Remington 788 Stock Upgrade

Every time firearm prices seem to get out of control, manufacturers look for away to produce a less expensive model. We see that today in the Ruger American and Savage Axis. Back in the late 1960s, Remington did the same thing with the introduction of their Model 788. Among other cost cutting measures the guns were stocked in birch rather than walnut. Here is how I modified the stock on a 788 to give it a more classic look.

It’s no secret that firearms prices have gone through the roof over the last couple of years and new shooters looking for a hunting rifle that won’t break the bank face some daunting challenges when shopping for new guns. Often the best solution is to look at the used gun market. This isn’t anew situation and firearms manufactures have made less expensive models to overcome sticker shock before.

In 1967, Remington introduced the Model 788 bolt action rifle to offer The comb is raised in the Monte Carlo style that was so popular in the 1960s. There is no tapering or fluting at the front of the comb and there is no pistol grip cap. The recoil pad was a later addition. shooters a less expensive alternative to the Model 700. Originally offered in 222 Remington, 22-250, 30-30, and 44 Magnum, it features a removable three-round box magazine and rear locking lugs arranged in three rows of three.

This allows for a 60-degree bolt throw rather than the 90 degrees required for the Mauser-style actions. At first, they were stocked in plain walnut but in an effort to keep costs down later production was switched to birch. Although birch is a fine wood for gunstock use, it does have two drawbacks from the gunsmith’s perspective. The first drawback is birch is very plain with little to no figure. Second, birch does not take stain evenly. In the eyes of many shooters, it has become the mark of a cheap gun.

When I came across a left-handed 788 recently, I jumped at the opportunity to add it to my accumulation of left-handed rifles. My first thought was to simply restock it in walnut. That would be the easy way out, but when I priced stocks from several sources and discovered that even a moderately figured walnut stock was priced just under $400, I rethought that decision. Perhaps a face lift was in order. Factory stocks are always a compromise between cost, fit, and style.

The dimensions are supposed to be one size fits most, and the style is determined by current ideas of what is fashionable. We have gone from the classic clean lines of the rifles of the first half of the 20th century, to the extreme angles and inlays of the 1960s, and now into polymer and synthetics. Frankly, what the

stock looks like doesn’t have an effect on accuracy, so the design of the stock’s appearance can be as simple or extreme as the customer demands. I’m an old baby boomer and really dislike multicolored laminates and polymers. My guns normally wear classic style stocks of reasonably attractive walnut but with today’s prices I may have to rethink that preference. The stocks on the 788s were typical of factory stocks supplied by the major manufacturers.

The wood is plain, without a lot of The comb has been straightened and fluted, the pistol grip has been sculpted and made prominent. The black line shows where the Monte Carlo will be removed, leaving a straight comb. grain or checkering, and in this case, it is made from birch as this wood choice is less expensive than walnut. The end of the pistol grip blends into the stock without a grip cap, the comb is raised in the Monte Carlo fashion, and from the factory, the butt was protected by a plastic buttplate.

All these features, or lack thereof, are designed to make manufacturing easy and keep costs down. This particular 788 had seen the attention of a gunsmith in the past, having been rebarreled in 7×57 and a recoil pad added. To give the gun a more classic and custom look I removed the raised Monte Carlo comb with a rasp, leaving the comb American Gunsmith Reader Services 1.

. of the stock straight from the nose to the butt rather than raised at the end. The comb was also thinned and fluted at the front while the pistol grip was fitted for a grip cap and raised by changing the angle of the bottom of the stock from the toe to the base of the pistol grip. In this case a recoil pad had been added sometime in the past and that was removed with a steel buttplate installed in its place.

This reduced the length of pull to my preferred dimensions and made it much more comfortable for me to use the scope without having to crawl up the stock. I could have achieved the same length of pull by simply cutting the stock and fitting a recoil pad but, after years of High Power competition, the recoil of the 7×57 Mauser round doesn’t seem to bother me. Plus, in wanting to achieve a truly classic look, the checkered steel butt plate is much more appropriate.

Naturally, after all that alteration to the wood it was necessary to refinish the stock. With birch that is always a challenge. Unlike walnut and maple where the grain undulates in regular patterns that take the stain in a manner that give us tiger-like stripes, burls, and various shades in pleasing patterns, birch takes the stain differently in random spots which leaves us with a blotchy look. To at least partially solve this problem, it is necessary to seal the wood before staining it.

There are several pre-stain sealers on the market and many woodworkers use shellac as a sealer on these softer woods. Once sealed, the stain will not penetrate as readily and you may find the need to use a semitransparent oil-based stain to get the color you want. As a gunsmith you must be proficient in both woodworking and metal work and have an artist’s eye for style. In this case, the trigger guard is a simple stamped piece of flat steel. It serves its purpose but certainly isn’t pleasing to the eye.

A bit of work with the file or Dremel tool can slim and sculpt it into apiece that guards the trigger while also enhancing the look of the rifle. Now with a steel buttplate, grip cap, classic stock line, narrowed and fluted comb, and refinished stock my bargain basement 788 has taken on a custom look that I like a lot more than what I started with. Of course, this is all dependent on what you or your customer like.

If ease of maintenance and resistance to point of impact change due to weather is more important to you than style and the beauty of figured wood, various synthetic stock options may well be your first choice. At my age I don’t hunt anywhere near as much as I once did and most of my shooting takes place at the range so I am not concerned with weather related problems and I build what I like and enjoy. You should do the same for yourself and your customers. AG