New Stevens 200's Stocks

[LaOtto222]

I was in local store yesterday that had a couple of new Stevens 200's. I just had to take one down off the rack and see how she felt in my hands. I noticed immediately the stock felt different. I got to looking and it is different than the older ones I have. The Stock has a slight bulge in the area between the trigger guard and the front action screw. Kind of like an outline of a magazine floor plate. Mine had this but it was just like a parting line out line, this new one is a little higher than the rest of the stock around it. The next thing I noticed was the smoothness around the false checkering. The old ones I had would almost cut your hand under heavy recoil in these areas. I fixed it by sanding them down and painting. This stock is very smooth in this area and would not need any sanding at all. I am not sure on this, but the grip cap looked a little different, i did not have an old one to make a direct comparison, but it looked a little different. the grip looked like it extended down just a little more than the old one too. Over all, I think the new stocks are much better quality that the older ones. Again, I did not have an old one to compare, but the metal finish looked to be a little better on the new ones. There is some machining marks around the port, that looked to be missing on the new one. The overall metal finish seemed to be smoother too. I need another 200 like I need another a hole in my head, but I am tempted again, hmmmm maybe a 243 or 7mm-08

[EVOC ONE]

Thanks for the report.  I'll have to get out and take a peek at a new one.

I have a Stevens in each of those calibers.  Either or both would not be a bad choice.   

[rifleman]

I just added a new 243 to my collection. I also noticed some refinements in the stock. Another thing that jumped out at me was that the recoil pad was actually soft. I was able to easily make an indentation with my fingernail. My original 223s recoil pad was quite hard. I also haven't even had to file or sand the stock unlike the 223.

Dave

[stormspotter]

I plan on trading for one, if one ever comes in locally.  I tried to get 2 local dealers to order one of the new style Stevens 200 in 223.  They both said that I had to take what they had on hand, old style, or nothing.

From what little I have read about them, the new magazine, straight line not staggered, improves the feeding of the smaller sized cartridges.

[wsmitty01]

My wife's 7-08 came with new cleaner stock and also centerfeed....still i buggered it up, painted it, put on karsten cheek piece, filled the forearm and bedded the action.

[LaOtto222]

Just about every rifle I own has been "customized" one way or another, just can't help myself.

[stever]

It's not the best picture, but I noticed the stock change as well.  The new stock (bottom) is slightly narrower and has what looks to be a a blanked out area for a magazine, just forward of the trigger guard.  The parting lines (molding seams) are less pronounced than my original. 

The top rifle is a first run 223 Rem.  The new rifle is a 243 Win.

[rickt300]

How well do the new centerline stocks fed the 223 cartridge? I had a 110 that had heck with the long action and feeding well.