Laminate Gun Stocks

I like thumbhole (T/H) stocks, not on all my rifles, but they do offer something for certain uses. Take my Ruger M77/17 All-Weather in 17HMR; from the box it came with a grey laminate sporter style and I had no complaints. But I always wanted a TH, though could never find one off the shelf. Quite by chance I met Paul Day (Laminate Gun Stocks) on Roo Ellis’s (The Hunting Agency) stand at last year’s CLA. He had a good display of some tidy looking laminate stocks and we got to talking and he said he’d sort out my Ruger.

Choices, Choices

In terms of design and colour the world’s your oyster with many variants of stock - sporters, military, T/Hs (straight-line and dual-grip), tactical, bench rest and general hunting types in a wide choice of colours. Stock material is composed of 1/16” fully, colour-saturated birch veneers hydraulically bonded using a superior resin adhesive. Laminate is a superbly stable material, so an ideal choice for this sort of employment.

As well as the finished item Paul also offers unfinished blanks that are, completely shaped and ready for sanding & finishing. They come with either a 99% press-fit Inlet, meaning the action will bolt in with little handwork involved, or 96%, which requires some wood removal and fitting.

My choice was a straight-line T/H in camo – a four-colour blend of green, grey, brown and orange, with recoil pad, synthetic bedding and QD sling studs.. He uses a pantograph copying/cutting machine and keeps master stocks to work from. Conversely he could use your original to create the same thing in laminate. Other options include grip/end caps in exotic woods, recoil pads, pillar and synthetic bedding.

Satisfaction Guaranteed

From ordering the laminate, if it’s not in stock the job take about 14-weeks. Paul also says that if you are not happy with the finished item he will make it right. This as I discovered as a customer is an easy thing to get wrong! He sent me a picture of the stock and it looked OK, however, when I got the rifle it felt too heavy with too much forend, with a squared-off feel to the pistol grip. True to his word he reworked it – rounded off tip, tapered the forend and re-profiled the grip. The end result is a thing of beauty (to me) and also a very practical layout for what is mainly a sit-n-shoot truck gun, that still punches ½” @ 100-yards; good enough! Having seen what he is capable of, I have a few other rifles that might benefit from his ministrations! Space limits me to what I can say and show you, but I strongly suggest you check out the website as the possibilities are enormous and if there’s nothing there that turns your crank; well I feel sorry for you…

Price Guide:

• T/H stock in any colour, with or without rosewood tip and palm swell, 1” recoil pad and sling swivels - £225.00 (un-finished)

• Stock finishing £120.00

• Bedding with bedding blocks £130.00

• Total: £475.00 plus p&p

• Contact: [email protected] ,www.laminategunstocks.co.uk

• For: Massive choice in style, colour and stock design

• Against: Nothing

• Verdict: A cost effective way to get some good looking, practical and distinctive furniture on your favourite shooters