Major problem with Boyd's Tacticool

[BlueDog]

Tomme, glad you agree about the seemingly different laminates. No way is the regular painted lam nearly as strong/hard/durable as the colored laminates. Good luck on your hunt for longer screws.

[tomme boy]

I've had the Tacticool in a Savage RF bolt action and a Ruger 10-22 and they both felt really light and flimsy. It is diffidently different wood. I remember when they had their light weight option on some of their stocks. They almost were like they were made out of balsa they were so light. I was told they all cracked and they could not keep them from doing it. So they stopped making them. The Tacticools came out shortly after they stopped making the lightweight versions. Coat them with paint and call them something else.

[BlueDog]

The old bait and switch! Lol. The OP Pwdnt asked Boyds specifically about this, and they stated it's the exact same laminate, just uncolored/undyed. My old mauser sports a 'nutmeg' colored laminate and I could probably drive nails with it (almost). Inletting it was a royal pain in the azz, but this new Tacticool was like carving a pine wood derby car back in Scouts.

[sharpshooter]

There is a difference between Statobond and baltic birch.

[rjtfroggy]

the screw is 1/4-28. buy 2" then cut to length.

[tomme boy]

So the lightweight version is the Baltic Birch? Fred, is the Stratobond impregnated with epoxy? It sure feels like it is. I have built a bunch of boats with ply and I use epoxy to laminate and impregnate the ply. It has the feel and smell of epoxy when sanding it.

[missed]

Im worried about mine as it's a dBm version. I'm planning on building a full bedding block for it and just gutting the center section of the stock.

[BlueDog]

To gut one for a full bedding block to help with the cracking/splitting may cause more than can be addressed. Pillars would be a good fix, but if you want a full bedding block just because, then go for it! If I had to do over again, I would definitely upgrade ($15) for the color laminate.

[missed]

I did do pillars in mine. And have the colored laminate. There is just not much material there at all.

[sharpshooter]

So the lightweight version is the Baltic Birch? Fred, is the Stratobond impregnated with epoxy? It sure feels like it is. I have built a bunch of boats with ply and I use epoxy to laminate and impregnate the ply. It has the feel and smell of epoxy when sanding it.

I'm not sure what type of glue it is, but it is brown in color and when it is cured it's hard as glass. The Stratobond is layed up in small boards, one at a time. The biggest board size is 16"x 51" x 2.5(or other varying thickness up to 3") Once the boards are glued and layed up, they are put in a 15 ton press and heated to 350 degrees for 15 minutes. This compression and heat makes the plys more dense. You also have to factor in the colored plys have absorbed dye which also makes them denser.
Baltic birch on the other hand is usually made in oversize sheets(bigger than 4'x8') and is layed up and pressed several sheets stacked together. The compression is actually less because the surface area is greater, and the glue is a different type as it is cured in less time and all it has to bond is bare wood.