custom wood stocked rifles

American Classic

Our walnut stocked rifles combine the accuracy Hill Country Rifles is famous for with the beauty and perfection of a Michael Ullman walnut stock. We will build the rifle using a Winchester Classic or Pre-64 Model 70 action, a Dakota 76 action, or a quality Mauser 98 style action such as Granite Mountain or Johansen.

Typically, the customer provides a factory Winchester Model 70 at the basis of the rifle. The receiver is trued, the bolt face is trued, the receiver lugs are squared and the bolt locking lugs are lapped in. The bolt raceways are stoned for smoother feeding. The receiver is ground and stoned to give it the sharp lines that the factory polishing rounds off. The rear tang of the receiver is milled and files to a Pre-64 Model 70, Pre- War style which complements the stock symmetry. The factory bottom metal is replaced with a solid steel, one-piece Ted Blackburn floorplate assembly. The magazine box is custom fit, and a new magazine follower is installed.

Once the barrel is fitted, the stock is inletted by hand to perfectly fit the barreled action. Our stocks are sleek and slender, with a very open grip, straight comb, and just the right amount of cast off and toe out to give the shooter the most natural feel imaginable at a suprisingly low felt recoil.

The attention to quality and detail throughout the stock is immediately evident from the sharp lines of the American Classic shadow line cheek piece, to the gentle feel of the flutes. The checkering is a hand-cut, 22 lines per inch in a 3:1.5 diamond ration which gives the checkered panels a long-sleek look and a very comfortable feel.

Every stock is finished in a hand-rubbed oil finish. The stock is wet sanded using 320, 400, 600 grit paper and polished off with a 1200 grit finish. All of the wood pores are filled and sealed. The build up coats give the finish superior water resistance and toughness to handle lots of use and wear. The same finish is brushed into the checkering to protect it as well.

Once the stock is finished, the action is pillar and glass bedded with a free floating barrel. The floor plate is bedded so that it is perfectly square to the receiver. The perfect bedding alignment allows us to keep the traditional slotted action screws and eliminates the need for socket-headed action screws set to a specific torque. The action screws, sling stud screws, and grip cap screws are all custom cut to be in perfect alignment with one another.

We often hear hunters who have sacrificed the tradition, craftsmanship, and beauty of a wood stock for the utilitarian design of a synthetic, say, “That rifle is just too pretty to hunt with.” While we agree that there are some types of hunts that make a synthetic stock desirable, a properly pillar bedded, sealed wood stock, made from a stable, quality walnut blank, will tolerate most hunting environments quite well. The few dings, dents and scratches that accrue over time merely add character and mark the moments of the hunt in our memories.

Delivery Times:

Each of these rifles is extremely labor intensive and completely unique. We will only build 4 to 5 walnut stocked rifles each year. Delivery times currently run 12 to 18 months due to existing backlogs. We will give you and accurate delivery time at the time of your order.

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