
Originally Posted by
RichFitz
As a policy we do not post anything but technical common knowledge in an open forum. So as detailed as I can get is the material type reacts differently to humidity as it relates to extreme temperatures.
On the subject of strength. In the late 1990's the M4 Carbine issued by Colt came with a ribbed plastic stock that was made with very low grade materials and could be broken relativity easily. In the early 2000s the Vltor, Magpul CTR and SOPMOD stocks were released using modern polymers, impact modifiers and modern processing techniques. These stocks represented a real leap forward in usable strength and set the bar for future designs based upon the standard carbine tube.
Since then over the last decade improvements continue to be made to the point that the CTR was in the middle of the pack of those drop tests in 2012 (see earlier post for link) and the STR was first. Now two year later, the MOE SL beats the STR, but in terms of how it affects the user it less important. We now have stocks so strong that we are elongating the holes in the buffer tube as we increase the load to ever more dramatic levels.
In the end, we cannot forget that a stock's primary purpose is to provide a critical point of contact for the shooter, not to be a hammer (although if you need a hammer there is always the UBR).
Few people today will ever break a modern stock in the normal course of use (even in combat and extreme conditions). That said, it is good to remember that the standard M4 ribbed stock, with all it's flaws has been on the shoulder of our servicemen in combat over the last decade and has successfully put down more bad guys that all the commercial stocks combined.
I understand your policy and find those results interesting. I've always characterized wood as being susceptible to changes in humidity in a radical way, not polymer.
It sounds like we're nearing a point of diminishing returns with regard to stock strength.
What's the next evolution? Weight reduction? Incorporation of recoil reduction features for bigger calibers? More radical overhauls to the concept of the RE interface itself? Modularity? All of the above?
I'm sure you won't be able to speak with any degree of specificity, but while I've got you on the phone I figured is give it a shot. 
Thanks again for taking the time.
"That thing looks about as enjoyable as a bowl of exploding dicks." - Magic_Salad0892
"The body cannot go where the mind has not already been."
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