Monday, August 1, 2011

Hogue Over-Molded Synthetic Stock With 12" Length of Pull.

Some of you know that I've moved away from the Knoxx Spec-Ops stocks.  While they helped control recoil (something that didn't bother me much in the first place) they were very hard on the cheek bone, and they added a lot of weight to an already loaded down shotgun.  I found that I liked the Knoxx stock best when I shot it in one of the shorter Length of Pull settings.  The setting I preferred was one notch above the fully collapsed position.  That was also the setting I used at the NRA LE Pistol/Shotgun Instructor course in Missouri, and it proved to be deadly fast and accurate. 

I just purchased a Hogue Over-Molded Synthetic Stock with the 12" LOP.  Yes, it's very short, but when you're shooting a shotgun tactically, or when you're wearing body armor, a standard 14" LOP stock is far too long.  The 14" LOP stock was designed for shooting Trap and bird hunting, not for hunting men. 

The installation took about five minutes tops and the stock feels good.  The only adjustment I'll have to make is in my shooting hand position.  I'll have to shoot with a Thumb-forward grip like when I'm shooting a Service Rifle, as opposed to the standard grip of the thumb wrapped over the wrist of the stock.  That's so I don't smash my thumb into my nose when shooting heavy loads such as 00-Buck, Rifled Slugs, or my personal house guest offering of Federal Premium, 3" Magnum, Copper-plated #4 Turkey loads.  Now if I do forget to use my new thumb position, it will probably only happen to me once.

This should also be a good stock for smaller-framed shooters like women and young adults.  They're also inexpensive.  Midway USA sells the Hogue Over-molded stock and forend set for about $55.00.  With an 18.5" barrel my house gun is now much easier to maneuver with a total OAL of only 36.5".