John,
First thing is to fit the spur to the recess in the stock. Only shape the spur not the wood!!!!
No magic amount of time for softening the plate. 1 minute or less in boiling water softens them quite well. Remove from water with any utensil and it will be OK to handle. Bend gently to appropriate shape. I try to shape so the screws do the final forming to the shape of the butt for a nice tight fit. With the plate cool and tightly attached to the butt I scribe the edge with a needle like tool to mark the material to be removed by a belt sander. Final edge smoothing is done by 600 grit paper. I even use auro rubbing compond for final edge finish.
Bob Jurewicz
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