Stock to buy - How do I make up my mind?

John Kielly

John Kielly

Shari's fan club
I'm newish to 1000 yard bench. It sort of grew from shooting F class out to 1000 & British match rifle out past that. Now I'm about to reverse my priorities & build a 1000 yard light gun that I might just shoot a bit of F class with here & there. This has all come about because I look like becoming the owner of a nice low mileage Stolle Panda action.

I have my F class gun traking OK most of the time. It was once a TR (Palma) gun in a Robertson Composite H & H stock that I've modified with a considerable lump of builders bog on the belly of the butt that I've shaped so I could take the offset out of it & a 3" plate running on the accessory rail. In most dimensions it is pretty close to the Macmillan Tooley MBRs so I can see the possibilities of that design.

However, when I look around the local gear (ignoring for the moment the steroid rigs), I see that there's a lot of different opinions about what works. There's a fair handful of stocks that wouldn't go astray on a 100/200 yard rig, maybe a tad longer in the pull, a few that look like they came straight off a Whelan rodent buster half a century ago apart from the flat forend & then there's a MBR or two & one factory Savage that the guy shot a 3 something with first trip out! This site adds to the confusion when two guys can discuss their opposing style of Shehanes. Then of course there are the commentators who say 1000 yard shooters use wood stocks & the ones who aver that the smart money goes with the plastics.

OK, how do I make the right choice the first time & not with my keenly honed hindsight?

John
 
Just a thought. I just bought a stock from Bill Shehane. The Lee Six Thumbhole. It is absolutely perfect for me. Why? Because I called and talked to Mr. Shehane and told him what I had, what I wanted, and he pointed me to some other options. He seems to be top notch and a wealth of information. Maybe drop him an e-mail and ask what he recommends. You certainly can't go wrong.

CW
 
Plus 1 for Bill Shehane or Dave Tooley.These guys know what it takes.

Chuck.
 
John,
The Shehane Tracker does exactly what its name suggests. With a 30 inch heavy barrel, brake and the Panda action you will come in comfortably under 17 lbs - maybe not low enough for a Nightforce though.
Vince (UK)
 
John Kielly

John
At most any 1,000 yard match you are likely to attend roughly 50% are sporting Shehane stocks.If your shooting a moderate cartridge the ST1000 is a dream.If your gun has some recoil to it the Tooley or Shehane MBR's work really well.
At our last match Jerry Tierney was shooting a Robertson stock with all of the same stuff added to it that you described.He is always in the hunt at the end of the day.
Lynn
 
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OK, folks, I'm starting to get a handle on it now.

Lynn, it was a bit confusing looking at stocks without considering the recoil element.
 
John Kielly

John
The ST1000 has a parallel forend and buttstock.When you fire the gun the stock moves rearward in a straight line.
On the Tooley MBR available from McMillan or the Shehane MBR available from D-B Supply the rifles buttstock recoils down and away from you.As you then push it forward your scope drops back onto the bullseye.
With the MBR's you rarely touch your front rest as sliding the stock move the scope around plenty.
With the ST1000 you make minor adjustments with the rear knob on your rear or squeeze the rear bag if that is possible.In NBRSA alot of guys use mechanical rear rests were that is not possible.
Masterclass also makes a single 1,000 yard stock that is worth taking a look at.
What caliber is your gun as this would help?
Lynn
 
Lynn said:
What caliber is your gun as this would help?
Click to expand...

Lynn,

I should have told you not ask that. :eek:

I guess I get enough shoulder belting shooting 200-220 grain thirties for my 1200 yard stuff to want to change down a calibre or three. I'm sort of thinking about something like a 6x47 L or maybe a 6.5 with a bit better efficiency than the .284 case - maybe one on the Swede with the shoulder blown out or even a .260 worked over. I don't have to have raw horsepower & can live with getting blown off the paper here & there. I should be able to, as I'm shooting my F class .308 with 155s at the moment.

In any case, it will doubtedless be a switch barrel job like most of my target rifles, but I'm not planning anything above 7mm maximum.

Maybe that say that the ST1000 would do the job, but I wonder if I could handle it off my belly shooting F class. I might mock up something quickly out of a bit of softwood lying around & check out how it feels. I only know one guy using a BR stock for F class hereabouts & his is more of a 100/200 yard stock.

John
 
I hadn't chimed in yet because it was my understanding this rifle was going to be used for 1K BR. IF you are going to shoot F Class open then stick with the Shehane that fits you best. Since your caliber isn't 308 / 223 then I doubt you intend to shoot F T/R but I'd also look at Thomas Manners stocks.
http://www.mannersstocks.com/index.html

I have one that has the MCS-T2 but no adjustable cheekpiece and I have seen some of the carbon fiber stocks that almost make me wish I had gone that route but ... nevermind. Thomas is a great guy to talk to and ha has put up with my crazy questions. I went from a McMillan A5 to the manners stock if that says anything and I don't miss the A5 !!!
Just another option.
 
WillAdams

Back to my original post:

John Kielly said:
I'm newish to 1000 yard bench. It sort of grew from shooting F class out to 1000 & British match rifle out past that. Now I'm about to reverse my priorities & build a 1000 yard light gun that I might just shoot a bit of F class with here & there.
Click to expand...

Would that change your view? As far as the F class bit is concerned, I don't use a cheekpiece now now, just butt my jaw lightly alongside the stock like I do off the bench - works for me & makes it easier to remember all the right moves.

John
 
John Kielly

Nossir, wouldn't change my mind at all. I haven't shot BR. What I do shoot is F T/R and other matches that are sometimes classified as "tactical" but the only tactics applied is beating the wind & mirage. Mainly I shoot a 600, 800, 900 & 1K yd competition at local range (HardRock). We are shooting steel that has a MOA center score (10 points) and a 2 MOA outer ring score (5 points), 5 shots at each distance, NO SIGHTERS!! From a bench, bipods and bags are OK but no BR front rest. Possible score is 200 yet NO ONE has made it in the 10+ years I have been shooting there.

The Shehane stock has a well deserved reputation in BR and other venues although I don't recall one at HardRock. Most there use McMillan or factory stock & modified. I like the Manners stock for my shooting because I do use a bipod and a rear bag and I like to adjust my position by sliding the bag forewards or rear and the Manners stock has a slant and the A5 didn't . That allows quicker & easier adjustment of elevation for me without fiddling with bipod.
HTH,
Will
 
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