This thread really makes me wonder how anyone ever managed to hit the broad side of a barn before synthetic stocks came out. Yes my guns are tools and not for display but that doesn' t mean I want them to look like crap with a plastic looking stock either. Laminate is the best compromise I have found I wouldn' t have anything else. Properly finished they will handle as much weather as a composite and as for the extra weight, I' m a big boy and can handle it.