Q: I have noticed that you seem to favour rather simplistic American classic stock designs like the Ruger M77 and Winchester Model 70 Featherweight over California-style stocks such as the Weatherby. I own a Weatherby Mark V in .270 Weatherby magnum and find the stock suits me very well. Nevertheless, could you give me your honest opinion of the Weatherby-style stock.
Ron Richards
A: Roy Weatherby had a flair for designing baroque stocks and it’s this flashy appearance that makes Weatherby rifles immediately recognisable. However, the stocks are not only flashy, they are functional. The Mark V’s high Monte-Carlo cheekpiece has a pronounced slant and has the virtue of recoiling away from the shooter’s face during recoil. The flaring pistol grip allows a solid grasp to pull the rifle back into the shoulder. I have never cared for skipline checkering, preferring sharp diamonds that run 24 to 26 lines to the inch. While I prefer my stocks to be simple and elegant with clean lines, I realise that other shooters prefer the baroque Weatherby stock, and that’s fine by me. If we all had the same tastes, in rifles and in women, it would be a dull old world.
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