Walnut Grove stock quality?

FrankenMauser

New member
What is your opinion of the quality of Walnut Grove gun stocks?

I know the company closed down and sold its remaining stock and most of its tooling and patterns a few years ago, but I'm just getting around to working with a rough-shaped stock I purchased from them in 2014 or 2015.

I'm disappointed.
This was a "semi-inlet" for a generic 'Commercial Mauser'. I'm putting a (Sarco) Dumoulin receiver in it. I did ask before purchasing if the inlet had enough meat for such. The owner responded with an assertive, "Absolutely!" He claimed to have put two of the Sarco Dumoulins in stocks with the same inlet.

The top side inletting is offset to one side by about 1/4".
The bottom side inletting is crooked and off-center.
All of the internal inletting was hogged out with a router bit at an angle, which removed excess material and also tore the hell out of the wood grain.
The screw holes are off-center (but not matching the inletting's off-center distances) and crooked.
And I have no idea what they decided this generic 'commercial mauser' pattern was good for as a semi-inlet, because the inletting is all massively over-sized.

When I order a 'semi-inlet' stock, I expect something with extra material everywhere around the action and bottom metal. This thing, however, looks like it's going to have substantial gaps around the receiver, and at all four corners around the magazine area of the bottom metal. And when you ask questions to make sure it's the right stock for the job, and still find out that it's wrong... :mad:

I'm still going to fully inlet this action and bottom metal (I'm about 40% done now), to see just how bad it is.
But I'm not sure that it'll be usable. If I do decide that the rest of the stock is worth it (it does have good figure), I think the only way I might be able to save it is with an 'accent' / filler piece of something like Maple all around the action and bottom metal, to fill the gaps. We'll see.

Did I get a bad one?
Or is this par for the course?
 

Scorch

New member
IIRC, Walnut Grove bought out Great American Gunstock. Last time I spoke with the former owner of Great American, the folks who bought his business knew nothing about making gun stocks, but he was fine with that so that he could keep consulting with them on operating the business. From the sounds of it, they never learned how.

FWIW, I always buy from Richards Microfit.
 

FrankenMauser

New member
Scorch, I've read pretty much the same in several other places, over the last few days.

I have also read that their inventory is being sold on eBay and Gunbroker now, by whomever it was that bought everything. Great prices on some high grade garbage! ;)

Caveat emptor.
 

Scorch

New member
I tried to buy the equipment and pattern stocks from Great American when he was shut down by the city he was in after a few fires in his shop. He was adamant about the consulting agreement and would not send an inventory list for appraisal, but wanted me to "drop by for a talk" (800 miles away) and he would let me see everything he had. He started selling his samples and patterns so I bagged buying the business, and Walnut Grove stepped in. Anyway, never bought a stock from them, so I've never seen their work first hand. But I have read about quality issues, so maybe that's all I needed to know.
 
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