Hipshot's Compendium

The Hipshot Compendium - Chapter Two

Sporter Stocks

I like the light weight and quick handling of sporter stocks. The stocks shown in this section are a good place to start if you are new at stock work and want to give it a whirl. You can minimize your initial expenses by using the factory barrel and doing a little DIY trigger work.

The $22 Mod was my first sporter stock. My inspiration was obviously the Boyd's Smart Stock.
Review the thread My $22 Mod.


The GM Aero barrel without the shroud is a skinny little thing. I thought it might look good in some sort of a sporter stock. Here it is in one of the $22 Mod stocks.
Review the thread The Aero Peashooter


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Some reworked walnut stocks

The following stocks show what you can do with a factory carbine stock by just reworking what is already there.

I just tapered the forearm down to include the barrel band knob and refinished the stock with polyurethane. I filed the front sight off the factory barrel and re-blued it.
Review the thread Refinished Walnut Stock


This is another walnut stock much like the one above. However, I sanded the barrel channel out to accept a GM Heavy Sporter barrel and cut a rake on the tip. This is one of my favorites. It made Rico's 13mm club first time out.
Review the thread Walnut and a Heavy Sporter


I removed the barrel band knob on this stock and cut the finger grooves in the forearm on a router table. A hand saw and some rasp and file work then turned it into a straight grip stock. The factory barrel was cut down to 16 1/2" and recrowned.
There is no thread for this stock.




....and if you want to retain a standard grip on the above stock, here is what it looks like. On this particular stock, I also cut down the length of pull for a small person.
Review this stock in a post in another member's thread Factory Compact Stock


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Sporter stocks that require a little more work

I cut away the lower part of the forearm and exposed the magazine on this stock. It's a light weight, easy handling stock that presently has a GM 16 1/2" fluted tapered barrel and a Weaver 4 power shotgun scope.
Review the thread Squirrel Gitter


My inspiration for this stock was the classic single shot carbines of the Old West.
Review this thread A Tribute to the Classic Carbine
... and for a How-to
Review this thread Old West Classic Stock How-to


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Here are three sporter stocks that never made it into a thread.

A bull barrel finger groove stock.


.... and the same stock designed for a sporter barrel. I made this stock from poplar. It's very light at 1 pound 7.5 ounces on a Lyman trigger scale.


I later made another with a raised comb. This stock is also made from poplar and weighs around 1-1/2 lbs.

The Hipshot Compendium - Chapter Three

Theme Stocks

I usually only have one design in mind at the beginning of a stock building project. However, more often than not additional ideas come to mind as I work. The following stock designs show the variations of a common theme.

The Morphosis Stocks

My inspiration for the Morphosis stock was the Richards Microfit Tack-Driver. Stocky's has fairly recently introduced a similar design, the Eliminator.

This is the first of the Morphosis stocks and really where I started honing my stock modding skills.
Review the thread Morphosis


This stock was sized to fit a tall person. The forearm was lengthened by about an inch and the length of pull increased to 16 inches.
Review the thread Morphosis Grows Up


I gave this stock a full length forearm. This is a bit of a departure from the normally thin Mannlicher style.
Review the thread Morphosis For a Lady
Also review the 10/22 Display Stand How-to that I embedded in the above thread.


This picture shows the Morphosis stock with all stainless hardware and an aluminum buttplate.
Review the thread Celeste


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The TNZ Stocks

The inspiration for the following stocks was the Ruger TNZ model, a limited run by Ruger, which is no longer in production. None of these stocks are exact copies of the Ruger TNZ, but rather just follow the general TNZ theme.

The TNZ stock show here is a deceptively simple design. The thread linked to this stock illustrates milling the stock and preparing the glued on pieces. Although a minimal number of pieces are required, this process is the basis for more complex designs.
Review the thread DIY TNZ Stock


This stock shows the striking results you can get by incorporating a little metalwork into your stock designs.
Review the thread My Red TNZ Stock


This is a simplified version of the TNZ suitable for a sporter contour barrel. A metal grip cap has been incorporated to add little bling.
Review the thread A TNZ For a Woods Hunter


The Mannlicher TNZ is my favorite of the TNZ theme stocks. I really like the slim lines and light weight of this build.
Review the thread Mannlicher TNZ How-to


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The Black Tactical Stocks

Tactical looking builds for the Ruger 10/22 have developed quite a following, so I decided to see if I could create an entry level stock from the lowly Ruger carbine stock. As I worked on this first stock, other ideas came to mind, and I ended up making several variations of this theme.

My first version of this stock seemed to have quite an appeal to RFC members. It's not up to the sophistication of the plastic or metal aftermarket units available, but it does appeal to the DIY impulses in many of us. It can also be built "on the cheap" as the title implies.
Review the thread Black Tactical on the Cheap


Version Two..... okay, it's not black.... but I did straighten the angle of the butt and give it a .920 barrel channel.


..... and Version Three soon followed. This may be the closest to the M-16 military style and is my favorite.
Review the thread The Three Amigos


Also Review the How-to thread for these three stocks.
Black Tactical How-To
... Version Two begins with Post #22
... Version Three begins with Post #35

About two years after building the Black Tactical stocks there was some interest shown on RFC about adapting an AR grip to a modded stock. I was also playing with the cut away forearm and exposed magazine at this time, so I designed the Tactical Lite stock. I never really liked the position of the AR grip or the shape of the buttstock on this build, so some time later I modded my modded stock. Pictured is the latest version. The thread linked to this picture has not been updated to include this latest version.
Review the thread A Lite Tactical Stock


This little stock never made it into a thread, but I just have to include it here. It is a youth stock, designed and built from the outset to fit a small person. The length of pull is about 11" and the stock is 24" overall. I gave it to Chaser's little boy.

The Hipshot Compendium - Chapter 4

The Hipshot Compendium - Chapter 4

Production Stocks

I had the privilege of working with Dan Hawkins in developing some designs for him that he put into commercial production under the Predator Gunstocks name. Dan is the owner of HawkTech Arms and a long time RFC sponsor. He has since sold his stock making business to Primary Weapons Systems (PWS).

The Raptor Stock

The Raptor was our first stock and was a collaborative effort between Dan and myself. We went through four prototype versions before arriving at the production model. I built the test stocks, while Dan and I both came up with ideas to improve the design. I'll include all four versions here just to illustrate what it can take to develop a design.

Version 1 bears little resemblance to the final design. After my initial consultations with Dan I built a test stock which incorporated the ideas we had discussed. This stock was intended to be a basis for further development.
Review the thread Blue Raptor


Version 2 showed an incremental change but still had a long way to go.
Review Dan's thread Raptor Version 2.0 Unfortunately his pictures are no longer linked, but he did give some insight into the development process.


Version 3 - Most of the design bugs were worked out with this version. The forearm was changed to the sloping cutaway profile and the shape of the grip was considerably refined.


Version 4 - Although Version 3 seemed ready for production, I still wasn't satisfied with the grip profile. I moved the front strut support for the cheekrest further outboard, thus allowing a more comfortable hold on the grip. We also experimented with grooves in the forearm, but this feature was deleted from the final production version. The pattern stock is shown here.






There was also a short run of left hand Raptor stocks. Here is the pattern stock I made for it.


Production examples of the Raptor stock. This is my wife's Purple Haze Raptor…..


..... and my Habanero Raptor.


The Raptor Mannlicher is a one-off build and was never intended for production. However, I'll include it here with the other Raptor stocks. I gave this stock to Dan Hawkin's wife.
Review the thread Raptor International




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The Mantis Stock

Designing this stock took on a life of its own and the results were rather unique. Dan produced a short run of this stock, but I believe that it is no longer in production. Since there is no thread featuring this stock, I'll just include a few pictures of the production stock here.









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The T-Rex Stock

I designed the T-Rex stock on paper in about four hours one afternoon. RFC members had been expressing an interest in a multipurpose stock design. I condensed the design parameters down to: a full sized ambidextrous stock with a thumbhole pistol grip, a standard length forearm with finger grooves, off hand capable, and benchrest friendly. Lowering the comb height was the only later revision I had to make.

Dan Hawkins produced the stock. It seems to be enjoying some popularity and was even copied by at least one manufacturer.
Review the thread T-Rex
This is my production T-Rex stock. Just for kicks I did sand down the finish and give it a glossy polyurethane finish.


..... and a shot of the pattern stock.


The PWS Stingray Stock

I modified a Ruger 77/22 stock into the T-Rex configuration. PWS named it the Stingray and produced this design in laminate as well as walnut. I don't see it listed on their website at this time.
Review the thread Is Ruger Missing a Good Bet ?


..... and a shot of the pattern stock.


The Marlin Model 60 Stock

I also modified a Marlin Model 60 stock into the T-Rex configuration. I sent the pattern stock to Dan Hawkins, but am not aware that it was ever produced.


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The Hipshot Compendium - Chapter 5

The Hipshot Compendium - Chapter 5

Charger Pistol Stocks

The Ruger Charger Pistol stock is a good design but leaves ample room for modifications and improvements. The Charger is billed as a pistol, but retains many characteristics of its rifle heritage. I wanted to lean to the pistol side of its personality as much as possible.

The Baby T-Rex

Various RFC members began cutting down rifle stocks to fit the Charger. Member 54914 posted his own ideas for a silhouette Charger stock. Review his post here. It essentially described a cut down and slightly modified T-Rex stock (hence my name for this stock). It looked like an interesting idea, so I built the stock he described and later sent it to him.
Review his thread Hipshot Charger Masterpiece




The Hipshot Charger Stock

It appeared to me that all the Charger stocks heretofore, including the Ruger factory stock, were all versions of a cut down rifle stock. In rethinking the Charger stock I wanted one that felt and looked more pistol like. I made a short forearm and a longer forearm version to better accommodate various barrel lengths.
Review the thread Rethinking the Charger Stock

The long forearm with a 12-1/2" barrel.


The short forearm with the Ruger factory 10" barrel.


The long forearm with the Ruger factory 10" barrel.




A Pirate Pistol Stock

Dan Hawkins expressed some interest in a "Pirate Pistol" stock design for the Charger and asked me to see what I could come up with. This stock is very much in the image of dueling and pirate pistols of a bygone era. There is no thread for this stock so I have included a few pictures here. I've also thrown in a couple of pictures of my pattern stock for anyone who wants to try one for themselves.

Where better for one of Chaser's skullies than on a pirate pistol?




Dan commissioned the building of a few prototype stocks in walnut. The project never progressed to the production stage.






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Some One-off Stocks

Tuck's Varmint Stock

Tuck asked me to make a varmint stock pattern for him and told me pretty much what he wanted. It's a fairly straight forward, though distinct, example of a thumbhole stock. Notice that there is no raised cheekrest and that the comb has a reverse slope. Tuck has made some strikingly beautiful stocks on this pattern. I am the lucky owner of one of them.
Review the thread Tuck's Tiger to see more pictures of my tiger maple Tuck varmint stock.


..... a couple of shots of the pattern stock.




Tuck's Lefty Thumbhole Savage

Tuck and Old Hickory worked out a deal for me to convert Old Hickory's right hand Savage 93 stock into a lefty thumbhole pattern. Tuck has an old thread, but the pictures are now MIA. Here is a link to a post with some comments from Old Hickory.




Here is a shot of the pattern stock.


308Sniper's 77/17 Anschutz Stock

Here is a Ruger 77/17 stock that I modified into an Anschutz style for RFC member 308Sniper. I added a little bling with the metalwork, fingergrooves on the grip and a thumbrest. This was a one-off and shows that just about any stock can be modified into a significantly different configuration.
Review 308Sniper's thread Ruger 77/17


There is no how-to thread. Here are a couple shots of the mod before painting.




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The Hipshot Compendium - Chapter 6

The Hipshot Compendium - Chapter 6

A Pair of LowRider Stocks

The LowRider stock style is popular with centerfire F Class shooters. F Class is shot prone at 600 to 1000 yards. I thought that the dropped forearm was neat looking and adapted it to the 10/22.

The Model T LowRider

In order to compensate for the raised forearm, I raised the rails on the barrel channel to be level with the top of the barrel. I've only had it out a couple of times but it seemed to perform very well off the bench. Review the thread Model T LowRider




The Sunset LowRider

This is a second LowRider stock with a bright paint job and a little more bling. I named it for the rich colors of a Florida sunset.
Review the thread Sunset




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The Hipshot Benchrest Stocks

This is a series of three benchrest stocks that I built during the same time period. It became very evident to me that many RFC members enjoyed shooting off the bench, even if only informally. It was also evident that there was a dearth of available and affordable aftermarket benchrest stocks. After studying many of the current benchrest stocks, I tried to incorporate various design elements into these three benchrest stocks for the Ruger 10/22. All these stocks are ambidextrous, do not have a raised cheekrest and feature the open grip style.

The Undertaker

I originally named this stock "The Stealth" because of the flat intersecting surfaces. Others saw the similarity of the buttplate to a coffin lid and named it The Undertaker. It looks like that name is going to stick. The abbreviated grip is intended to accommodate the trigger pinch method of firing the rifle.
Review the thread A Stealthy Benchrest Stock
Note: BR stocks #2 and #3 below are also included in this rather long thread.






The Hipshot BR-50

Perhaps for lack of a better name and because I like shooting BR at 50 yards, I called this stock the "Hipshot BR-50". It's just a fairly basic design with a three inch wide forearm, curved grip, and a straight buttstock.
Review of this stock begins at Post #13 in this thread.






The Boss

I called this stock The Boss because it just looked like the biggest and the meanest of the trio. It has a straight grip angle and a lowered forearm.
Review of this stock begins at Post #23 in this thread.






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The Tactical T-Rex Stocks

My first stock on this design was for IamJeep, a friend in south Florida. The design incorporated his ideas for a tactical looking stock. I liked the balance and the fit of this stock so I refined the design a little and built one for myself. Since I ended up utilizing many of the features of the T-Rex stock, I called this design the Tactical T-Rex.

Custom Stock

IamJeep posted a thread on the custom build and included many of the photos that I had sent him. His thread is a pretty good How-to.
Review the thread by IamJeep Custom Stock Build by HipShot!!


The Tactical T-Rex

When I built the second stock on this design I lowered the height of the comb and cut a .920" barrel channel. I retained the extra long forearm of the original design.
Review the thread Tactical T-Rex
Check post #48 in the above thread to see what it looks like with various barrels mounted.




A Black Tactical T-Rex

I still didn't feel that I had worked through this design, so I tweaked the design a bit more and built another stock. For this stock, I cut the forearm back to a more normal length and eliminated the finger grooves on the grip. I also cut the barrel channel to fit a GM 17-1/2" heavy taper barrel... great feel and balance.
Review the thread Tweakin' the Tactictal T-Rex




A Walnut Tactical T-Rex

Well, I just had to try one more. I glued up some scrap walnut a friend gave me and made this stock. I again made the forearm a normal length, put finger grooves on the grip, and cut the barrel channel for a bull barrel. This stock in featured in the same thread as the Black T-Rex above.
Review this build here beginning at post #11.




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