N.E. 450 # 2 I was wondering if I would find you here. Thank you for the loading information it has been a big help! I will be trying the 350 grain loads you mentioned tomorrow if it does not rain.
Now once we have the stock firret we must take care of the detailing. Shadow lines are nice but they should be fine and slightly under cut. I usually run a shadow line around the cheek piece which also has the edges undercut.
The wood should be cut nearly down to the metal and finished flush with the metal during sanding. To acomplish this you may as well plan on a bluing job as there is no other way to get a perfect wood to metal fit but to sand down the stock with the metal in place. If the gun you are restocking is engraved you have to be very careful as you do not want fadded or missing engraving where the wood meets the metal.
Hay, I am sorry if I am giving too much detail about all this, please let me know. At times I get a bit carried away as I love my job and ramble at times about my work.

For those of you not familiar with the 450#2 if this picture comes out you will see it compared to a .243 Winchester.