Hey Joe, Good day!
Were talkin' factory stocks.... Right

I guess there are good synthetics out there and I’m sure they have their points, I’ve just never owned a good one. IMHO, the ones I've experienced (Savage & Remington), to name a couple, are weak. Someone gave me a Rem take off ... I put it on my 222... shot it… worked on it… shot it some more … worked on it again …shot it... It would change POI whenever I changed my grip on the forearm.:wtf: That flimsy thing drove me :nut:. Now I know why it was a freebee.
I finally put the good ol' American walnut back on. I would gladly give the Remware to someone but I would just not feel right doing that to a person.


Give me a piece of plain ol' ash over the best factory tupperware any day.
I can work with wood, plus it gives me that warm fuzzy felling too!


See ya'... going back into my closet now,
C<

All of my guns wear the wood they came with and I just like to keep it that way, thanks. Some have been free floated and that's it.

I have four guns with black synthetic stocks, and really like both the look and feel of them. Both of my crossbows also have synthetic stocks. Many wood stocks can be a pain to maintain.

Now, if you want to talk about something that's ugly, start a thread on stainless steel.

I like wood..but both have a place in my arsenal..my 280 mtn rifle shoots better by far now that I chunked the walnut stock and put it in a Bell and Carlson...I have a nifty 6.5x55 ultra lite that I built using a 16.5" M94 swede barrel and a turk action...I put it in a Choate synthetic stock..and then I lost about a pound of metal..because they have a built in blind magazine...and it shoots good in that Choate... Most recently I built a 338-06AI and put it in a Hogue rubber overmolded stock..and it is properly bedded for my mauser action...no glass needed... I have a ramline stock too...it is leaning up in the corner at the moment...don't care for it much... Depending on the stock..synthetic stocks in some cases do absorb recoil...both the Bell and Carlson and the Hogue are very comfortable to shoot.

I have built a few rifles with nice walnut stocks as well as a few with laminated stocks....I think the laminated stocks are a good compromise if you are looking for a tough good looking stock that will not be affected by weather very much...most laminates are really pretty stable because of the amount of glue used in construction..and the grain pattern of the layers being crisscrossed adds to the stability...

If you want a stock that will really reduce felt recoil try one of the thumbhole designs...

Zeeriverrat1

I prefer wood, especially laminated over synthetic.Other than my AR-15 I only own one synthetic stock,a remington synthetic on a 270 mountain rifle. I agree with coyote hunter,they are somewhat flimsy.On this particular rifle it is not a problem because I ordered a standard barrel contour stock and put the slim barreled mountain rifle action in it . It does leave a rather unsightly gap,but no matter how hard you twist the forearm it does not contact barrel. It is my "beater rifle". I think with reasonable care wood is the way to go. I use Thompsons water seal on all raw wood,under buttplate, grip cap ,checkering,and inletting. It works really wellon checkering that is cut after stock is finished.Just dab it in pattern with a Q-tip,waterproofs checkering without filling it in.

All five of my little beasties have wood stocks and I'll probably leave them that way. Wood has a "feel" to it that plastic can never give me, it's tactile in a way that can never be cast in a die or injection moulded.

I have wood stocks and synthetics. There is plus's and minus with both. Problem with synthetic's is they can sound hollow if the stock is rapped, some are noisy when picker bushes / thorn bushes scratch down the stock. Some synthetics stocks can't be shorten, Good synthetics stock are expensive. I have a HS , ramline and pair of Butlercreek synthetics, one plain, one delux. HS is nice, the other two are cheap-O but, work.

Synthetics include injection molded stocks and I don't like those at all. I do have some kevlar stocks that do a good job in weight reduction and durability.

Wood, however, continues to have a greater attraction to me. At least, if it is properly sealed. Properly sealed, I have never had a saturation problem or warpage even with some very rainy multi day Alaskan and Canadian hunts. Wood isn't as cold to the touch, to the cheek. Importantly, wood doesn't resonate when you a scrapping through the brush or thorny stuff.

Maybe I'm just a rifle romantic, but, often on a hard day's hunt I find myself taking a break and looking at the rifle I am carrying. When I see a nice piece of figured wood it always brings a smile.

Wood on all my rifles and all my knives are in wood and brass. I just like the feel and look of wood and brass.

Now have a 45-70 with wood and a case hardened receiver and I think it looks great.

I've got a related question. I have a Rem 700 with a laminated wood stock. It looks nice and of course, it won't warp like a solid wood stock. But, the finish is very shiny. I'm wondering if I should try to dull the finish with some fine steel wool. I don't want a trophy whatever spooking because of the light catching that shiny stock when I take aim. Anyone ever do something like this? I don't want to make this purdy rifle an ugly duck but it seems like it would still look good, just not shiny. What do you think?

Go for it, you can always make it shiny again by refinishing Be shure to use fine steel wool & it will look like a satin finish when done.
Keep it coming...