Why Laminate?

You’ll see many wooden guns made from a single mono block of wood and others made from a “blank” that has been built from multiple pieces of wood laminated together. By laminating the blank you eliminate the risk of the gun warping, twisting or bending over time or during machining. Wood has natural stresses grown into the grains. By slicing up thin strips and bonding them together you reduce and balance the forces imparted by each piece.

A single piece of wood is more likely to bend or twist because all the forces are balanced in the solid piece, so once you begin shaping and removing wood you disrupt that balance.

DRETCHEL blanks will hang and age in the shop for 4-6 weeks. During this time any slight bending or twisting can occur BEFORE the gun is machined. It’s usually minimal unless big forces are clamped into the blank during lamination. After the aging process the blank is squared up very precisely before any detail cuts begin. If you rush and skip this step the bending can occur after the gun is built and it can’t be fixed.

Laminating is best.

Aging is best.

All DRETCHEL guns start off as a laminated teak “Blank” bonded together with high quality marine epoxy. I use West Systems 105 with the 206 “slow” hardener and have had great results. It penetrates the wood pores well and forms a very strong bond (when done properly) that will last. The 206 slow hardener gives you enough working time in warmer SoCal weather. For cold climates the 205 “fast” would also work.