McMillan A5 on my 111

[Sam 30-06]

i've been thinking about getting a McMillan A5 for my 111 30-06. the problem i have with this is that the stock is going to cost more than i paid for the rifle, so i'm left wondering is this stock really worth that much money, i already shoot tight groups with factory tupperware and while i like precision shooting its not life or death if i can't shoot under 1/2 inch groups, so i guess the question is will the stock really make the accuracy alot better or is it just going to be a looks deal? does anyone have an A5 that they can give some real world feed back? thanks.

[darkker]

Don't currently have an A5.
But you pretty much answered your question already. Will the gun shoot better with an A5? Probably.
Will it turn you into the next Hathcock? No

[geargrinder]

What about the Stockade Pdog/Tactical?

Decent copy of the A5, way cheaper price.

[McKinneyMike]

Great stocks but expensive. There are some great, less expensive options (Stockade for one, as mentioned). Molded in colors are nice on the McMillan stocks, they are extremely well made, but would money be better spent on other aspects of your rifle build (better glass, rings and mount, barrel, trigger, etc)? If everything else is as good as you feel it can be it, no reason to not buy what you feel is a good match for the rest of the build. Have you had the opportunity to shoot a rifle stocked with a McMillan or other after market stocks yet? I would try to find a few and see if the fit your shooting style.

In the end the cost between a Stockade of similar configuration and the McMillan is probably a few hundred dollars. If you will keep it for the rest of your life, its not a big deal in my eyes. You may change barrels, optics, etc, but you will always have an old friend to put your hands around when you get behind it. Shot what feels good to you. The quality is there in a McMillan for sure. Best of luck with your decision!

[pa hog]

I have an A-3 on my .260 build, It is a fantastic stock to use in the field it's light and super strong. It's not fantastic off the bench but plenty managable. It twice the stock of a B&C Medalist, but cost twice as much. The fit and finish are both better. I've only ever had one Stockade that was finished by them and the McMillan has a better fit and the paint finish is about the same,but cost 200.00 more.

If your after a A-5 as a hunting stock you have to carry on a sporter weight gun you may want to look at a A-2 or 3. The sporter contour will look lost in a A-5 forend.


Probably won't make your gun shoot better unless you curently have stock issues, but they funtion better for all purposes.

And don't overlook Manners Composite's either they are fantastic, they offer some really good sporter stocks.

[McKinneyMike]

+1 on the Manners stocks!

[Balljoint]

Been thinking on having Joel Russo restocking my 03 Springfield with one of his Laminate stocks

[pbcaster45]

I've got an A5 on my 16FLHSS and it's a great stock. I don't know what use you plan for your rig but if you want to take it hunting I'd get the HTG (General Purpose Hunting) instead. I like my A5 but I LOVE my HTG, it fits me like a glove. I don't think the saddle cheekpiece was necessary with the scope, base, and rings I used but it looks cool. You wouldn't think so but that HTG stocked 10FLP (factory barrel) is every bit as accurate as the A5 16FLHSS (Lothar Walther). It's definetly one of those legendary "factory hummer" barrels.


http://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc265/pbcaster45/SSSMcMillan16FLHSSRangeTest.jpg?


http://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc265/pbcaster45/Savage10FLPwithMcMillanHTGStock.jpg?

[Senderofan]

I have an A5 for my custom Remington Sendero in .25-06. It is one of the best fitting stocks I've tried / owned. Having said that....I have a Stockade PD / Tactical ordered with the adjustable butt and cheekpiece etc. The Stockade stock is more economical...and appears to offer the very same features as the A5....I'm anxiously awaiting to compare the two.

I would say there are more than one serious contender out there.....that compare very favorably to the A5....and you'll probably save some $$$ with these other options and be just as happy.

<a href="http://s427.photobucket.com/albums/pp359/Senderofan/Custom%20Remington/?action=view&current=P5150139.jpg


Good Luck,

Wayne

P.S.

Sorry for the big group of photos and the descriptions.....this is a folder I set up for a guy that was interested in buying my rifle....but you can see the various details of the McMillan stock.

[McKinneyMike]

And let&#39;s not forget Manner&#39;s Stocks! http://mannersstocks.com/

[Senderofan]

I forgot to mention Manner&#39;s Stocks..My bad ;D.

[rjtfroggy]

At those prices I would definately forget Manner&#39;s.

[McKinneyMike]

The Manners are cheaper than McMillan though and they are of equal quality, if not better stocks in comparison. I would love to try out one of their MCS-T5 stocks on my future 260AI build. It all depends upon what you want from anything rifle related to me.

There will always be cheaper components and the performance difference will be small vs say a Stockade or even less a B&C. But the custom makers allow you to build it to suit your wants, just like a SSS or a Russo per say and much lighter weight, if that is important to you.

[Sam 30-06]

I&#39;ll be sure to look at Manners, i looked at Stockade and the price for the PDT was about 150.00 lower than the A5 and that was without any special color pattern on the PDT, I&#39;m more than likely going with a camo pattern. i was kinda hesitant to spend more money on the stock than i did the entire rifle, minus optic and mount. i plan on using this rifle to do a little of everything, i target shoot and hunt so it&#39;ll more than likely be used for both of those activities, the reason I&#39;m considering swapping the stock is i like the pistol style grip better, i fell more comfortable with it over the traditional grip. i may swap the barrel down the road a ways but i don&#39;t want to do to much to fast since the rifle is still somewhat new, so if i have to live with the barrel looking lost in the forend so be it, I&#39;ll fix that if it becomes a problem for me. thanks for the input, I&#39;ll look around a bit more and see what i come up with, i really like the A5 though.

[Senderofan]

I&#39;ll be sure to look at Manners, i looked at Stockade and the price for the PDT was about 150.00 lower than the A5 and that was without any special color pattern on the PDT, I&#39;m more than likely going with a camo pattern. i was kinda hesitant to spend more money on the stock than i did the entire rifle, minus optic and mount. i plan on using this rifle to do a little of everything, i target shoot and hunt so it&#39;ll more than likely be used for both of those activities, the reason I&#39;m considering swapping the stock is i like the pistol style grip better, i fell more comfortable with it over the traditional grip. i may swap the barrel down the road a ways but i don&#39;t want to do to much to fast since the rifle is still somewhat new, so if i have to live with the barrel looking lost in the forend so be it, I&#39;ll fix that if it becomes a problem for me. thanks for the input, I&#39;ll look around a bit more and see what i come up with, i really like the A5 though.


My PDT arrives in town this coming Tuesday. I&#39;d be glad to post some pictures for you??? My stock is the Weatherby brown with two different colors of webbing. Kevin did the webbing at no additional cost. I guess the main reason I&#39;d shy away from the McMillan is the wait. I ordered my PDT the first week of February...then added a worked over dual port action to the order a month later. I&#39;m thinking you&#39;ll be waiting for the A5 for a lot longer than the three months I waited. Also...if you decide to order up an A5...you&#39;ll need to add Pillars to your order...they don&#39;t come standard.


Not trying to talk you out of the McMillan....Just think time and $$$ add up when working on a project.

Good Luck,

Wayne

P.S.

I just added up what an identical A5 would run...and it&#39;s $300 more than my PDT.

[McKinneyMike]

Here is my new Russo stock, just out of the CNC machine. Still needs a little detail and contouring finished and the adjustable cheek piece with Sitman hardware needs to be fitted, but I think that it turned out quite well. I laminated the blank for Joel and he did his magic. I did not have a piece of wood thick enough for the build, so I laminated quarter sawn Bubinga in the center and outsides, while adding two thin strips of figured Anigre to break it up. I wasn&#39;t sure that I would like the contrasting color combo, but I think that it will work well together. This was made for a Savage Target Action build.

It is a copy of the Manners MCS-T2. I liked it better the McMillan A-5L as the butt hook on the A-5L will not ride the bags as well for my style of shooting.


http://www.themastins.com/rifles/my_stock1.jpg

http://www.themastins.com/rifles/my_stock2.jpg

http://www.themastins.com/rifles/my_stock3.jpg

I am anxiously awaiting its completion and arrival to my waiting hands :) For the cost I think it is a no brainer vs what is readily available out there in the aftermarket world for wooden stocks. Plus I get to make my own wood choices!

[joseph]

Here is my Stockade PDS/T stock that I sanded, filled & painted myself. Very easy and only took about 3 hours.

http://forum.gon.com/showthread.php?t=366263&highlight=

http://forum.gon.com/showthread.php?t=374570&highlight=

"Aim small miss small", ;D

joseph

[Sam 30-06]

thats a nice looking rifle, i was thinking about doing the finish myself but i just don&#39;t have the time currently, i&#39;m in the process of moving and i have a 1.5 yr old running around that needs constant attention, so i&#39;d like to just order it up all done and ready to go so all i have to do is get the barrel and everything matched up color wise. i may try to play with the factory stock in the future to hone the skills a bit and try finishing my own stock next time. i did send stockage an email and i&#39;m waitng for a reply, i&#39;m not decided on anything just yet so i&#39;m open to whatever company can get the stock done in the most timely manner and for a decent price.