Thumbhole Boyd's vs Higher end sythetic

I have a boyds thumbhole laminate on my f-class rifle. IMHO they are a bit of you get what you pay for. Mine when it showed up did not line up with the recoil lugs of my rifle. My gunsmith filled the forward lug hole with acraglass then drilled a new hole in the proper position. Once properly installed and bedded the stock does its job as well as any other. My stock came to about 100$ delivered, buy one if you know someone that is handy and it will work fine.
 
The only difference if you properly bed the Boyds stock, will be the look and feel. If the Boyds is properly floated and bedded,It will shoot as well as a high end stock IF it fits you well or better.

If you want to change the look and feel of your gun, do it. If you are expecting better accuracy, that will only happen if the gun fits you better with the Boyds stock.

I have one of their thumbholes on my .223 REM 700. It looks great. Fits me ok. The advantage I have found is that even though it is not a perfect fit (for me), it is more comfortable than my original stock. Plus, the weight increase (it is a varmint thumbhole) has decreased the muzzle flip a bit. All in all, I like the stock and fo rthe money, I don't think you can wrong.
 
I agree with Mystic Player. Most of the shooting records have been done with wood stocks. I attended a small bore match the weekend past and there was not one synthetic stock at the match. The only issue with wood is dimensional stability due to woods porous nature. Laminate has solved that problem quite well. In addition to varying grain rotation to prevent twisting when exposed to moisture, most of the surface area of the laminate layers has been sealed by the adhesive used in the lamination process. Also, you can fit a laminate a little more easily to your personal shape by cutting and sanding. I don’t think that would turn out quite as well for the average person with a Glass stock. I put a McMillan A5 on my precision rifle and it works awesome (great stock) but doesn’t fit me well. I definitely didn’t waste my money buying the McMillan as my Rifle hasn’t shifted zero since I bedded it to the action years ago! However, if I had my day over again I would have gone with a Laminate for about 1/5 the cost. I don’t think zero would shift with it either. Fitting is not an issue as for a precision rifle the bolt holes should be bored out for the instillation of pillars anyway. I had to do it with my A5. You can get glass stocks that “drop in” and most likely you will get MOA doing this, but anyone serious about shooting clover leaf size groups will at the very least glass bed, but more likely pillar bed the stock.
Bottom line for me, I’d recommend the Laminate.

If I were jumping out of choppers in the “sandbox” I might go with the McMillan thinking it might be stronger to use as a pry bar, hammer, ect., but I don’t do that, so it is a non issue. Wood (Lam) works.
 
If you have ever handled a Remington XR 100 or a 700 VLSS Thumbhole, you basically have a Boyds stock, except with a very dense polymer finish.

They have advantages... I like them as I am a fan of thumbholes, and they seem to have a reasonable fit for my hand, although I find them a tad small. They do require finish-inletting - as do almost ALL wooden stocks (bolt cut, and ejection port cut), they still require bedding and they of course require finish sanding and clear coating.

They also have disadvantages: I do not like their length of pull (way too short), so you are looking at an accessory butt pad to give proper length, and if shooting prone, you really should have a pad that raises the butt pad as well.

If you are going to have the stock professionally finished to your gun, and the accessories added, you are right up close the cost of a Robertson Composite or other custom.

I FIRMLY believe that function follows form when it comes to shooting. Shooting ergonomics is essential for success

I love what RobertsonComposite builds, but confess a fondness for wooden laminate stocks.

Check out Bernosky.com as an alternative. SuPERB wooden stocks.
 
Well, the current Boyd's I have works well, and fits me pretty good. Was just curious what the educated shooters figured out there. Thinking that the synthetics possibly could be more consistent and stable , but looks like the laminate will be just fine. I did all the in-letting and bedding and floating, so all should work well, plus 7 coats of Dupont clear( workin in a bodyshop has the odd benefit ;) )
 
Sounds like you are on the right track. I have a few XR100's and i have done up a Boyds Thumbhole on a Remington 700. You would be well positioned to do the work yourself... go for it!
 
Kelly Timoffee said:
Thinking that the synthetics possibly could be more consistent and stable ,...
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Depends on your application and the type of rests you want to use.

The curvy varminting forend is not ideal for pedestal rests but work great with a bipod.

the sloping buttstock, again, would not be the right choice for a BR type rifle that has to track in the bags. for quick elevation adjustments when using a bipod, works great.

so stock shape should be matched to the application AND the dimensions of the shooter.

the materials used and how much that costs is another story.

as long as the stock is rigid enough for the intended use, its all good.

Jerry
 
JBD said:
I have a boyds thumbhole laminate on my f-class rifle. IMHO they are a bit of you get what you pay for. Mine when it showed up did not line up with the recoil lugs of my rifle. My gunsmith filled the forward lug hole with acraglass then drilled a new hole in the proper position. Once properly installed and bedded the stock does its job as well as any other. My stock came to about 100$ delivered, buy one if you know someone that is handy and it will work fine.
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Sounds like you bought a stagerfeed model and not the centerfeed model. This is hardly Boyd's fault. Action screw spacing is different in the two models.
 
I have looked at a lot of stocks over the years because that is my business. I manufacture "fibreglass" stocks. There is no question in my mind about the best, most stable, platform to put a gun into. Second to what we make my choice, at one time, was laminated wood. I have since changed my mind on this. I have seen a lot of broken, shrunk and distorted laminated stocks. I now believe that the best, second to ours, is a good quality wood stock, laminated need not apply!
 
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