I agree with this... There is just something "old school" about wood stocks and/or forearms. They add character and each little ding tells a story.

My old Marlin 30-30 is all wood and has worn bluing here and there and a few scratches too. I wouldn't think of getting a synthetic stock for it. It would be sacriledge!

My Remington 870 12GA is pretty new and (so far) unharmed, no scratches, no dings, etc... I've been teased by a few guys about it too {Jesus, why don't you use that darn thing? It's an 870... Kick it around, drop it in the dirt, I mean, you gotta give it some character!} But I guess I'm just a little careful with it, because it's new and still "purty", you know what I mean?

Sometimes you just gotta stick with wood....

Butch A.