Thanks Bruno, good advice. I go a bit hung up on the thought of making my own micarta for the scales but maybe I'm complicating the issue. The thought of some nice dark wood scales really appeals to me. If I do go down that route, what do I need to do to the wood to protect it. Would it be a case of applying a coat of beeswax or is there a product out there that better suited to it? I'm going to post this on the forum too as a question to get other opinions. Thanks again, you've just sent me in a whole new direction!

Pete