippling/IMG_1346.jpg

Wood Stippling might be ugly but is a fast, simple, and easy alternative to checkering that can provide a secure gripping surface.

Regards.

[Hamid]

Good job sir.

[s.cheema]

good job :)

[Denovo87]

Good job bro.

[Aquarius]

Very good job done there 12GAUGE bro.. who says its ugly looking.

[Rotorcrafts]

Nice job, ugly For sure :P

[Mig]

Nice work 12gauge brother. I think you are trying to give new ideas to the Russians how to go more ugly and ugly in finishing !!! ....

[Wolf Hunter]

Nice work 12gauge brother. I think you are trying to give new ideas to the Russians how to go more ugly and ugly in finishing !!! ....

Well said :)

[Rotorcrafts]

BTW you ruined your vernier caliper box :P. Or maybe you PERSONALIZED it......:D

[12GAUGE]

BTW you ruined your vernier caliper box :P. Or maybe you PERSONALIZED it......:D

The box just went a few rounds of "12GAUGE TREATMENT". lols!

Regards.

p.s. had to practice on something right?. ;)

[durrani]

12gauge good work, well done.

[American Lockpicker]

Very nice.

[malik160]

Great work but will take a lot of guts to put your shinny shotgun under the hammer

[Laino]

Gr8 work 12 Guage bro.

[Moeen]

Salam All,
@12Gauge - Yaar, outrageously great work. It turned out very nice. Yes, it may have taken time but it looks quite good. Congratulations.
P.S.
LOLZ, I do love the disclaimers.

[Anjum]

Great work 12 Gauge. just give it engraved outline it will look more beautiful

[Arslan_tareen]

Great innovative work @12 gauge bahi , and awesome finishing and to be honest does not look that bad , looks more like a highly custom order made shot gun with special chokes and custom stock . amazing work really .

[12GAUGE]

@all

Thank you gentlemen for the kind words. forget the looks, the grip has improved significantly and I am enjoying every moment of it.

@Anjum

Bro, the outline idea did come to me however I am unable to figure out a way of making outline without screwing up. thing with lines and checkering is that they are not forgiving. a small screwup can ruin everything. plus, with a dremel, the probability of slipping "out of line" is quiet high as the tool tends to run on it own.

@Moeen

and....I am sorry bro for waking you up in the middle of the night. I was scared. my hand and arm were numb bro. lols!

@Arslan_tareen

you are right bro. its a custom order shotgun from 12GAUGE's mastershop. lols!

Regards.

[Topak]

excellent work 12G.now go for some engraving art work on barrel .... soon you will be the most demanding engraver in Pakistan.One order is booked already....other will follow from Sialkote and then from Wah....... Wah G wah.

[12GAUGE]

excellent work 12G.now go for some engraving art work on barrel .... soon you will be the most demanding engraver in Pakistan.One order is booked already....other will follow from Sialkote and then from Wah....... Wah G wah.

Bro! I am willing to engrave your Baikal MP-153's barrel right now if you are willing to take the risk. Lols!

Regards.

[Avais]

Good ugly looking results, I can take a risk to experiment my 30 years old Sikandar single barrel. Lolzzzz. Anyway Hassan brother, nice job done.

[Trigger_happy78]

Very nicely done 12guage bro. Your time and efforts paid off the gun looks fantastic. Your a true gun enthusiast. Hats off to you.

[siqbal41]

Sir wonderful job done. I must say it looks more beautiful :smile:

[Dr Zakir]

Need to see this gun in person, a meeting is long due

[Abbas]

Enterprising as always 12G but I can't believe you would do that to your shotgun which IMHO really did not need it in the first place. Forgive me for being frank but it looks over engineered and FUGLY. :painkiller:

[12GAUGE]

@Dr Zakir

Anytime any place bro. or better yet, kindly take sometime out of your extremely busy routine and go to skeet club with me. it'll be fun.


Enterprising as always 12G but I can't believe you would do that to your shotgun which IMHO really did not need it in the first place.

Bro, I am sure that you already know that the key to consistent shooting is a consistent grip. Stippling here mainly serves two purposes.

1. It hides the small indentations (depressions) that were made to guide my fingers to the exact same position every time. similar to finger grooves on a Pistol but much more accurate and precise as they conform to my hands and fingers.

2. they offer extra gripping surface for my hands to stay where I want to them to stay.

Bottom Line:

all in all, they offer me a more comfortable grip. and......I am pretty much sure that you must have already experienced that with comfort comes confidence which plays a very important role in consistent shooting.


it looks over engineered:painkiller:

Thats called "Being Touched by 12GAUGE". lols! Wait! I'll take that back. somebody very important could be reading this as well. hahahahahaha


.................. and FUGLY.

she was no Jenifer Conelly to begin with. lols! anyways, she may be UGLY but she is still my UGLY prom queen and..... I am strictly talking about my shotgun. hahhaha


Regards.

[Slayerjatt]

amazing job 12gauge bro! a very simple DIY method for a novice shooter eager to improve his shotgun grip.

[M.ASIF KHAN]

In my humble opinion I think you are trying to make it more ugly and you make a mistake sorry bro ZERO for that .
And by the way congrats for discovering new wood sealer.

[12GAUGE]

In my humble opinion I think you are trying to make it more ugly and you make a mistake sorry bro ZERO for that .
And by the way congrats for discovering new wood sealer.

thanks for the kind words bro. you'll be surprised, how good the homemade TRUOIL looks and feels like in real.

Regards.

[Ameer]

Another innovative move Sir

[dragunov]

Very good research oriented practical work, and should be encouraged at some level because its a home-made :-).
however, not very attractive for most of us, but technical.

[sajjadkhan]

Great Job Done @12GUAGE Sir. Very Nice.