Tale of two Stocks: Manners EH1 and JAE-700

[Glassaholic]

A little over a year ago I decided to get into “Tactical Long Range Rifles” (actually I was forced to from reading all the SH threads!) and found a great deal on a Surgeon/Bartlein barreled action so I decided to purchase it. I didn’t want to go through all the rigmarole of bedding a stock and had really liked the chassis stock systems and my favorite chassis system was the J. Allen Enterprises JAE-700 stock because, let’s just face it – it looks awesome!, and with a nice torque wrench you can mount up your BA in a hurry and have a shooter, just like that. So in late 2012 I put in my order for my very own custom JAE-700. In the meantime, I had to put something on my Surgeon so I bought a nice AICS 2.0 chassis stock from Mile High Shooting and they fixed it up to work with my Surgeon action and Timney trigger. I was so excited to bring this home and shoot it and it sure did look nice but this was only temporary as I waited for my beloved JAE to come available, but I waited, and I waited and I waited… and 12-1/2 months later my stock finally arrived. As you can see from the pictures it is truly a work of art, but man it took a loooong time to get here. Was it worth the wait? I would say definitely yes, it is worth the wait; however, it is not worth the weight (pun intended ) so let me explain.

After putting together my 17+lb Surgeon monster I realized that it was not a realistic carry rifle, I certainly did not want to haul that thing around in the mountains hunting all day and unless it was going to be mounted on the back of a Humvee it would pretty much be a rifle that would stay close buy to a vehicle. If I had loads of money and my kids were all grown up, I would probably have kept it and maybe entered some competitions, etc. but that is not my life right now so the rifle was not very practical for my purposes.

During the time I was waiting for my JAE-700 I saw Tom Manners post a thread on his new http://www.snipershide.com/shooting...arbon-fiber-elite-tactical-lay-up-option.html which really caught my eye, not only that, last year he also introduced the new EH1 Elite Hunting stock with a tactical twist, but most impressive of all, the EH1 could be had super light (around 2 lbs) and so I placed my order. My goal is to build a long range hunting/tactical rifle that is less than 10 lbs.

Both my new Manners and my new JAE-700 arrived within a week of each other (but the Manners only took a ¼ of the time from order to door than the JAE) and I’ve had the opportunity to take some nice pictures. They are both works of art in their own right, the Manners representing the latest advances in a “traditional” style of stock and the JAE representing the latest advances in chassis design.

While I love the JAE-700 it is just too heavy for my current build and instead of letting it just sit around the shop I am going to be putting it up for sale so if you’re interested please send me a PM.

Here are some specs:
Manners MCS-EH1 SA Elite Hunter stock
• Finish – Carbon fiber elite GAP
• Altas rail and 2 flush cups
• Inletted for Bighorn TL2 and Surgeon bottom metal
• Stock weight 1lbs 15oz
• Stock weight with Surgeon SA Bottom metal (6oz), Triad Stock Pack (6oz), Bedding, etc. (2oz): 2lbs 13oz

J. Allen Enterprises SA JAE-700
• Finish – GI Brown, Grit Tan and Black accents
• 4” Bottom rail
• 6lbs 8oz

 

[lash]

Wow! Those are both beautiful stocks in their own way. If I had the change, I'd like both of them. Or, not to be greedy either one of them.

That EH1 is a great version of the standard tactical stock. I'm interested to see how your build turns out and what the final weight and verdict is.

 

[DepthAfield]

LA or SA?

I really wanted a JAE-700 for my build, but I could not wrap my brain around putting $400 deposit down for a year+ wait. If they simply accepted a credit card number as a "hold" I'd put an order in today.

How does the JAE weigh compared to your AICS? Balance about the same?

 

[TireMan]

Thanks WJM308.

Enjoyable write-up and nice job on the high quality photos.
I've often wondered how feasible the JAE stock is with any rifle that will be carried. Perhaps the M1A is a great application for it, or perhaps the worst...I'm indecisive on the issue.
I'd love to hear from some more people who've had some time behind it.

 

[Cegorach]

How does the rifle feel/balance with the Manners stock? Is awkwardly top heavy?

 

[Blushin]

couple questions on the JAE stock. as your going to be putting it up for sale, will it only fit the surgeon action currently? any idea what would have to be done to get it fit for a rem700 SA? ive been eyeing those up for the last year and havent had a chance to pull the trigger yet.

 

[Rob01]

Gotta love Manners stocks. Tom and crew make excellent stocks.

 

[Victor Co Heather]

I love my Manners stock. Really great craftsmanship.

 

[346ci]

Those are two sweet stocks! I'd have to keep both and find another action to drop in the empty one, lol.

For anyone looking at the JAE stocks, check out Dave Branson @ Products & Services - BB Enterprises

 

[DepthAfield]

couple questions on the JAE stock. as your going to be putting it up for sale, will it only fit the surgeon action currently? any idea what would have to be done to get it fit for a rem700 SA? ive been eyeing those up for the last year and havent had a chance to pull the trigger yet.

JAE-700s are built for the 700 action. Hence the "700"

 

[Glassaholic]

Thanks WJM308.

Enjoyable write-up and nice job on the high quality photos.
I've often wondered how feasible the JAE stock is with any rifle that will be carried. Perhaps the M1A is a great application for it, or perhaps the worst...I'm indecisive on the issue.
I'd love to hear from some more people who've had some time behind it.

Thank you TireMan. I've often thought the JAE-100 with a nice M1A is about the cream of the crop; however, since I already own an LMT 308 that weights around 10lbs, getting another "heavy" 308 is not tops on my priority

 

[Glassaholic]

How does the rifle feel/balance with the Manners stock? Is awkwardly top heavy?

Since I haven't had my AICS for some months now it's hard to say. Because the 2.0 had the break down stock I'd say if anything it had a little more weight to the rear. When I pick up the JAE-700 it feels more "natural", bringing it to my shoulder, the fit feels just right. Granted there's nothing in it, but center of gravity is just behind the trigger guard I would say, so would it be top heavy? Hard to say, I suppose it depends on what barreled action you put in. A long and heavy barrel contour is going to give most stocks a run for their money; however, most of these stocks were really designed to be shot prone with a bipod so the bigger question I think is how well balanced will it be with a bipod while laying on the ground. My guess (and it's just that at this point, a guess) is that this will be a nicely balanced rifle when shot with a bipod. My goal with my "new" build was something that could be used for tactical style competition (a dream more than a reality at this time in my life) shooting steel at long range, paper punching at close range and could be taken into the high country for Elk. Because the stock is so heavy, for me, it really eliminates the usability for carrying it around for any sustained period of time. Not all of us can be Arnold Schwarzenegger carrying around a mini-gun even though we all think of ourselves as such But then again, Arny didn't carry that thing everywhere, the crew did.

 

[Glassaholic]

couple questions on the JAE stock. as your going to be putting it up for sale, will it only fit the surgeon action currently? any idea what would have to be done to get it fit for a rem700 SA? ive been eyeing those up for the last year and havent had a chance to pull the trigger yet.

Mine is a short action. JAE builds them to accept Remington and 700 clone actions. The fit and finish is truly superb and everything I hoped it would be, here's a few more shots for your enjoyment

 

[Blushin]

I'm interested in it. Lemme know a price when u are ready

 

[TireMan]

That stock needs a BAT Tactical Action, Krieger and a Nightforce like Obama needs help with his approval rating.

 

[Trevor300wsm]

Wjm308.....what did you do with the 591 7wsm barreled action?

 

[glockdan78]

The JAE stocks are pretty heavy but man they are built like a tank and freaking bad ass to shoot. Especially prone.

 

[rubicon_unlimited]

Wjm308.....what did you do with the 591 7wsm barreled action?

Pretty sure Ballistic1 owns it

 

[Trevor300wsm]

Pretty sure Ballistic1 owns it

Damn.....I sure miss that barreled action. I knew better than to sell it.

 

[Massoud]

wjm308, I sent you a pm about 5 minutes after you posted this I think, but I'm not showing anything in my sent pm's folder. Let me know if you didn't get it and I will resend. Thanks,
Justin

 

[MajorHeadTrauma]

Hey wjm308,
You have taken your time to share your experience and appreciation for these excellent stocks. You provided beautiful images. For this, I thank you.
I have envied a friend's JAE-700 for nearly a year. It is a solid chassis and a pleasure to shoot.
I look forward to seeing it when you offer it for sale.
Thanks again

 

[Glassaholic]

Damn.....I sure miss that barreled action. I knew better than to sell it.

Rubicon is right, Ballistic1 now owns it. It was that BA that got me hooked on 7mm. I even sold my 300WSM which I never thought I'd get rid of. I kept contemplating whether or not to keep the Surgeon/Bartlein and in the end decided to have a brand new rig built all to my specs. I'll be putting up another thread soon about my new build that will use this Manners stock. Of course right after I sold the barreled action I found out that Surgeon is no longer selling actions to the public, you can only buy their full rifles so I too miss that setup.

 

[branson1369]

Manners and JAE both best in class from quality and great folks perspective! I run a T4 on my Tikka and have a JAE on order for my new Stiller Spectre Action/6CM build. Both the action and stock are long back order items but I suspect will be worth the wait

You never go wrong waiting and buying top kit

 

[knockemdown]

Interesting comparison, I like the ergos of that carbon EH-1!

In fairness, you might include your DBM and cheekpad/piece/stockpack factored into the weight of the EH-1, since the JAE's cheekpiece and DBM is integral to the design.
Regardless, you're still shaving pounds off the top end. Good move, IMHO...

 

[Glassaholic]

Good point, the Surgeon bottom metal weighs 6oz and the stock pack is also 6oz, so the EH1 should be around 2lbs 11oz vs 6lb 8oz for the JAE, still saving just under 4lbs. Here are some more shots of the EH1

 

[redneckbmxer24]

I've been debating between one of these, an HTG, and the A3 hunter (or whatever it's called) and this just sealed the deal. I just got off the phone with manners ordering the same stock in the same color. It's your fault, I'll forward you the bill.

 

[glockdan78]

The bedding epoxy will add several ounces too.... Those are both amazing stocks.

 

[Glassaholic]

redneck, that gave me a good laugh. Did you tell them to apply the SH 15% discount that Tom is offering us members right now? I got 12% off mine so 15% is fantastic. He and his company are such a pleasure to work with, they are truly top rate.

 

[Glassaholic]

This is a quick shot of the stocks with my newly Cerakoted EAA Limited Pro in Patriot Brown. Obviously I need to clean the oil off the pistol, but I just got this back from my Cerakote guy

 

[MarinePMI]

I have to say, the one thing I REALLY like about the JAE is the adjustable mag well. Doesn't matter if it's an Accurate Mag or an AICS, you just adjust for what you're running.

Sure would have been nice if other chassis manufacturers had had something similar...

Don't get me wrong, I love my JAE 700 stock, I just wish others had the same adjustability in the mag well...but then again the JAE stock has a patent pending, so there would be some patent concerns if copied.