My prefernece is for thumbhole stocks. If it is a heavy recoiling caliber I really prefer a thumbhole design. I think they help cushion the recoil a bit. I also like the hand/wrist position for the trigger pull it provides over a pistol grip. It also simplifies the stock bolt hole.
I think the biggest challenge would be drilling out the stock bolt hole in a non-thumbhole. Do you drill it first then carve the stock around it, or carve out your general shape then drill it out keeping it perfectly in line with reciever hole? I would be interested in how you decide to accomplish that task.
The fore ends are really just window dressing. A wide bottom and heavy design for bench or varmint shooting. If used for hunting, then something short and light. I've always wanted to go with a full length stock just cause I like the way they look.
Have fun. I too am jealous. Beautiful grain in a nice custom walnut stock is hard to beat.
Drilling the bolt hole is indeed one of the biggest challenges you will encounter. You need a 7/8" hole from the butt end to where ever you decide to have your bolt head. In the example below, I stopped the large hole an inch behind the pistol grip for additional strength, as the back side of the pistol is the thinest part of the stock.This stock requires a 5" bolt instead of the normal 4" bolt. I drill the bolt hole first, so that I have a square point of entry for the drill bit, and then shape the stock around the bolthole, helps keep the bolthole allignment in the correct angle. I made my first two stocks with a rasied comb and a rollover cheekpiece. Raised the top of the stock 3/8th of an inch, which allows me to use higher scope mounts, and get more clearance for the scope's ocular bell and the hammer spur.
Your next biggest challenge is the reciever fit, take a look at any handy stock you've got laying around, you'll need to copy those 4 curved angles, not nearly as easy as it sounds. Just sayin. Easiest thing to do is to practice on several scrap pieces, because if you make a mistake on your stock, you're gonna come up short. Of course, you can always add more wood and start again, but it will look odd, unless you use a contrasting wood like in my example. Easier to practice.
The forearm is'nt a piece of cake either, as the reciever end
HAS to be square with the reciever and barrel, otherwise you'll have a sloppy fit, also the mounting screw hole HAS to be the correct distance from the reciever end, also to keep the fit snug, make a mistake here and again its add a spacer, as I did on my example below.
Hope this helps give you some idea of what you will encounter. If you need any more help/ideas, PM me and I'll be glad to offer what help I can. The woods used here are California Redwood Burl and Oregon Golden Myrtle.
