Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing richards microfit stocks

eyup.... but I hate ice fishing

If everything else on that stock is good to go try gluing a contrasting color grip cap of 5/8" thick wood to extend the grip, you would only be out your time if it didn't work........

I bought one for my Rem 40X Rangemaster. It took them six months to get it to me, and it wasn't close to fitting my metal. My gunsmith charged me $300 to cut out the barrel channel, inlet the action and bed it, and I filed, sanded, and finished the stock myself. My gunsmith gets $45 an hour and that gives you an idea how long he spent on it.

I found the stock very soft, and it dings up easily, by the way. I'll never buy another one.

I believe they only use claro which is chitte for a rifle stock.

I would buy a Boyd's and you can thank yourself later. I still work on my one Richard's Stock occasionally when I feel like fighting it. Maybe someday I will get it finished.

Claro has it's place in stocks and is often an outstanding choice for many applications. Choosing pieces on the denser end of the spectrum makes them perfectly suitable for virtually any recoil level, also.

Suggesting all claro is chitte shows a huge lack of understanding on what makes a good stock.

As I sit at the 'putor, I have two Richards at my side.The first is an M722 Remington in 257 Roberts. It's an A-Fancy Tiger-stripe Maple, and the second is an FN Mauser .270 Win AI in semi-Fancy Claro. Both were delivered is the time-period that they said when I ordered. Both we agreed in the grade of wood.
Both, we agreed on the price/quality. The custom features were exactly as we agreed before we finished the order.
Each time, there was enough wood left inside and out, for me to work the fit the way I like it, and the outside to allow me to make it fit/look the way I wanted.
I have two more rifles that I'm gonna restock, both M98 Mausers, and one of them will have a Richards on it.
The only reason the second won't is that it'll have my first fiberglass stock on it, a thumbhole Mannlicher.
I don't think I can find a better stock for my rifles...as good, maybe, but not better.
Have fun,
Gene

This is my latest project Rem 700 25/06 that finally got to the range. I swiped some 117 gr BTSP loaded for my Grandson's Browning just to see what my new girl would do. When the neighbors quit chasing chickens I'll get serious... or maybe I won't as I can live with this for deer hunting.

I was just out in the shop, checking out my Richards Microfit for an FN 98 Mauser. I was shocked to see that the bottom metal cut is nearly 1/2" too long ahead of the front screw. I have extra wood on the fore end that I'll cut off, so I could patch it. But, how sloppy. And the entire inlet is super rough, evidently chewed out by a drunk beaver, surely not a CNC machine. I can do this type work, but why does a stock that costs good money have to be such a pain.

Richards Microfit CS isn't known to be user friendly, so no way will they take it back. They'll just say, "those actions vary". FN bottom metal doesn't vary THAT much. And, I'd much rather extend the inlet, than patch a half inch gap.

Oh well...

My last Richards "Microfit".

What a joke of a name... It's anything BUT a "microfit".

DF


Edited to add, after my earlier post, why did I get a Richards? I got it a while back, just got around to checking it out. I liked the shape and style of the stock and the options. I have a good bit of experience with stocks and can make about anything work. Machining on the Boyd is MUCH better, they just don't offer the options that Richards does. I'll make this one work, just a bunch of unnecessary extra effort.

I really want a Prone stock for shooting F/tr. It's either gamble with a Richard's Culbertson or drop 950$ to Masterclass or Russo.

Maybe some of you guys never had to make a stock out of a blank piece of wood, but I'm telling you, an RMF , Boyd's, or other duplicators have taken nearly ALL of the hard work out of re-stocking a rifle. I like shaping a stock to fit my frame and hands. I like bedding a rifle in a stock that I customized myself. It doesn't take 40 hours to turn a RMF stock into a beautiful stock. Good, sharp rasps, files, a palm sander for sculpting, and a red rubber eraser and sand paper can get the job done in 10 hrs or less. If you want drop-in convenience, RMF isn't the way to go. Buy a pre-finished Boyd's and quit yer whinin'. If you like to work with wood, RMF offers a wide range of styles, woods, and laminates with enough meat left on them to shape them into what you have envisioned for your rifle. Some things are just not as "immediate" as buying from Amazon.
If you aren't into wood work, talk with a Gunsmith about helping you re-stock. They usually have the tools and skills to do it right and don't mind that the stock came to them needing a bit of fitting, shaping, and a hand rubbed Gunsmith Finish.
I have had my share of experiences with RMFs customer service, some good, some bad. But I have always ended up being satisfied with the their products. I just received another stock from them for a Remington 788 build, and I can't wait to get at it with a rasp and what not. By the way, I just got my hands on an awesome piece of Black Walnut crotch wood to make a stock and forearm from scratch for a Winchester 1873. If any of you geniuses want to put in some time on a real stock build, come on over. I have plenty of rasps to go around.

I have two beautiful brand new in the box, Boyd's semi inlet laminated stocks for sale. One is for a Remington 788 standard action(short)in Nutmeg laminate & the other is for a Ruger Model 77, with the tang safety, also in Nutmeg laminate. I bought these stocks from Boyd's when they were not made fully inlet for these rifles and figured I would have them inlet when I had the money to have the job done. Boyd's makes them fully inlet now so I have since purchased the same two stocks again fully inlet so I won't be using the semi inlet stocks and will let them go at $60 each + shipping. If anyone is interested send me a message.

Well said CAFR..... I'm waiting on a 340 Savage, should arrive any day. Let the fun re-begin. Seems these days a lot of people want that instant arrival at the destination and don't really care about the quality of the journey itself. I never did start with a hunk of wood and that's beyond my pay grade. But I do enjoy the work and the result when you are done and you have the proverbial "silk purse" in hand. When some one says "wow" it seems worth the effort. ODS

You are missing the point that in using a RMF stock you may end up with unsightly gaps in places where none should be. So, despite all your hard work carefully inletting a stock, there may be gaps in places where you never even touched the inletting.

The only way to get a true drop in stock is to cut the inletting oversized enough to cover all extremes in receiver variations. The result is that you will not get a nice wood to metal fit. If that doesn't bother the buyer, then RMF may well be a good choice. But, if the buyer is looking for a quality fit, neither Boyd's or RMF will provide that.

Actually, I think YOU are missing the point. I do not want a drop in stock. I LIKE finishing the wood work. Maybe that cuts into your business as a stock maker. Too bad, deal with it. But it seems to me a lot of people use RMF and others use Boyd's or folks want to buy someone else's work. I think that choice is up to the customer. I'm not making stocks for others but for ME. Compared to off the rack guns I can make a stock that fits me, looks good and is more pleasing to me at a reasonable cost and I enjoy the effort as a hobby. I am truly sorry that offends you but pick your nits elsewhere please. ODS

ODS, I've seen too many people who've used RMF and were very disappointed in the result. They do an excellent job on the exterior only to be stuck with unsightly gaps around the bottom metal and or receiver. All too often the horrid inletting the stocks are supplied with cannot be overcome.

People buying RMF stocks are not hurting my business one bit, there is plenty to go around.

I am sorry if my expressing my experince hurts you. Perhaps a Midol would help?

Experience or arrogance? I am not the least disappointed.
Midol? Is that what helps your PMS?

If speaking objectively about my observations is arrogance, then you need a new dictionary.

But, if you're not disappointed, neither am I.

zlr,
He ain't got a clue! I had 2 RMF stocks and it was 2 too many. I'm a slow learner.

After many hours of internet searching I found a fella that has a duplicator and makes blanks from wood he cuts on his own property, walnut, cherry, and maple. The stock comes with a 120 grit sanded finish and fully inletted ready for finish sanding, bedding, and tru oil. I was scared to ask a price and but when he told me 130$ I about fell out. I am so glad I don't have to "try" my luck with a RMF stock.