Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats So many fiberglass stock choices; which one(s) is(are) superior?

First post here after lurking for a couple days.

I am considering a fiberglass stock blank in a straight comb sporter style for my 257 WBY Mark V action. Most are priced comparably (somewhere in the $200�s for an inletted blank). Between Brown Precision, Bansner High Tech, MPI, McMillan, Lone Wolf, and Rimrock, which would you choose and why?

In addition, would you consider the extra graphite added to the forend as necessary for any of these choices? Most manufacturers charge around $75 for this and that�s a significant addition to the price for the blank itself.

Thanks in advance.

welcome to the fire JAC43, Mcmillan wins hands down against the lot. Check with Rick Bin our host here at the fire for prices...........blake

I've got McMillan, Bansner, MPI, and Brown. I probably wouldn't get an MPI again.

For the others, McMillan is the stiffest, but not the best choice for a featherweight rifle. Brown are probably slightly tougher than a Bansner, though take a lot of work to finish. Probably not a good choice for a first run, if you're going to be finishing yourself.

Bansners are really easy to finish, along with being light and strong.

If you are going with a sporter weight rifle, McMillan is tough to beat. If you want something lighter, Bansner should get a long look.

I strongly recommend you speak with Rick Bin here at the campfire about the McMillan EDGE stock.
Don

I like Bansners and McMillans. The Bansner is lighter but requires some work to finish. The McMillans are ready to bed and look really good. Don't care for the Brown at all....too much work involved in getting it ready.

Another one here for McMillan and Basners............

I much prefer McMillan EDGE to Bansner anymore for lightweights. From finish quality to precision CNC inletting (that negates the need for action fitting) to selection of stock patterns, as well as quality of finished product, McMillan wins hands down.

For a sporter weight stock, make mine McMillan also.

I've seen 'em all boys, and will sell you whichever you fancy. But in my book, McMillan is lead pony across the board at this point.

Rick

if a guy can do the inlet and bedding and pad hisself i just can feel the mcmillian is worth 2x the price of a bansners if you like bansers one style, the left over money will buy most of a quality bARREL. and i have both and have broke both......... just my opinion

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300:

If a guy can do all of those things himself, then he can order a fully inletted McMillan sans pad, paint, studs and save the loot just as well. Any difference in price (there is some) can be easily justified in labor saved, and unless your hourly rate is somewhere near Taco Bell level, having a precision CNC inletted stock where one can specify a Lilja #5 with a 1.25-inch shank and have it drop right in at arrival and look per-fect, as opposed to dealing with fitting a barreled action into a molded inlet with a one-size-fits-all barrel contour, makes mondo economic sense. Also, the McMillan will be bondoed and sanded and is minute away from paint-readiness as it comes.

A Bansner virtually requires bedding from tang to tip, will often require stuff like grinding the mag box to fit, drilling out guard screw holes, and drilling and bedding escutcheons, etc., serious mold-line work and pinhole filling, then a re-sand. Prep work is the difference between a first-rate and a shoddy finished product, and I know from experience Bansners take a bunch to be right. Like I said, your hourly rate has to be very flexible in order to justify the time required to finish one correctly.

All that aside from the points you made about stock pattern selection/fit/options like checkering, comb heights, palm swells, monte carlos, schnabels, cheekpieces, etc., etc.

Don't get me wrong. A finished Bansner is a fine stock. I have some on custom rifles, and I like them and will not replace them.

But from a pure path-to-finished-rifle perspective, I can only see the logic of undertaking such a project if the Bansner pattern happens to fit you like a glove and you simply must have it, or if you relish the experience and simply want to do it on your own for gits and shiggles.

Otherwise, been there, done that, give me a Mickey blank any day.

Rick

Thanks for the advice gentlemen. Unfortunately I was informed that McMillan won't inlet anything but their Weatherby pattern stocks for the Mk V action, and I was looking for something without the cheekpiece. Accordingly I will be finishing a Bansner or a Brown once I decide. This will be a rifle for myself, so the additional finish work shouldn't be too much of a pain. At least it gets me out of the house and into the shop for a while!

Ill probably open a can of worms here. Of the people not in favor of MPI stocks. How many of you had MPI do the work on the stock?

Mpi did my stock and did a first class job on it. Price was fair , work was excellant and turn around was more than reasonable.

True i havent taken it out in the world of hunting yet but unless i am completely wrong its a fine stock and a fine job.

CAS.Why won't you use an MPI stock again.My gunsmith is setting one up for my Sako.The reason I ask is i have zero experience with these stocks so any info good or bad would be great.

Dude,

MPI is without reservation,the absolute [bleep] handle going. They seem bent on PROVING that,at every opportunity.

I shoulda archived Matt's photographic glimpse,into the obvious lapses.

Run from MPI..run Forrest...runnnnnnnnnnn...............

Cat [bleep] wearing a layer of frosting,don't rate the underlying layers Fine Cuisine......................

Check out the photo posted by Matt...

Popsicle sticks!!!

A picture say's a thousand words.That one speaks plenty.Should of asked regarding MPI a month ago.Ignorance is bliss.Popsicle sticks UNBELIVEABLE.

I figured someone had to save that gem....................

Clearly your query was answered to your full satisfaction. Not much meaningful I could add at this point.

I'd not seen the popcicle pic before, but that is friggin priceless!

Stick,

Please be advised that I have just sent you by Registered Mail a bill for one keyboard. Prompt payment expected.

Chris