Blayneys STOCKS

It must have been quite a mission doing the R and D on these stocks, tell us how you started and how you came up with the first prototype.

I started the R&D with a trip to the Super Shoot at the Kelby Range and I  organized to spend a week with Tony Boyer for his knowledge and insights in what he believed were the requirements to make good stocks and why. At this particular time there was one to two years wait for a stock to be made and dispatched to Australia and this motivated me to pursue this venture.

When I returned home I modelled a 3D drawing of a stock which was similar to the Scarborough and Scoville stocks but with my own preferences in shape. My main focus of design was to ensure the stock was able to absorb vibration as I believe this is of outmost importance in building a BR level competitive rifle stock.

I contacted CNC manufacturers with my requirements for a 4 axis twin cutter machine which ended up costing around $23,000 plus the 3D modeling software at a cost of about $8,500.

What materials or combination of materials do you use for your stocks?

After trying raw balsa blocks and milling them myself I found the stock weights would vary 100 grams up and down. I then sourced kiln dried balsa cut to my specification with 20grm to 50grm tolerance.

I only use West System Epoxy plus thickeners from West System.

I have researched materials for vibration control as carbon fiber on it’s own is inherently very rigid and will vibrate giving a different tune to the stock. All blanks of laminated balsa have vertical vibration controllers 15mm from the center of the blank on both sides. So, combining the carbon fiber with balsa wood gave me the rigidity and vibration control required for a BR stock.

Tell us a bit about your manufacturing process and the equipment you use.

After the balsa is laminated, I then set it to cure for 60 hours in my sealed oven which also has the bulk balsa and epoxy stored in it and remains at 25 degrees to remove the risk of the balsa absorbing moisture.

Then onto the CNC which takes the 3 path cutting program 6 hours of run time. The balsa is then removed and sealed  with marine grade timber sealer 4 coats and set for 48 hours back in the oven.

Then carbon fiber vibration matting is applied to the areas that require stabilization on recoil and travel.

All barrel channels are pressed with a blank waxed 316 bar the same as the bar used to set and bed the action true to the stock.

All cut through holes (trigger and pillar posts) are milled out pre carbon fiber and back filled with epoxy and filler to insure no bare balsa exposed when finial holes are made

With Cf Benchrest shooting, we are always struggling to keep the weight down, specially in the sporter class, can you tell us what weight your stocks are and how light can you make them and can the stock be too light?

Stock weight for energy and recoil should be 22oz to 24 oz for center fire, rimfire can be lighter due to less recoil and energy it produces. For the Sporter class, I would suggest to shooters to reduce the weight of the barrel and scope if they can or even a lighter action like the BAT SV or the Stolle Panda but I do not recommend reducing the weight of the stock below 22 ounces.

There are some similar carbon fiber stocks being made in the US but the lead times are anywhere from 6 months to a year or more. There is also the export costs and the exchange rates are not in our favor. What is your current estimated lead time to produce a stock?

Unfortunately, I’ve had to give  up on exporting my stocks due to Australia Post refusing to ship parts of a gun even though I have the required DAF permits to export my stocks to the USA, NZ and UK. As a result of this, I have reduced the number of days I work on stocks to two days per week due to low quantities required in the domestic market. So now the lead time for a new stock is generally somewhere between 12 to 18 weeks.

Have you sold any stocks to international customers?

I have sold over 20 stocks to USA Speedy bought 8, in the UK I have sold 6. In the EU I have a customer who bought 6, In NZ I sold 10, I received an order from Canada for 10 stocks but I declined due to the issue with Australia Post.

Thanks for your time Blainey.

If you need a stock for your next build, you can contact Steve via email: blaineysbits@outlook.com