I bought my wife a Rem. 700 with the factory synthetic stock and we have no complaints. The caliber is .30-06 Spfld. and the stock seems to minimize recoil. I know that is subjective, but this rifle definitely seems to be noticably less "punishing" than our others in the same caliber. The first load I tried shot right at an inch @ 100 yds., so I said "good 'nuff" and went deer hunting. The load consisted of RP cases, Win. LR primers, 50 gr. IMR 4895, Sierra 150 gr. BTSP bullets, in case anyone cares. I would definitely wait for the detachable box magazine if I had to do over. They are hard to find, but worth the wait, IMHO. No pun intended, IMHO. hehe [:D]
I have no experience with the after market stocks, so I hope this is at least a little helpful. I will buy more rifles with synthetics, especially for hunting, even though I LOVE walnut.