Gunsmithing lightening a laminate stock???

[aggiesig]

Greetings hide members, I've been on the hunt for a lightweight (cheap) 223 to blow through about 4K rounds of super crappy ammo I bought about 15 years ago that doesn't feed/eject well from AR's.

I came upon a used Mossberg MVP and for $400 I couldn't pass it up:

that photo isn't mine, but it's the same thing. It has a 20" pencil barrel that I would be cutting down, but it's fluted so I figure I'll run it as is for the time being. after I blow through this ammo, I'll probably rebarrel it to a 16" 300BLK with a can on the front

The only problem is that the laminate stock has the profile of an SKS stock (glorified 2x4) that weighs a ridiculous amount. So before dumping money into this cheap ugly thing, I am thinking about giving it some DIY love.

maybe recontour the foreend and add some holes:

and on the buttend either take out massive amounts of material on the offhand side like so:

or completely hollow out a triangle down the butt like so:

has anyone done something like this? and what are your thoughts on material to leave so that the thing doesn't fall apart with 223 recoil (the BLK will be run subsonic, so not too concerned about that)

thanks!

 

[Brownie38]

Just a thought ..If you don't want to have a radical redesign of the stock you could remove the buttplate and just hollow out a cavity. Might even be handy as a storage compartment for paperwork on the can down the road? Just throwing out ideas..

 

[aggiesig]

Good Point that and I wouldn't have to worry about it being "clean" when I'm done.

I'll pull the birthplace and see what it looks like in there and how much more I can take out.


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[Micdalen]

First you need to thoroughly inspect the laminate, to insure that it is fully glued in all aspects. The best way is to take the rifle down to just the stock, nothing else. Take pure talc powder and sprinkle it all over the stock t coat any minute cracks. Wipe the stock off and take a magnifying glass and look very carefully. This will allow you to see any places there may not be complete adhesion of the laminate glue. Once that is done you can proceed with your lightening. I have done several laminated stocks before. I work with laminates on the boats, and you have to think through your steps. Removing is easy, putting it back can be done but takes a fair amount of patience and work. I would stay away from the grip area, a small amount of recontouring should be okay but nothing drastic. Lightening on the foreend would be great, but do not do one central slot along the midline. Like in your picture several spaced equally along two linear lines will spread the load, and leave enough material for any stress. Do not completely hollow out the butt of the stock. Leave some material in there. A completely hollow cavity create undue strees. Two oblong hollow cavities at an angle would be fine. I redid a tiller on a sailboat this summer, it was bulky and heavy, and the owner gripped constantly of the weight. He brought it back, I put it on the drill press drilled (2) 2 1/2" x 24" holes spaced equally in the handle. I then filled with with expanding lightweight foam to equalize the pressure inside and spread the load. It provided structure and support.

Laminates are great to work with, but through has to be taken before removing anything. The stresses a rife stock takes from firing are linear front to back. So think of that when removing anything. But remember stay away from lightening anything on the centerline of the stock.