Linda Folding Stock

I have been enjoying my Linda PC carbine from Wilkinson Arms (WilkinsonArms.com). It has a cool, retro look, is fun to shoot, and has proven to be accurate and reliable. It is a 9mm Luger direct blow back design with a cylindrical receiver, barrel shroud, and tube stock that resembles submachine guns like the Sten gun. The bolt telescopes over the barrel similar to the Uzi, allowing the 16.5" barrel to be set back in the receiver and significantly shorten the overall length.

The standard stock is fine for the iron sights but the amount of drop prevents a good cheek weld when using optics such as the red dot that I installed. I initially thought that I would make a fixed stock like the original but with the tube extending straight back. I thought I’d try a folding stock instead. The Linda is only 21" long with the stock removed so a folding stock would allow the carbine to be carried as a compact package.

Wilkinson Arms offers an adapter for use with an AK-type under-folding stock and provides that stock on the LE-3 version. The The standard Linda stock has a significant amount of drop; this is fine for iron sights but is too much for optics mounted on the rail. under-folding stock didn’t appeal to me; I was more interested in one that folds to the side and allows the carbine to be operated while folded. The bolt handle is on the left side so I wanted the stock to go to the right.

I looked at folding stocks and stock adapters for other models but the Linda is an unique design. Wilkinson Arms offers an AR stock adapter and there are hinge kits for AR stocks but I wanted to stay with the original style stock. The cost of the adapter and hinge kit adds up quickly as well so I decided to fabricate one myself. I started by measuring the dimensions on the rear of the receiver and making a drawing.

The receiver has a horizontal lug that retains the fixed stock along with a screw in the bottom of the receiver. I decided to use the same mounting system and add a hinge that allowed the stock to pivot to the right side. I wanted the hinge assembly to blend in with the shape of the receiver. I sketched some ideas, picked the one that looked best, and added it to the drawing.

The folded stock has to clear the ejection port cover on the right side of the receiver when the cover is open and allow the cover to open when it’s closed. This required clearance determined the location of the vertical centerline of the hinge pin. I chose to attach the new stock at the same location relative to the rear of the receiver. Since it extends horizontally, it required a different design for the butt plate.

After more sketching, I came up with a design for a latch to hold the stock in the extended position. I rounded up pieces of steel in 0.125", 0.188", and 0.250" thicknesses. I used a cutoff saw for the rough cuts, then a hacksaw, and finished with hand files. A drill press, TIG welder, disc sander, and Dremel tool were used as well. I

started with making a mounting bracket like the original but with provisions for the additional hinge plates. I added a section on the bracket under the lug to act as a spacer for the fixed hinge plate and welded the pieces together. I made the hinge plates from 0.25" thick steel and used 0.50" round bar stock for the hinges. Cutting apiece of the round bar to length for the fixed hinge plate, I drilled a 0.180" diameter hole for the pin and filed a 0.35" wide flat on it so it would set squarely on the plate.

I aligned and welded the bar on the plate "ears" and then cut out the center section of the bar. The rotating hinge plate was made in the same manner. I carefully filed the hinge bars to get a precision fit which required frequent assembly checks until the parts went together as needed. The fixed hinge plate is keyed to the mounting bracket via a notch on the bottom that locates the plate side-to-side on the bracket. I used a 6-32 screw to attach the hinge assembly to the mounting bracket during the fit-up checks.

The original plan did not include its use in the final assembly but I later decided to keep it and add a second screw as opposed to welding the parts together. This allows me to remove the hinge assembly from the mounting bracket in case I want to make any changes to the parts or fix any problems. At final assembly, thread locker was added to the screws. After I got the hinge parts finished and attached to the mounting bracket, I started on the latch assembly.

I cut the latch from 0.25" Latch to hold stock in the folded position; fixed hinge plate with latch to hold stock in the extended position; mounting bracket; pivoting hinge plate; hinge pin and latch pin. Below center: New mounting bracket compared to the standard stock. Far steel, added a slot in the fixed hinge plate, and drilled the hole for the pin that the latch pivots on. It also required a hole in the spacer for the latch spring.

After much trimming and filing, I got the latch shape finalized and fit into the hinge plate. I used 0.062" diameter welding rod as a temporary pivot pin so I could assemble and disassemble the parts to check the fit-up. The rod was replaced by a roll pin in the final assembly. I found a small spring from a trigger kit that was the right size and installed it in the spacer on the mounting bracket to hold the latch closed. A small pin was added to the latch to retain the end of the spring.

The latch is released by pushing it to the left. One issue I discovered with the stock in the folded position was the latch would pivot over center and prevent the stock from engaging the latch when the stock was unfolded. I bonded a small piece of shim stock to the fixed plate to prevent this, which required a minor adjustment to the notch in the latch. I decided to add another

latch to hold the stock in the folded position so it would not swing around uncontrolled when not in the extended position. This turned into a fair amount of cutting and trimming as I had not incorporated it into the original design. The only means I could think of doing this was to add a pin to the rotating hinge that the latch could capture. It’s not the most elegant design, but it works fine.

I would have preferred using a compression spring on this latch as I did on the other one but had to use an extension spring The latch on the bottom left retains the stock in the extended position and is pushed to the left to release and allow the stock to be folded. The latch on the upper left is pushed downward to release the stock from the folded position. The latch retains the pin to keep the stock in the folded position.

I used apiece of 0.875" OD steel tubing for the stock which matched the diameter of the original stock. The new stock was mocked up with a wooden dowel and butt plate to check for length of pull, proper cheek weld, and adequate clearance with the stock folded. I cut the steel tube and new butt plate to size, welded them together, and then welded the tube to the pivoting hinge plate. Threaded rod was used with nuts and washers to hold the parts together during welding.

I contoured apiece of walnut to the shape that I wanted, stained it to match the fore end grip, and installed it on the butt plate with two wood screws. When tucked in along the right side of the hinge plate. This latch is located on the left side of the receiver, above the other latch, and is released by pressing it downward. American Gunsmith Reader Services 1.

the stock assembly was complete, I sprayed the steel parts with flat black paint to match the rest of the carbine. The new folding stock assembly has the same length of pull as the original stock. The hinge assembly only added 0.5" to the length of the receiver and when folded the overall length is a compact 21.5". The new stock and hinge assembly weigh 22.8 ounces compared to 11.0 ounces for The ejection port cover will open with the stock folded.

New stock has zero drop which provides a good cheek weld for an optic. The hinge and stock assembly weighs 22.8 ounces compared to 11.0 ounces for the original fixed stock. the original. Part of the weight increase is due to the tube 0.095" wall thickness which is probably thicker than the original stock tube. I chose the heavier wall to give me a little more material to work with when welding. The increased weight of the new stock improves the balance when the carbine is shouldered.

The new stock provides a good cheek weld with the red dot sight and the carbine can fit in a relatively short case, making it less conspicuous when carried. I had not planned on firing the carbine with the stock folded but after it was all together, I had to try it a few times to make sure it functioned properly. Works great! AG Far I wanted to keep the design as small as possible and blend in with the receiver profile. 5" to the receiver length.