Loose draws SHTLE?

I recently got my 1918 SSA rifle out and stripped the front wood and metal off it. Not just for fun, but to look at some patches of rather healthy pitting to see if the rust was dead dead or still active. Anyhow..the rust seems more or less extinct for the time being.

I looked the forearm over and noticed it was missing a small chunk at the rear....can look up the trigger slot and see part of the threaded brass reinforce pin where a chunk of wood fell out! Then looking at the draws themselves it's obvious they are hammered/worn back about a sixteenth inch or so on either side.

I read up on the 'repairing draws' Laidler article....did some checks to see how loose my Short Lee was in the wood. Doesn't seem just horrifyingly loose. It is loose enough that I can pump it back and forth a bit. It can't slip too far forward because the wood hits the charger lug(right side)….can't go too far back as it hits the buttsocket….

Yes it's loose about a 1/16" and appears that maybe dirt rust and grease has/had taken up most of the slack in the past. I've never noted the front wood being loose when the rifle is fully assembled.

I figure I better degrease that area of the wood and repair the missing wood chunk...But I'm curious if I can simply epoxy bed the two draws back to shape. The wood looks ok and not cracked or busted-out(like the missing bottom chunk)...is there any reason I shouldn't just re-face the draws with epoxy and fit it back to the action??

Thanks..HT

For best shooting performance and forend life the draws should be repaired. 1/16" is 0.062" which makes the forend unserviceable for a shooting rifle....plus there's a big risk of splitting the forend which is not good for you or the rifle and will be a noticeable repair.....whereas the draws will not......and after the draws repair you will know the rifle is ok if/when shot.

As you've gathered from Peters article the traditional approach is to replace the original draws with a new set........fwiw like PL & Brian at BDL I've always cut the patch from an Oak block for thiis repair. Careful work is required to chisel out, fit the patch, glue it in place, and then cut/chisel the draw surfaces to properly fit the forend (most critical step......these days I pre-cut the draws angle of the block on a bandsaw so that on a good day(!) only a sliver (or two) of a chisel scrape is needed to fit the forend....just had to do this on a Savage No4 I picked up as a faux sniper project rifle.... The draws were totally missing.....vanished so to speak!)

But, looking at the issue from an alternate perspective restoring the draws using metal blocks would work if the section of the forend from the draw surface to the wrist contact area is in good shape. If it were me I'd try this approach rather than epoxy...similar to the copper blocks installed at the draws in Lithgow SMLEs. You can more easily correct the fit using the blocks whereas the epoxy is once & done.... And if not right requires re-done....cutting out Steelbed is no fun.

Note wrt the metal block approach use a solid block at each sear lug contact surface.....not stacked up bits. Again careful fitting of the blocks and forend is required to get this right. If done properly this repair will last for many shooting years.

Oh....the chip you mention can be easily repaired.....use a bit of oak or walnut and fit the patch....clean the contact surfaces & glue in with good quality wood glue. Or, if the shape is really irregular rough fit a wood patch and use epoxy to fill gaps under the patch & glue it in place.

Yeh….after doing a bit of stock surgery with a chisile...it became obvious the wood behind the draws was soft..as in rotten from oil or whatever. I had to carve it back quite a bit on the rights side to hit solid wood. I matched that on the left side. and glued in and pegged some new draws.

I now see the wisdom of new wood! Not sure my original idea of an 'epoxy spackle' on top of rotten wood would've lasted. Thanks for the advice to properly fix it up.

So..How tight is too tight on the draws to buttsocket fit?

I was working down the new draws a touch at a time with a tiny chisile...trial fit and shave a bit of wood...fit again and so on. Suddenly the stock went on with a brisk 'snap'....Scared me:eek:...really was not expecting it to fit quite yet!

I had the barrel band aimed at it's forearm hole and the forearm 'snapped on' all the way to the muzzle. Like to not had the strength to get it back off! With some effort and desperate found strength I got the forearm off in one piece.

The draws look good...a bit tighter on one side so I skivved that one a little more and trial fitted the forearm a couple times and seem to have good contact both draws now.

It's a pretty snug fit still...I can push the wood onto the barreled action easily enough...but it requires the 'strength of Hercules' to push it off the action....sound too tight?

Thanks HT

Please bear with a dummy. I have never heard of a part of a rifle or rifle stock part called the "draw". Can someone point me to a picture illustrating this?

It's a British term I suppose...the 'draws' on a Lee Enfield is a left and right shoulder in the stock inletting that fits the sear hanger part of the action and keeps the forearm wood tight to the buttsocket part of the action body. Check Peter Laidler's articals in the stickies and he has a tutorial on draw repair. A online search will find some pics of the referred to draws as well. I found lots of pics just searching the Lee Enfield knowledge forum here.

The main issue with loose draws it seems is the front wood can move front to rear/rear to front under recoil....equates to poor accuracy and can hammer to rear part of the forearm wood to pieces. Appears to be a really common stock repair on Enfield pattern arms...I notice my No.5 Mk.I has a big chunk of wood added inside the stock to repair it's right draw

Tight is good. Keep a block of soft pine on your bench to tap it off at the rear from the sides. Wiggling the wood and pulling down from the front wiill just destroy the draws again.

The draws or drawers are the sear lug recesses where the sear lugs contact the forend at the rear.

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Originally Posted by Brian Dick

Tight is good. Keep a block of soft pine on your bench to tap it off at the rear from the sides. Wiggling the wood and pulling down from the front wiill just destroy the draws again.

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Cannot 'wiggle' the forearm on the action...it now must be pushed off the action and it is quite tight.

Seems to have settled in a bit as I completely reassembled the rifle Saturday evening and left it set overnight. Took it back apart yesterday and it's still tight tight...however I can force it loose by hand(barely...pushing on the top rear with my thumbs). I need to shoot the thing...I bet that will fit things up(or knock my new draws out!)

Grease up the metal with a good firearm grease, give the wood a good drink of raw linseed oil, reassemble and enjoy.

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Originally Posted by Havenot

It's a British term I suppose...

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Thanks for the info. Exactly what I was looking for.