Lawman9328 Posted December 28, 2023 Report Share Posted December 28, 2023 (edited) Seeking help from the masses...... I recently obtained 2 complete buttstock assemblies. I want to break them down to the individual components (swivels, attachment points, buttplates) so that I can clean them. Everything was going fine until I tried to remove the butt plates. I can't get either one of them off because the large screws just won't move. I tried using some WD-40 around the screw in the hopes that maybe it would seep down and help loosen the screws......but didn't have any luck. Would anyone have any suggestions ? I'd like to try and do this without destroying or damaging the screws. Thanks in advance, Gene Edited December 28, 2023 by Lawman9328 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackercat13 Posted December 28, 2023 Report Share Posted December 28, 2023 Having had problems on various gun projects I’ve found that it helps to have a large enough screw driver to get some torque on the screw and with a proper sized blade so it doesn’t damage the screw slot. I can’t see any other reason why you’d be having trouble with a screw in wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TD. Posted December 28, 2023 Report Share Posted December 28, 2023 Gene, The removal of the large butt plate screw requires the butt stock to be held firmly in a vise with the proper padding that does not damage the wood. Obtain a large screw driver with a square shaft with a blade that fits the large screw slot. The blade fit does not have to be perfect; near perfect will work. These will usually be screw divers with long shafts. My square shafted screw driver is an old one by S-K. With the butt stock held securely, insert the screw driver in the screw lot with forward pressure and use a large crescent wrench mounted around the screw driver square shaft to break the large butt stock screw loose. The trick is having the proper equipment. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadycon Posted December 28, 2023 Report Share Posted December 28, 2023 Check the tip of the screwdriver to be used; Is it hollow ground or taper ground? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merry Ploughboy Posted December 28, 2023 Report Share Posted December 28, 2023 In my experience, Kroil is better than any other product for breaking down long term acquired rusted interfaces. I've had a few threaded interfaces that took a several day Kroil soak to get loose. All the advice regarding the screw driver is on point as well. Best of luck. MHO, YMMV, etc. Be well. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rpbcps Posted December 28, 2023 Report Share Posted December 28, 2023 (edited) Great advice. This post reminded me that I have a 148 year old Martini Henry, MKI converted to MkII; and I have had a MK1 butt plate to replace the MK II butt plate for some time, but never goy around to swapping them over. Edited December 28, 2023 by rpbcps Typo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Iannamico Posted December 29, 2023 Report Share Posted December 29, 2023 Try an impact screwdriver, I have used these in the past for stubborn screws, if you don't want to buy one, try a motorcycle mechanic, a common tool for M/C work https://www.harborfreight.com/search?q=impact screwdriver Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
copdoc Posted December 29, 2023 Report Share Posted December 29, 2023 2 hours ago, Frank Iannamico said: Try an impact screwdriver, I have used these in the past for stubborn screws, if you don't want to buy one, try a motorcycle mechanic, a common tool for M/C work https://www.harborfreight.com/search?q=impact screwdriver This is what I often use. Even if not used as impact driver they have good handles. I used Kroill several times thinking it worked so well it must have been looser than I thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anjong-ni Posted December 30, 2023 Report Share Posted December 30, 2023 I've tried "heating the screw with the soldering iron". If it's being held by grease or wax, the heat will melt it a little. Expansion and contraction helps too. Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSMGguy Posted December 31, 2023 Report Share Posted December 31, 2023 I've also been impressed with how difficult the large butt plate bolt can be to remove on a Thompson. There's something about the original design that allows the wood to get a death grip on the bolt for virtually its entire length. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawman9328 Posted January 2 Author Report Share Posted January 2 Just wanted to pass along my thanks to those that offered suggestions. I went with a combination of them (heat, vice, bigger screwdriver, etc) and was able to finally get the butt plates off. After breaking down the buttstocks into their individual component I found the stocks are stamped with a "W" (Wild Fowler Decoy) but there really aren't any markings on any of the other hardware. However, one of my attachment mechanisms was stamped with a 4-digit number. I've seen frequent mention of butt plates and stocks being numbered but haven't really seen anything concerning the attachment devices being numbered. Was this a common occurrence ? Thanks again to everyone for the assistance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now