It's only a Franken... if you make it look awful!
Surat--That former Turk looks Sa-weet, so far! I too like Deep Blue.
May I suggest one of Boyd's laminate stocks in the Pepper (gray) color? Get the stock in unfinished (not varnished) state. The inletting will be all done.
You won't bugger it up bedding yr Turk in it. If I can do it anybody can. I've done 2 now, a cheap plastic SKS stock, and a Boyd's. It gets easier each time. If you do screw up, just let the bedding set really good, dremel it out, and start over. No biggie. But you won't goof it up that badly anyhow. Get an Acra-gel kit and
follow the directions. Then after bedding the stock, and any final shaping, you can varnish the stock yrself. I used cheap satin spray spar varnish from a local hdwe store--Boyds sells varnish kits if you want to go that route. As with any woodworking project, SANDING IS THE KEY! It is also the most tedious part, but it sure helps the looks of the final result!
You sand the stock really really smooth, wet it to raise the grain, let it dry, sand it smooth again, put on a coat of varnish, let it dry, sand it almost all off, put on another coat of varnish, let it dry, sand it almost all off, repeat 3-4x, sanding a little less off each time. Then you put on a final coat, let it dry, assemble the rifle, and begin accepting compliments. Took me mebbe 2 weeks, an hour or so per day. That's including the glass-bedding. It's really more putzy than difficult. The unfinished stocks come with varnishing directions, which are for a Boyds varnish kit; you'll have to adapt a bit if you use store varnish but no big deal. Directions for store varnish are on the spray can.
Suggestions: The one thing to make sure of when bedding is to Use Enough Release Compound. The Akra-kits come with good directions. I made a wire hook, hung the stock outside on the clothesline for the spraying, on nice days let it dry mostly outside, too. If you know somebody with compressed air, that considerably eases getting the sanding dust out of the little nooks and crannies. Be sure to varnish the inletting for action and bbl channel; you don't have to sand in there much as that's not for looks, it's just to seal up the wood fibers.
Boyd's telephone salespeople are VERY helpful; they are used to timid, confused customers I guess.They'll help you select the exactly right stock. They will send you their catalogue for the asking.
Midway sells Acra-Gel kits. Boyd's contact info: snailmail: Boyd's Gunstock Industries, Inc. 25376 403rd Ave, Mitchell, SD 57301 website:
www.boydsgunstocks.com Phone: 605-996-5011 Fax: 605-996-9878
Anyhow, whatever you decide, good luck on the rest of the project, and keep us posted please!
