Cheek piece or no cheek piece

G

glockcompact

New member
I am trying to decide between two rifles. The Browning Hunter in 30-06 or the Browning Hunter "full line dealer" chambered the same. The biggest functional difference is that the "full line dealer" has a raised cheek piece. I plan on putting on a 3-9x40 Leopold VXR. I will mount this as low as possible. So my question is if I'm mounting a 40mm scope do you think I would need a raised cheek piece to get a proper sight alignment? Thank you,
Brit.
 
That will depend on how the stock is shaped, how much drop is at the wrist and how tall the comb is and what the sight alignment looks like after you get the scope on with the rings and bases you've selected.
 
It depends on your aiming eye's height above your cheek bone on your head as well as the line of sight height above the bore axis.

With your cheek bone firmly on the stock comb, if your aiming eye doesn't align high enough to be on the scope axis, your stock needs more height on its comb where you cheek rests. Your cheek bone needs to rest firmly on the stock comb; no muscles holding your head up to see through the sight. Muscles holding one's body in a shooting position cause the body to wiggle due to pulse beat. Total bone support is best for steady aiming.

Comb, or cheek piece height will vary a little for best aiming eye alignment with the sight depending on the position you're in when shooting the rifle.
 
Anyway to test them out in store, or are they ordering your choice for you?

As the others have said, there is really no way to know for sure until you drop your cheek down and see where it sits.
 
You won't need it for proper alignment, the stocks are each cut to allow both to function with scopes. It is a choice that really comes down to what you want. I've shot both and to tell the truth have no preference one way or the other, straight or raised, both suit me fine.
 
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FWIW, cheekpieces are not "raised"; but stock combs are..........

Cheekpieces (of whatever shape) are either present, or not.

To decide on either a stock with a raised comb (monte carlo) or a plain stock would depend on a few things: the height of the sights/scope over the bore C/L; the ergonomics of the shooter's/owner's face & neck (i.e., full or thin face, long or short neck, etc).

I would want to shoulder an example of both, keeping in mind (with a cardboard template) just where the sight/scope C/L will be in a given set (height) of rings/mounts, B 4 making a buying decision.



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Thank you all for the replies. I spent some more time looking at the difference of these. And learned a few things about stocks. The difference in the "Drop at Comb" measurement on these rifles is a 1/16", so I guess it would be insignificant. The raised cheek piece style is in fact not raised at all when measured from the center of the bore. However the "Drop at Heel" measurement is a difference of about an 1". So this seems to be the measurement I need to be concerned with if any. It appears to me that this would be beneficial for a more upright shooting position. ie. sitting at a bench, kneeling or standing in the field. Where the other may be better for a prone position. All other measurements including "Length of Pull" seem to be identical on these two rifles. I could be way over thinking this I suppose, But I'm still learning. This will be my first Bolt action rifle and I plan on keeping it a long time so I want to be happy with it. :D I will see if I can find a Browning with the so called "raised comb" to feel and place into my shoulder.

Thanks again for your help.
 
The "Drop at the Heel" design would tend to position the butt/recoil pad in a better position (lower down into the shoulder) for offhand, or bench shooting. Doesn't affect cheekweld/line of sight height, as the area of the drop is just in a last inch or so of the stock.

The McMillan A3 Sporter is a new one featuring the same idea.

Seems it might be detrimental for prone shooting where you'd want it positioned much higher on your shoulder.

Most modern rifles are designed for use with optics, with combs as high as possible while still allowing clearance for the bolt. To that point, it's impossible for a stock to be suited for both irons, and optics. This is why most milsurp stocks have combs with a lot of drop- you need a cheekweld low enough to get your line of sight right over the bore. To be able to use the same stock with an optic would require an adjustable cheekpiece or stock pack.
 
The "Drop at the Heel" design would tend to position the butt/recoil pad in a better position (lower down into the shoulder) for offhand, or bench shooting. Doesn't affect cheekweld/line of sight height, as the area of the drop is just in a last inch or so of the stock.

The McMillan A3 Sporter is a new one featuring the same idea.

Seems it might be detrimental for prone shooting where you'd want it positioned much higher on your shoulder.

Most modern rifles are designed for use with optics, with combs as high as possible while still allowing clearance for the bolt. To that point, it's impossible for a stock to be suited for both irons, and optics. This is why most milsurp stocks have combs with a lot of drop- you need a cheekweld low enough to get your line of sight right over the bore. To be able to use the same stock with an optic would require an adjustable cheekpiece or stock pack.

Some good points on the differences of Comb height for optics compared to irons. Thanks.
 
PetahW, some cheek peices can be raised and lowered:
Click to expand...
It's a matter of semantics, and the normal adjustment of the English language.

In my mis-spent youth, hanging around guys at the gun club, (my first job in the mid '60s was as a trap boy) I was taught that the upper part of an installed stock was called the comb. Anything added, as in a moleskin, became a cheekpiece. Trap shooters were notorious for fiddling with their stocks and I've seen all manner of impediments added to a stock, for better or worse.

So, to my archaic way of thinking, if a stock was adjustable, it had an adjustable comb. If you added something to the stock, that became a cheekpiece. Then, to further muddy the waters, if a rifle stock had a raised piece to assist the eye in proper alignment, it became a Monte Carlo, especially if the stock sloped from the heel toward the wrist. The Savage Lady Hunter has what I consider a classic Monte Carlo stock.

Semantics and common usage change as the language evolves. Some of us bristle at the change. It's not unlike the old clip vs magazine arguments.
 
I called it a "raised cheek piece" because that's what Browning calls it. I assumed the terms "raised cheek piece" or "Comb" we're interchangeable. This is straight from Browning's web site.


X-Bolt Hunter Full Line Dealer
Raised cheek piece, satin walnut checkered grip stock, matte blue barrel and action, detachable rotary magazine, short throw bolt, adjustable trigger, bolt-action
 
A cheek piece will be extended out from the side of the stock, pushing the sight picture towards the shoulder. If your eyes are closer to the side of your face this will be a better design for you. Stocks without a cheek piece will better fit those with eyes closer to each other between the nose.

The longer your neck, the lower you'll want the heel to be.

If you have high cheek bones, then a higher the comb will suit you best.

Then there's scope height, ring height, objective height, bolt clearance, LOP, how you use the rifle (bench, prone sitting, etc)...

To make matters more complicated...doing this at the gun store is damn near impossible because they won't mount the scope for you to get the exact fit unless you buy upfront and assemble at the store, if even then...

I believe buying a rifle or shotgun mirrors the same process for cars or mattresses - a royal PITA!

I've always heard go to the store and shoulder a few, close your eyes, etc etc., and realized I was no better off than when I walked in the door. I think the best that you could do is shoulder your buddy's rifles with scopes on them or hit the used racks with the same intents. Gun clubs might also be a better place to get a better perspective or you could drop even more coin and go get fitted (not very common for rifles, better availablity for shotguns).

With all that said good luck!
 
Have made maybe 8 or so rifle stocks for myself and other gents at range I'm a member. Most of them were made without a comb. I just get a better cheek weld when there is no comb. Of course, I can play with wood's shape to make it as perfect for me or the person I'm making the stock for as possible.
 
^^^ I assume you meant cheek piece rather than comb. The comb is simply the top surface of a buttstock. A cheek piece is a raised surface on the left side of the buttstock (for a right hand rifle or shotgun).
 
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