...or an accuracy-enhancing factor
I have a 257 Roberts Hawkeye UL that was terrible in the factory wood, good groups were 3" normal was around 5". I swapped it into a boat paddle and it immediately shrank the groups to down around 1". The factory wood was not cut deep enough under the recoil lug and I guess when everything was torqued it put something in a bind.
A little stock"gouging" and a tube of JB Weld Acraglas might have fixed the original.
I thought about that and while I really like the look of the factory wood dropping that UL in a boat paddle made it perfect as far as weight and balance. I bedded it into the boat paddle stock and I just put the factory wood up in the safe.
I have several used, but not very dinged wood Ruger stocks in storage myself, from my gunsmithing days, from guys that wanted "plastic". Weight, balance, and personal preference are not to be gain-sayed.
