tg, et al,
Some folks just don't get it. Some simply don't understand, and some simply don't want to get it and the last few replies about doing it your way are a perfect example of that.
"The old timers did it their way, why can't we?"
Well, the old timers made guns to certain styles and parameters learned from their masters. Those masters learned from their master's masters, and so on.
The bottom line that the thing all of you "do it your own way" folks don't get is, that there are certain architectural basics of longrifle construction. Those basics change slightly from school to school, but they primarily remain standard throughout.
However, various schools interpret those basics differently, and trying to incorporate varying schools of building into one rifle really looks screwed up. Kinda like a Frankenstein monster in metal and wood. And believe me, I have seen enough Frankenrifles to last a life time.
Good architecture flows gently from one area to another, with no parallel lines and no flat sides.
A properly made buttstock fits the shooter well enough that he doesn't have to scrunch up and contort his body to adapt to poorly thought out and poorly designed LOP and drop. While some adjustment has to be made to any stock, on a well designed and thought out firelock, adjustment is minimal.
While styles did change throughout the years, the same basics remained pretty much unchanged,until the latest years when the "run of the mill" mindset of mid 19th century gunmakers became apparent. Those later gunsmiths apparently didn't take the pride in their work as did the earlier makers did.
And there no mass produced ML rifle, and darned few mass produced smoothbores that duplicate the lines of any original. The architecture is all wrong. Many of these mass produced guns do look kinda frankenriflish, and y'all rave about how great they are. And while some of the better quality rifles are decent guns, the architecture more closely resembles modern cartridge guns made to "fit" the "average" shooter.
If someone wants a run of the mill gun that he has to scrunch down on the stock to shoot, that's fine with me. Shoot it in good health, but don't complain about things you don't understand.
You accomplished gun builders know what I'm trying to say, but the words just don't seem to adequately explain what I'm trying to convey.
So help me out here.
J.D.