How long should the stock be?

[nhetzer]

Hello all,
I just acquired my first Model 8 and had a question regarding the stock. My rifle was made in 1907 and appears to be a standard grade with some non-factory checkering (in my opinion). At some point an after market recoil pad was put on and I was trying to determine if the stock was cut down to accommodate it.
I know not all Model 8's had the crescent stock but is there a way to determine if mine should be or not? Also, what should the length of the stock be? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[81police]

pulling info from Henwood's book he lists standard stock dimensions as 13-3/4" length of pull (p.51). Most early Model 8's that I've seen have had a semi-curved black gutta percha (or some kind of hard natural rubber) buttplate similar to the one pictured below, from a 1908 gun. Maybe some other guys who know much more about buttplates than I do can chime in.

[nhetzer]

Thanks for the reply, I forgot to specify that it is a straight stock.

[jack1653]

Hey nhetzer,

If you have a recoil pad on the rifle, the stock has in all probability been cut to accept the pad. The fact that your rifle is a 1907 issue would indicate to me that the stock on the rifle was most likely not a straight stock but rather a cresent. As to the length of pull, I think the standard issue was 13 3/4". I have rifles with length of pull from 13-1/2 " to 14" but most are in the 13 1/2" range. I know the factory would deviate from standards if requested on special orders.

Regards.

jack1653

[Roger]

I just checked about 9 m-8 s@ all were13 3/4" except one, which was 13 1/2". Hope that helps you o
ut ---Roger

[nhetzer]

My stock is 13 1/4 (LOP). So this brings me to my next question. For the guns that had the flat butt plates, what do they look like? Are they the same design as the curved ones? I would at least like to make my gun as correct "as possible". I would guess that someone basically cut the cresent off to accommodate the after market recoil pad. I figure that the least I can do is put the correct butt plate on for a flat stocked Model 8. Again, any help would be appreciated.

[81police]

nhetzer there is a reproduction hard plastic Model 8 buttplate often found on ebay and gunbroker. I have one on a rifle and they're good quality.

[nhetzer]

I was considering that. I'm reading John Henwood's book and he says that during the first few years of production they were fitted with the vulcanite flat shotgun style butt plates. I've seen the reproduce ones but everything I find is curved. I'll keep digging but in the meantime if anyone know where I can find one let me know! : )

[Roger]

Cam-do you know if those repro buttplates have the earliest address like your photo example? Or do they say rem/umc? I talked to a parts guy who says he has a mold to make the first ones but wants alot to make some up. Minimum ten or more at 30$ each.----Roger

[Rem8&81]

nhetzer, There really were no staight buttplates made for the model 8's other than the rare "shotgun" buttplate, which was not special ordered often based on the fact they are rarely encountered. I'm not sure why they are referred to as "shotgun" buttplates as I have never seen a Remington Shotgun with one on it, but I too refer to them as such. They are smaller than the other buttplates and tend to be narrower as well. This makes the stock narrower top to bottom and side to side. You really can not alter this type of buttplae to make it fit, so you must alter the stock. Your rifle would probably require a fair amount of reshaping to fit one of these buttplates, even if you were able to locate one. My suggestion would be to find either an original or reproduction plastic buttplate and make the necessary adjustments to the stock and buttplate to try and fit it. These buttplates do become fairly flexible when utilizing a heat gun and can even flatten out quite a bit. You could try and flatten one completely, but that would probably also require some alterations to the backside of the buttplate as well as sanding down all the edges to make it smaller to fit your cut down stock. Good Luck