Hard Wood Stocks

ebruder

ebruder

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Hi,

I have a question about hard wood stocks... now I understand that wood warps with different humidity levels, and that's why lots of people have gone to composite or laminated stocks...

My question is: If a hardwood stock is properly bedded (glass vs pillar) and the barrel free floated, do you still suffer from accuracy troubles because of the wood warping?
 
reduce the chances of the warping or twisting by having the barrel channel and receiver bedded. Generally i will bed the action and the first 2 inches of the barrel and then float the barrel over a glassed channel. gets the stock pretty solid.
 
You don't glass the barrel channel. You seal it. POI changes with a wood stock are caused by the forestock putting pressure on the barrel and moving it when the wood gains or loses water. Any wood sealer will stop this.
 
Synthetic and laminates can warp as well, heat on a synthetic stock from being set to close to the stove in camp or lying on the seat of the truck dureing 40+C day with the sun shineing directly on it can cause problems for even the toughest synthetics. Laminates when they lose their sealants can also suffer from warpage. Now to be totally honest, these problems don't arise very often, certainly not nearly as often as regular wooden stocks. The cheaper injection moulded stocks are mostly the culprits and like it or not the well constructed but poorly finished by the home enthusiast, laminates. Unless they have proper recoil blocks secured in place and properly fitted pillars, laminates and synthetic stocks can be just as, and maybe more frustrating than hardwood. A properly seasoned, sealed pillar/recoil block installed and glass bedded fully floated barrel, all done properly of course, is darned hard to beat, especially a boreing, nice straight grain piece of walnut or maple. It's usually the really well figured wood that gives really severe problems. That being said, I really like GOOD SYNTHETIC and LAMINATED stocks as well. bearhunter
 
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Very interesting thread. I'm putting together a hunting rifle right now in 9.3x62 and am having a tough time deciding between wood or synthetic. My two main hunting guns both wear McMillians and I have no complaints. Wood would be nice but not sure if "nice" outweighs the benefits of a good synthetic.
 
Nothing beats top of the line synthetics as long as the bedding is correct. Laminates if taken care of, finished properly and bedded properly will do just as well, but require a little extra care. One thing that a lot of people don't realise is how a very little bit of oil between the receiver and bedding can ruin accuracy, and that applies to either or all rifle stocks. bearhunter
 
If the wood is properly dried and sealed, the amount of movement is actually very small unless subjected to ALOT of water - rain or dropped in a river. for a range rifle, there is little to worry about. For a sheep rifle, probably better choices.

There are tips about using the grain and flow of the wood to your advantage. Also, orientating the grain through the wrist area so that it is unlikely to break.

for my wood stocks, definitely, the barrel channel was opened up ALOT so that the barrel and forend could never touch even if the stocked moved. 1/8" worked well. Not pretty but I don't care in a hunting rifle. I do this for my synthetic factory stocks too.

You might have seen my rather open forend design in my target rifles. No problems hitting anything there.

Good luck and let us see what you end up with.

Jerry
 
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