Good day,

About a month ago I hunted Wildebeest with a Ruger American in 30-06 and was pretty successful. 3 Wildebeest 3 bullets no issues whatsoever.

The reason I share this with you is I personally do not like the injection molded stocks as they do feel cheap and 'flimsy', but the thing is, the moment you pick up that rifle to make the shot you do not stand there and think: well, this is a very nice stock and it just feels like quality material were used to manufacture it

We simply pick the rifle up get on target and fire the shot. There is no way that we think about the flimsy plastic at that time. We do not buy these rifles to think of how nice they are, we buy them to use them for hunting and they do that pretty well.

As long as the stock shape fits us fairly well you will not notice what you are holding when it really matters.

Pieter

m77 - can't disagree with your results and the fact that the "polymer" stocks offer weather proof utility. Just wish OEM manufacturer's used a stiffer material/design in the fore-ends.
Secondly, the awful sound the butt makes when struck...HOLLOW!
People come up with all kinds of solutions i.e. 'fill material' to make that sound go away. BUT when you sight them in they tend to stay that way...unless they get run over. Homesteader

Here was the first group I fired from my M77 mk II 350 rem mag when working up hand loads.



While Ruger's could you some refinements, they generally shoot quite well right out of the box.

Needless to say I haven't made upgrading the stock a priority.

I'm glad you guys said this. We tend to fix stuff till it's broke......

Bed rifles that shoot sub-moa, switch out polymer parts that never break, lap rings that are perfectly aligned.

People think they are ugly and make fun of them, but I don't worry about my Ruger "boat paddle" stocks or their effect on accuracy. A few years back I took the .300WM and .30-06 to the range for a final check-out before elk season. After a few shots at 100 to verify the scope, I nailed two clay pigeons at 600 yards with five shots total, two with one rifle and three with the other.

The .300WM (center) is a factory config. The .338WM (left) is a semi-custom and the .30-06 (right) came in a Ruger brown laminate stock, which now sits in a closet.

Dings, dents, scuffs, wet weather, humidity or temperature changes? Who cares?

The original 77 MKII All-Weather Is one of my favorite way ugly hunting rifles. Mine is the go to GP big game tool in the gun cabinet. It also makes on ok boat paddle. As far as seeming flimsy...nope.

I've found that even the cheapest, most flexible stocks shoot just fine as long as they have enough gap to prevent the stock from touching the barrel. You can get buy with a very small free float with a stiffer stock where the more flexible versions need a larger gap.

I agree that what a stock (or a rifle) looks like in the minutes up to the shot doesn't matter as long as the bullet goes where it should. But a hunt is a lot more than the last couple of minutes. In many cases a person will tote a rifle for a week to get to that last 5 minutes and a good looking, good handling rifle is a pleasure to tote and some rifles because of balance, feel, or looks aren't a pleasure. I would rather tote something I like.

All good posts so far, with this being the best.

5sdad - yes, so far so good. Ruger 'boat paddle' stocks are like woodpecker lips...very tough. In 2006 I purchased a Ramline stock for a Howa .30/06 barreled action for loaner use. So far its proven to be Mr. Woodpeckers brother...also tough. Nothing tupperware-ish about it. Homesteader

The latest Ruger Hawkeye Synthetic stocks are quite nice accept bedding and have a stiff forearm. Must have used a better grade of plastic recycled bottle!

I don't think there is a stiffer plastic stock than than the Ruger Zytel boat paddle. I also don't think there is a stock that out that transmits any more recoil than that thin Zytel stock. I had one in .30-06 that was anything but pleasant to shoot.

My 350 has the post boat paddle stock, and the barrel is not free floated. Also the group was shot with the heavy factory trigger and a 2.5x scope.

My contention is most factory rifles shoot quite well as is by simply working up a hand load. And as noted, sometimes load work can be very quick and simple.

Ain't that the truth........

Casey

One of the great things about Ruger M77, MKII and Hawkeye triggers is they are very easy to work on. I have a safe full of same and the only one I haven't touched is the two-stage in my .22-250 MKII VT. The others all benefited to one degree or another.