# Can anyone identify the wood in this gunstock?



## allrsr (Sep 8, 2017)

A friend would like to make a matching knife out of the same wood with a display case out of the same wood as well for both the gun and knife. I'm struggling to identify what wood this is. Thanks!


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## TheTurtleCarpenter (Jun 25, 2015)

Claro Walnut


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## robscastle (May 13, 2012)

Sam, strugle no more

I wood have to agree with Turtle but to be sure as I am no expert, check with the maufacturer as they will be able to tell from the serial No what the build specificatons were.


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## TheFridge (May 1, 2014)

I'd have to agree. Walnut is heavily favored for gunstocks. Good luck find something close. A gunstock blank that pretty is gonna be expensive.

Finding something in the neighborhood of similar might be doable but in quantities to make even a small display case will be tough. Unless you're thinking veneer. That would make things easier for you.


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## wapakfred (Jul 29, 2011)

My guess is claro walnut as well. that one is so nice (wonderful checkering as well) it's may well be custom made.


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## Tony_S (Dec 16, 2009)

In the gun stock world, it's most often called 'Turkish Walnut' or 'Circassian Walnut'....Truth be told though, it's actually Juglans Regia, or 'English Walnut'.
I'm not sure that the excess black streaking is more pronounced due to certain regional soil/mineral types? I'm guessing it is though….almost all off these gun stock blanks come from the root ball of the tree as well.
Highly doubtful that you'll be able to easily find Turkish Walnut lumber though….Most of it is typically milled and sold as gun stock material. 
Fridge is right….$$$
A gun stock 'blank' of the grade in the pic above(which is probably a mid grade) would probably start at $1000.00?

https://www.google.ca/search?client=firefox-b&dcr=0&biw=1088&bih=503&ei=DStGWrHeFdC8jwPRxJPABg&q=turkish+walnut&oq=turwalnut&gs_l=psy-ab.1.1.0i7i30k1l10.5950.10705.0.13322.4.4.0.0.0.0.150.548.0j4.4.0....0...1c..64.psy-ab..0.4.545...0j0i67k1j0i131k1.0.C6zso2gGsMQ


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## JayT (May 6, 2012)

Lumber or a full blank of figured walnut like that is definitely a lot of $$$. What you might do, however is contact a custom stock maker or gunsmith that does custom work and see if they would sell you the offcuts of a high end blank for knife scales.

Not long ago, I picked up a bunch of smaller pieces of 3in thick walnut from a local stock maker that recently retired. The pieces range from 3-6in wide by 12-18 in long. Not enough for the smith to do anything with, but more than enough for turning blanks, knife scales or, in my case, hand plane blanks. For him, they were scrap and taking up space. For me, they were an inexpensive source of high quality small blanks.

Since, according to your profile, you are in Utah, you might try Bullberry Barrel Works They do a lot of stock work in better grades of figured walnut, clear up to exhibition grade.


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## d38 (Sep 6, 2017)

Agree that in the gun world its called Turkish walnut, and a stock maker is a good place to procure some small pieces. 
Looks like a Winchester model 70 with engraving on the receiver. I'd guess a full custom rifle and stock, and done very well.


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## splintergroup (Jan 20, 2015)

You can find nicely figured walnut by buying turning blanks, basically a chunk of figured wood in a block form, sealed in wax (only partially dried).


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## Kazooman (Jan 20, 2013)

You will need larger pieces for the case. I have found Northwest Timber to be a very reliable source for claro walnut. You can browse their pictures online to try to find something that would work well with the gun stock.

https://nwtimber.net/shop-all-wood-types.html


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## RRBOU (Feb 15, 2012)

> My guess is claro walnut as well. that one is so nice (wonderful checkering as well) it s may well be custom made.
> 
> - Fred Hargis


Guaranteed it is a custom made stock.


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## TheFridge (May 1, 2014)

> My guess is claro walnut as well. that one is so nice (wonderful checkering as well) it s may well be custom made.
> 
> - Fred Hargis
> 
> ...


Ditto.

A case large enough for just the gun might be doable. If they're willing to spend as much on the case as they are on the gun.


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## allrsr (Sep 8, 2017)

Thanks for all your responses. I am trying to find a good source for the wood. I will report back. Looks like claro walnut is premium.


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## Dark_Lightning (Nov 20, 2009)

How thick do you need your stock to be? I have a piece of 8/4 black walnut with a huge amount of figure that I could possibly part with.


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## msinc (Jan 8, 2017)

> In the gun stock world, it s most often called Turkish Walnut or Circassian Walnut ….Truth be told though, it s actually Juglans Regia, or English Walnut .
> I m not sure that the excess black streaking is more pronounced due to certain regional soil/mineral types? I m guessing it is though….almost all off these gun stock blanks come from the root ball of the tree as well.
> Highly doubtful that you ll be able to easily find Turkish Walnut lumber though….Most of it is typically milled and sold as gun stock material.
> Fridge is right….$$$
> ...


This is pretty much spot on….Juglans Regia {royal walnut}, also known as "English" walnut, but the funny thing is it is not, nor has it ever been from England. One other interesting fact…the particular grade or piece pictured is actually taken from the stump, not the log and yes, it has long been written about and passed down that the black streaks are from minerals in the soil where the tree grew. There are two principal properties that make this wood the most desirable for gunstocks, besides the obvious beauty…one is that it has a lot more "spring" or tenacity than other walnut woods, like black walnut for example. Black walnut is very hard and also somewhat brittle. "English" walnut takes checkering very well, in fact it is a joy to checker by hand. 
It is really found primarily in Europe, but two world wars have all but decimated the supply. Being referred to as "English" probably stems from the fact that all of the fine turn of the century British made double guns, both rifle and shotguns invariably had stocks made with the finest walnut.


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## splintergroup (Jan 20, 2015)

Cook Woods sells it, occasionally they have a sale for a good percentage off but it still is very $$$.


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