Curly
In general a hand drill is the only way you can drill a stock butt. Start drilling and measure often. It is possible to drill out through the side of a stock, but there really is no excuse for it. I made a caliper with a 16" arm to measure wall thickness. It is not a big trick.
Epoxy plugs in the holes to seal them and also to give your butt pad screws something to sink into... Eliminating drilling there just to give the screws a home is foolish...
art
