AK47 Thumbhole Stock BUILD LOG 56k

[Love]

Hey guys. I've decided to take on a small project that may interest some of you AK lovers. (and some other people).

This project is a small part of a bigger project of mine, but I'll be focusing around this more, as this is the only custom fabrication part of the big project. (I'm converting an AK into a mix between an Egyptian Maadi RML and a Zastava M76.)

(I'll have to get a new inner barrel of appropriate lenght/500mm+, 3-9x40 scope, AK shorty mag.)

So, now onto the main part of this project. I'm going to be making my own Thumbhole stock for my Kraken AK. Basically I'll be designing a part out of plastic/ABS and using a mix of JB Weld/Epoxy, Bondo, Liquid ABS and hotglue to attach, smoothen and SEXIFY the stock seams.)

Step 1: Design
-I looked at some pictures on the net basically and drew some horrid sketches. Not pictured for the obvious reasons. :P

Step 2: Cardboard mockup
-To see if this viable, I wanted to make a cheap, and fast version out of cardboard and then paint it with dollar store paint. Just had to make sure if the project was comfortable and worth continuing. (Ofcourse this cardboard version will strongly aid me when doing the design with plastic.)

Heres some pictures of step 2 in its finished state: (and yes, scotch tape is holding it on. Its a quick mockup.)




Stage 3 (Current): Tool & Parts Gathering (Red is todo, green is done)
Get Epoxy/JB Weld
Get Dremel
Get Hotglue Gun
Get Sandpaper
Get Bondo
Get Liquid ABS
Get Donor Plastic/ABS
Get Krylon Paint


Stage 4: Build
-Use Sharpie and draw cutlines for parts on plastic/ABS.
-Cut out using powersaw.
-Attach using one of the aforementioned adhesives
-Apply bondo over the seams of connected peices, and sand.
-Attach to stock of gun
-Apply Bondo to seam that is between stock and handgrip of gun and the custom peice, and then sand.
-Paint to same color of gun using Krylon!

********************

Obviously I am at stage 3.

Redundant Questions time!:

1) I know epoxy can hold stuff together just like hotglue, but can I sand it? (I know you can fill cracks and such with bondo, and sand it, But can I do the same with Epoxy/JB Weld?)

2)If Epoxy can be sanded.... Do I need bondo to make a smooth look on the seams? Or can sanded epoxy do the same thing? (Bondo is like $20-$30. Too expensive for this one time use.)


Thanks!

Edit: Yes, I am aware that I could just buy a wood kit for my AK. And then make a wooden version. Which is what I'm going to do for the SECOND VERSION of this project. Once I start something, its hard for me to stop. So I'm kinda obsessed with an ABS version right now.

[Love]

Bump. Any awnsers to my questions?

[SultanOfShwing]

Originally Posted by Love

Bump. Any awnsers to my questions?

If you can't get an answer here, it might be a good idea to ask those questions on an automotive forum.

[Styrak]

Hm, that's not really a traditional thumbhole stock. More like just a fullstock with a piece attaching the pistol grip and fullstock.

Aren't you shooting for something like this?

[Love]

I'd love to go with that stock Styrak, but two problems:

1) If I used that stock, I would have to change the default wiring setup, correct? (Front wire it, or run the wire through the metal top peice and have the battery sitting directly under the scope.) [Option of battery under scope would mean I'd have to buy a stick type battery, and put it in the null space.]

2) I havn't been to a real game yet. But, when I do: I wanna show up with something different. From what I hear, lots of players have AK's, M4's, and Mp5's. I want my gun to stand out, atleast in my eyes. Would you say that lots of players have this set up? (SVD Stock on AK + furnishings/accessories.)

Thankssss

EDIT: Also, the egyptian maadi RML's are [in]famous for the stock that I am recreating for airsoft. A lot of the guns pictured on google have a similar to stock which I was building. Heres a link: http://ee.ar15.com/uploadImages/2009...15000_File.jpg

[AngelusNex]

How you going to disassemble it when something in the mechbox breaksdown with this?

[Kos-Mos]

Regular epoxy is a pain to sand and shape.

Best I found is to use "steel epoxy" and only use the epoxy for interior/reinforcements.

It is black, so if it shows it's not the end of the world.
It is thicker than regular epoxy, mostly because there is some steel powder in it.
It sets in 5 minutes but takes a few hours to become really hard. You can shape it with a sharp knife (if there is a drip or bead forming on a seam).

For other things, use some black ABS glue or methyl hydrochloride. The first can be found in almost any hardware store. The second is also known as "Plexi solvent" and it took me 2 years to find a place here in Montreal that sells it.

The ABS glue is good to fill gaps. The other is a solvent, so it basically melts the plastics to seal a tiny gap. That is how the stock is assembled at the factory.

[Love]

Kos: You say only use it for interior/reinforcements. Why cant I use it on the exterior? Thats what my project is.

Nex: I was planning on leaving holes in the modification, that would allow me to unscrew the gun still. But I do see what you mean, and on how difficult it could be.

I actually like the stock that was shown to me earlier, aha. How much do those SVD stocks run?

[Thenooblord]

more like, the grip goes DOWN to come off and the stock goes BACK to come off, so if they are attatched you cant remove/install them

[Kos-Mos]

It is hard to sand/finish properly. It is VERY strong though, so you are better using it for structure/internal than external gluing. Use some black ABS glue of the solvent for apparent joints, then sand to shape.

I would recomment you to make the attachement only on the stock. Have a hole aligned with the stock grip hole, and use a longer screw.

That way by removing the grip screw and then pulling the stock back, you will be able to acces the gun internals.

[Love]

Good idea KOS. I'm startin to take a liking to the SVD stock. How much do they usually cost? (Any links on where I can get one, as I am not AV'ed?. I am of age, 19 in june.)