Here is a good example of how an old stock can be re-worked to serve another good many years, or just to make grand-pa's old shotgun pretty again...

The most obvious damage was right at the trigger guard inlet.
Besides the nasty break, there was a lot of oil soaked into the wood which had turned the area black.

Here you can see much of the discoloration is gone, a new peice of wood added and blended in and the check pattern continued and freshened up.

A shot of the inlet area after repair

Left side of stock as it came in.
The long curved scratch is actually a crack through to the through bolt well.

Here it is with a repair pin inserted from the butt to hold it tight and re-finished.

The right side was just a mess of dents and gouges.

A good going over and what a difference!

The pump grip only needed the check refreshed a bit and a good strip and re-finish.

Both peices finished!

Scott was also kind enough to send pics of his shotgun all re-assembled.

Going to do some bragging on Oldemagics real quick.
Keith had posted a thread with some pics of a pretty rough stock that he did some great work on.
Wanted to share pictures of the stock back on the gun.
The gun is a Winchester 1897 "Fancy Grade" with damascus barrel and XX checkered wood. I bought the gun about five years ago and really wanted the stock to be made good again. The goal was to have a stock that would match the patina of the gun.
The checker is smooth but defined with some places in the wood left to fit the "character" of the gun.
Several folks looked at it and said it would be hard to find someone who could do the work. Well, I found the guy and it has been well worth the wait. He brought life back to a 105 year old gun. Thanks Keith!

This is what the owner had to say on an internet gun forum...