What Type Of Stock Do You Prefer?

[Stocky]

On a bolt action rifle, do you prefer to hunt with solid walnut (type of walnut), laminated hardwood, plastic, or hand lay-up fiberglass (epoxy bedded and/or aluminum block)? Why?

 

[enysse]

On a bolt action rifle, do you prefer to hunt with solid walnut (type of walnut), laminated hardwood, plastic, or hand lay-up fiberglass (epoxy bedded and/or aluminum block)? Why?

I did prefer to hunt with a solid walnut stock, just for the beauty. But good fiberglass stock is probably the best, it takes abuse, and I tend to shoot better with a synthetic stock. Laminates are very good, maybe a tad heavy though.

 

[spike.t]

kinda have a fetish for nice sexy pieces of walnut......nothing like eyeing up and running your hands over the smoothness of a beautiful stock:wink: :biggrin2:

 

[Rob404]

Theres nothing more beautiful than a Bolt action Rifle wrapped in a Nice piece if wood ,,,I posted this Pic in 375 and Up but it,s worth a look.

 

[B9.3]

I have all. Nothing looks better than Walnut. I have an HS Precision stock on one of my Weatherby MkVs It has been excelent & stable for the 11 years that I have used it in all weather. I have a Genuine Weatherby laminated stock on one of my MKV 300s, It was then known as Weatherby MarkV SLS stainless laminated sporter with a black oxide.
coating. My Weatherby MKV Custom Ultramark looks superb. Weatherby stocks definately are shaped well for recoil. But for pure comfort & ease of shouldering, sighting & snap shooting for me nothing beats my CZ 550 American 9.3x62. It is more comfortable for me than my Model 70s & Weatherbys.
When a stock fits right, it makes a hell of a difference.

 

[Diamondhitch]

A quality piece of solid wood certainly looks the best but is the least durable and least resistant to inclement conditions. Laminate is very nice to look at and is less prone to warping during wet periods but is heavier than solid wood. Fiberglass is not as fancy but holds its shape and accuracy in all weather conditions. Plastic is what they wrap the box a quality stock comes in.

Epoxy bedding is a good choice and better than doing nothing. Aluminum bedding block along with epoxy bedding is the most stable/accurate.

It comes down to personal choice, you have to find the balance of looks, accuracy and durability that suits you personally.

 

[Diamondhitch]

When a stock fits right, it makes a hell of a difference.

Well said. Both for accuracy and felt/perceived recoil.

 

[Stocky]

Plastic is what they wrap the box a quality stock comes in.

Love it.

 

[Nyati]

Wood is beautiful but, for rough use in bad weather, nothing beats a McMillan fiberglass stock.

In american classic configuration.

 

[Shakey]

Hard to beat a good piece of walnut, but on bolts I generally go with wood laminate - which seems to me to be the best of both worlds. Good for any weather, yet solid, quieter, better looking and heavier than the synthetics. Added weight absorbs recoil and reduces movement. Several color options available. Accurate Innovations makes a fine after-market stock with aluminum bedding blocks. Add epoxy bedding, as Diamondhitch said, to get the most out of it.

 

[35bore]

Hard to beat a good piece of walnut, but on bolts I generally go with wood laminate - which seems to me to be the best of both worlds. Good for any weather, yet solid, quieter, better looking and heavier than the synthetics. Added weight absorbs recoil and reduces movement. Several color options available. Accurate Innovations makes a fine after-market stock with aluminum bedding blocks. Add epoxy bedding, as Diamondhitch said, to get the most out of it.

Have to agree, as pretty as Walnut can be, it's hard to beat a laminate stock. I like the additional weight of laminated stocks and if it (laminate or synthetic) get scratched, whoop-tee-do. A high dollar piece of Walnut on the other hand, it can be heartbreaking to get a gouge in it. Others look at scratches and gouges as badges of honor, guess I can see that, but likewise I have some pretty big gouges in some of my stocks. I can see both sides on this topic. Love them all....

 

[oddsix]

In my younger years synthetic was the cool factor and you could be fairly rough with the gun. Then I realized that even though I had a synthetic stock I would always take care of it.
Then laminate came to town and well the look of it is so appealing. After glass bedding and the additional weight of the gun my shooting has never been better.
Now I just purchased a winchester model 70 african express in 375 H&H and well it's got the walnut the weight and shoots beautifully and looks like it belongs in Africa just a classic.
So as times change and hunting changes so will tastes in firearms. Now if only I could find a Heym double rifle in a plastic stock would I say the world is coming to an end.

 

[Highland]

For Africa or anywhere conditions are pretty easy on the gun and dry...WALNUT.

For Alaska or anywhere the gun will be subjected to rain, sea spray, ice and more rain, all the while strapped to the side of a pack...McMillan.

 

[Adrian]

Definitely wood and it has to be walnut.

You can't beat that pattern in the grain and the way it glows when the light catches it, what can be better than opening the rifle slip and pulling out a smooth, shapely piece of oiled walnut.

I always consider my rifle to be a hunting companion so buy something you feel comfortable with, something that instils confidence in you, when you put it up to your shoulder it has to fit right and feel like a friend. I just can't get that feeling from plastic or fibreglass.

I want to look up from gralloching a deer, see my rifle propped up on my shooting sticks or against a tree and it put a smile on my face.

I know that wood is likely to get a scratch, a knock or a dent but I can live with that. I obviously do what I can to avoid it but these little scars that may happen are all part of the character of the rifle, in years to come, they will all be part of the history of my hunting companion.

 

[bebo]

Few weeks ago I've tried a Blaser "Professionnal Success" F A B U L O U S ....

Blaser - Armes de chasse: Professional Success

 

[rnovi]

For Africa, Wood. No question. Last year it was a .300 H&H Pre-64 in a Bastogne stock. Next year it will be a Merkel K1 in a lovely piece of walnut...

For Coastal Alaska: Stainless/Plastic is the way to go. In my case, Remington AWR Ti-Nytride Black in a McMillan. Kodiak is rough on equipment... It's not just the rain that's the problem in and unto itself - it's the SALT in the rain...the salt everywhere...

 

[Tentman]

Down here its wet every time you go out for more than a day - maybe Hughie just doesn't like me!

I have tried various fibreglass/composite stocks but keep coming back to walnut as the most practical compromise. For me (where we hunt a lot in the bush) synthetic is too noisy. In the cold its less than pleasant to the hand.

If you compare a hard hunted synthetic with a walnut stock of the same use, the synthetic just looks crappy, whereas the walnut has a patina.

The best means of ensuring a walnut stock that is as stable as synthetic is to focus entirely on the layout (I.e. forget about the figure etc) if the grain runs from the heel up through the wrist and upwards though the fore-end it will be good. For my stocks where they will get really hard use I use a heat assisted epoxy encapsulation technique.