Over the past 2 or 3 months I've acquired 3 aftermarket rifle stocks. One made by McMillan - the Game Hunter, may be familiar to many. The other 2, one by Mesa Precision Arms, and the other by AG Composites may not be so familiar. As best I can I'll convey my opinion - and just that MY opinion - of these 3 stocks.
McMillan Game Hunter
The Game Hunter caught my eye when it first hit the market. The vertical grip and high comb (.25" from the center of the bore) seemed like the perfect thing to replace the factory stock on a Christensen Arms Ridgeline. (At $650ish for the edge-fill Game Hunter, it did give me pause, though.) IMHO, the CA, when topped with a 50mm objective scope in either medium or high rings, needed a stock with more comb height than the factory stock. The factory stock was too low and did not afford what I considered a good cheek weld on the stock. I always felt I was 'craning' to get the proper scope/eye alignment.
Black Friday rolled around. McMillan had a 20% off sale, and I ordered one (The Game Hunter is inleted for the heavier contour barrels - Varmint/Sendero/Proof). A week later I had it in my hand. It took very little time for me to pull the Ridgeline from its factory stock and sub-plant the barreled action in the McMillan. First thing to note is that the Ridgeline (all CA bolt guns for that matter) used a side bolt release. That said, the location of the bolt release sits slightly below the stock line on the McMillan. A quick trip to the vertical mill and that problem was solved (a file would have worked too). After the inletting adjustment for the side bolt release the barreled action dropped right in. Fit was as expected. The rifle felt good in my hands and the texturing of the grip panel and forend is just right. Installing the CA bottom metal was a little bit of a trick. CA bottom metal has a 'lip' that captures the sides of the magazine. The inlet on the Game Hunter was for a Rem 700 which does not have such a lip. I toyed around with it a bit, and in the end substituted the CA bottom metal with a Remington hinged floor plate. Of note, the action screw lengths needed some 'adjustment.'
Once together, I shouldered the rifle and checked for cheek weld and scope alignment. IMHO, it was perfect for the scope (Swarovski Z6 3-18x50)/rifle combo. The grip was not too bulky and the forend, though not slender, was not bulky either. I like the feel. Money well spent as far as I was concerned. McMillan advertises the stock (Edge fill) as weighing 26-30 oz. My stock, after bedding, weighed in at 28.5oz. Altogether, the Ridgeline 24" barreled action, with Remington bottom metal, topped with the aforementioned scope in Burris Signature rings and bases, in the Game Hunter weighs in at 8lb 3oz.
Mesa Precision Arms (MPA) Attitude - mesaprecisionarms.com/products/rifle-stocks/altitude-stock/
Not sure how I came across this stock. Some late night Interweb searching more than likely. In any case, this stock also drew my interest. Knowing that I had another Ridgeline that would be needing some stock alteration, or a new stock, I dug a little deeper. I spoke to company and asked several questions. The one thing that had me skeptical was the lack of any grip (or forend) texture. While the company said they were looking into it, the current production models were sans texturing. In talking to the folks at Mesa Precision Arms, I was told that the comb on this stock had almost no drop at the comb and was very close to being a 'negative' comb, whereas the comb has a very slight rise as it slopes toward the butt. Like the Game Hunter, this stock is a Monte Carlo, but does not have a check rest. At $599 retail, this stock is almost $150 less and with similar ergos to the Game Hunter. Certainly food for thought.
Moving on, I saw that Redhawk Rifles out of Grand Junction, CO, was selling these stocks and had several available. Hmm, . . . Fast forward a bit. I get an email flyer from Redhawk Rifles indicating that they have an overstock of these stocks (We told the buyer to buy 16; he bought 60 was their reason for the over stock). Color options were OD Green, Tan and 'Henry Ford' black. Priced at $400ish ($499 reg) to clear the overstock, I took a chance and ordered a black stock inleted for the Rem 700 w/M24/Proof Sendero contour barrel. The stock arrived in a few short days. (MPA says orders will be processed as received and to allow 2-3 weeks for delivery, if ordering direct)
Just as with the Game Hunter, the stock inlet is for a Remington 700 action. That said, it too needed some alteration to accommodate the side bolt release. Again, a simple task on the mill.. Other than that my first impression was that the stock felt slippery, or slick and would need some attention to alleviate that. Fit, finish and inletting was great. The grip and forend are slightly larger than the Game Hunter I attribute the difference in grip feel to the depth of the thumb cut. The thumb cut is 1/2-3/4" shallower on the MPA than the McM.
Off came the factory stock on my other Ridgeline. Dropped the barreled action into the MPA. No problems. CAs bottom metal even fit. Other than the slippery feeling of the stock itself, the higher comb was again perfect for the 50mm objective Swarovski that I have mounted.
Before bedding the Ridgeline into the MPA, I took some time to attempt to texture the grip area. FWIW, it was a waste of time. AcraGlas was not the product to use. Results may have been better with MarineTex or something else, but AcraGlas did not provide the results I had hoped for.
After bedding the stock, I painted it using Rust-O-Leum's Multicolor Textured paint, and topped that with some Krylon Spray Webbing. In hind sight, I should have forgone the AcraGlas texturing attempt. Between the Rust-O-Leum and webbing spray, the stock now has suitable texturing.
MPA advertises the stock as weighing 'under 25oz.' My stock, after bedding, and the addition of AcraGlas to the grip area, weighed in at 29.5oz. Altogether, the Ridgeline 26" barreled action, with Christensen bottom metal, topped with a Swarovski Z8i 2-16x50 scope in Burris Signature rings and bases, in the MPA Attitude weighs in at 8lb 9oz. (Note: the Z8i is 1oz heavier than the Z6, and the barrel on this gun is 26" vs 24" on the Game Hunter stocked rifle. In the midst of writing this I went back and weighted the barreled actions. Taking into account the difference in weight between the 2 scopes, there is a 5oz difference between the 24" and 26" barreled actions)
AG Composites Alpine Hunter - agcomposites.com/stock/1/ag-alpine-hunter
Again, not sure how I came across this stock. And again, it to is very similar to the Game Hunter and MPA Attittude with regards to shape and comb height. Drop at comb is advertised at .2". AG composities goes so far as to notch out the first 3/4" or so of the comb to insure that the bolt will clear and can be removed from the gun. MPA and McM do not so this, but bolt clearsnce and removal is not an issue on either of the stocks discussed.
As luck would have it, I had a chance to fondle this stock, along with the entire line of AG Composites stocks, at the SHOT Show a couple of weeks ago. First impressions were a mix between Game Hunter and the MPA Attittude. The stock is not a Monte Carlo style stock and has no cheek piece. The grip felt much like the Game Hunter as the thumb cut is close to being the same. While it felt 'slick' like the MPA, it did have some grit 'captured' under the paint that's purpose was voided when oversprayed. The deeper thumb cut, compared to the MPA, did seem to afford more grip even though the finish is somewhat 'slick.' The forend was much more 'square' and takes some getting used to. Its shape will work well when shooting a rifle off of bags. I asked the rep about adding a coarser texture, and he acknowledged that it was being given consideration. Turn around time when ordering I'm told is 4-8 weeks, but the company is shooting for a goal of no more than 4 weeks. Web site pricing starts at $580ish depending on options.
Back home from SHOT for only a few days, and I get a email flyer from Stocky's Stocks. Low and behold, they are clearing out the Alpine Hunter for $394. (Up to this point I hadn't realized that they even stocked this stock.) I thought "Why not," I'd had one in my hands, liked what I saw for the most part and the price was appealing. So an order was placed.
The stock arrived this past Thursday. This particular stock was ordered for the Rem 700 with factory sporter barrel profile. My intention is to put it on a 300 RUM build that is coming together. The company advertises 31oz as the weight. My scale shows 29.9oz. For grins and giggles I dropped a S/S Rem 700, 338 Win Mag barreled action in the stock to check the inletting. The action, mag barrel contour, and bottom metal fit without issue in the stock. The barrel channel inlet is generous, and the barrel floats its entire length. The comb profile is for all intents and purposes the same as that of the MPA and McM, so I don't expect any issues with a 50mm objective scope mounted.
In summary, I like all 3 stocks. All 3 solve the issue that I was having with scope/eye alignment when using 50mm obj scopes. Given my choice and unlimited wealth, I'd choose the edge-fill Game Hunter, primarily because of the texturing. That said, I wouldn't turn my nose at either MPA Attitude or the AG Composites Alpine Hunter, but would opt for the Alpine Hunter over the MPA because of the deeper thumb cut in the grip area. If either MPA or AG can come up with a textured finish, AND can meet their deliveries as advertised, more of them may be found attached to my rifles.
Edit: Since I last visited the MPA web site, it now appears as though the Attitude stock can be ordered in 3 camo colors AND texturing has been added to the grip area and forend. I did not see the option for plain old OD Green, Tan or Black. Redhawk Rifles is now listing the textured, molded in camo colors stocks as well.
Last edited by WiFowler; 03/02/19.
