I like the laminates. Gives you the stability of synthetic & the warmth of wood. My go to rifle wears a laminate. The rest are regular wood, some nice some basic. The worst weather I have hunted in is a Montana winter, cold but not too wet. If I had to hunt Alaska or another rain-all-day-every-day climate, I would force myself to go synthetic.

I use my kimber 84M walnut on good days and my Ruger stainless laminate on any days there is forecast for rain. I take two rifles on all my trips for this reason. The Ruger will probably get re-stocked in the future with a Bell&Carlson stock because I am not a fan of my HEAVY!!! laminate. Dont know if the differance would be worth $200 bucks though.

I choose my rifles to hunt with not to look at,so I choose the most stable stocks available,which are high quality synthetics.I find mcmillan to be the best quality stock that I have used.

I voted both, since that is the case, but in wood, I really like the Serengeti Laminate, the best of both worlds, the beauty of regular wood stock, but the stability of laminate.

I currently have one rifle with a walnut stock, my 1895 Marlin and one with a Beech stock, my M38 Husqvarna

Other than that my other rifles are all laminated
except one with one kevlar stock.

Though I'm buying another remington with a walnut stock I intend to replace it with a Laminated stock at my earliest opportunity.

Pretty wood belongs in a display case "Ugly plastic", laminates, fiberglass, kevlar or whatever, is what belongs out in the wind driven rain...

AllanD

I have a bunch with wood, a couple of laminates and several synthetics. The laminates may be the best compromise, forgetting the beauty of wood, the advantage is the coldness of a synthetic when it's 10 below zero is almost intolerable. I find myself sticking the butt under my arm when it's cold out and using a synthetic. They are however stable and nearly indestructible.

McMillan and HS Precision synthetic stocks are on my hunting guns. Used to hunt with wood when you could get Kane chaps to protect them. Haven't had a laminated yet but might be getting one soon on a Sako Greywolf 30-06.........or maybe another synthetic Kimber Montana 30-06. Hmmmm

Wish they made synthetic trucks, I'd have one. Just don't want to worry about using the hell out of something and seeing it looking worse and worse all the time.

I voted wood only as thats what I used for 50 years and it did the job. But I don't live in a rainforest and if precip. is falling it might be snow anyway.

Now I hunt some with syn. stocks and wish that they looked better.

I voted both too !
But I prefer wood ! I have 2 synthetics 1 laminate and 13 wood. Its just a preference.
I am thinking of trying an accurate inovations on my FN .257 Roberts...tj3006

I currently use wood only because I like it better. Couple this with the fact that synthetic has no advantage where I hunt makes it a non-issue. If I lived in a different area, that was very wet, I might think differently.

I have given some thought to getting a synthetic for one of my factory actioned base rifles but just haven't done so yet. Someday it may happen, but for now I get along fine with my wood stocks.

I voted for the last option as I own both and hunt with everything I own.

In terms of preference, it just kinda depends on how I want the finished product to look.

I have my Swede that I stocked in walnut. Its nothing fancy, but I do like the feel of finished wood.

I stocked my 30-06 with a black tupperware stock and I had the metal parkerized. I also installed a weaver rail type B-Square mount. I wanted this to be my general purpose, go anywhere, do anything rifle that wouldn't be finicky about the elements. Very practical - but not very interesting.

From here on out, everything is going to be wood simply because I am hung on classic styling and try as I might, I just can't picture a Model E Mauser sporter wearing a laminate or plastic. Now that I have the practicals out of the way, I can have some fun...

And again, wood or synthetic I will hunt with them all!

I hunt both and like them all I have Mcmillan,HS,and some factory lams I really don't have a best choice.

Hoeram

i hunt with both but prefer figured wood. i also use several different laminates. i don't have any with two stocks but i have several customers who go that route.

I mostly like Walnut but I have both and so that is how I voted, although Ive had a hard time "warming up" to the synthetics (pun intended).

This is the way I look at it,

Synthetic is the way to go for a lightweight Sheep type rifle, Laminates are just the oppisite, but make good fodder for hard kicking rifles as their weight mellows out the kick.

For the rest I still like Walnut, Ive not had one turn to sawdust yet although Ive heard tell of that happening. It is kind of like automobiles, nice looking ones give more satisfaction to drive than ugly ones.

I would prefer non-walnut woods.

Carcano

Love my thumblole laminates. Have 2 and prefer them to traditional stock.

I shoot both, like both, voted for both. As long as the accuracy is there, I don't care what the stock is. However there is no comparison in looks between a fine Walnut stock when compared to anything else. Kinda like wives, there is nothing like the fit and finish of the little lady after several years of practice, but when you see that new model strut down the street, it always catchs the eye and makes you wonder how it would handle. Good shooting.

I think the advantages of having two stocks (one for show and one for go) for one rifle is largely overlooked. I know it works for me.
If you buy a quality synthetic for say a long (standard) action, you may be able to use it on more than one rifle. I have one that I can switch between a 30-06 and a .280 with no real world loss of accuracy. I have a synthetic that fits a 7-08 and while I haven't tried it, I'm pretty sure it would work well on a .260 or a (shudder, gag).243 if I owned such or even a .308.

I shot and hunted many years with only traditional wood stocks and still love the way they look and feel. I have a Boyds laminate now on my 458 Win and a B&C synthetic on my 275 Rigby. Both work extremely well, but they don't look as good.

All my guns have walnut stocks and I´m sticking with wood. I´ve owned guns with synthetic stocks and they just don´t "do it" for me.

But to each his own.

I have a couple of Coopers and a Kimber with beautiful wood stocks. To my eye the Kimber with it's french walnut stock and trim lines exemplifies the classic american sporting rifle, in an affordable package. They are pretty and very accurate rifles, but for a serious hunting machine I prefer stainless and fiberglass. I have one that has ridden hundreds of miles in a saddle scabbard and I never once considered that I may be marring the finish. My .243, .358, and .458 are stainless/fiberglass.

My opinion is synthetic only. I base it on one hunting trip where we left our rifles outside overnight, it snowed in the night, and all rifles, except for the one synthetic in camp, had to be resighted due to the wood stocks swelling. Since then, it's only synthetic for me. May not be as aesthetic, but I ain't out there for looks.

quote:

Originally posted by murftj:
My opinion is synthetic only. I base it on one hunting trip where we left our rifles outside overnight, it snowed in the night, and all rifles, except for the one synthetic in camp, had to be resighted due to the wood stocks swelling. Since then, it's only synthetic for me. May not be as aesthetic, but I ain't out there for looks.

I couldn't have said it better myself. Rifles to me are basically tools, and I want the best one for the job. All synthetic for me.

I like laminates, I have a hard tim e liking a rifle with a synthetic stock, even though the ones I own perform very well.

Bolt guns are synthetic and my doubles are wood. If good synthetic were on the doubles it would be my preference.

My double shotguns are wood and that is the only way I want them stocked. I do not crawl around in the rocks with my bird guns.