I have never hired anyone to stock a gun for me, but have always done it myself. Wood scraps off the blank you're using are invaluable in determining whether or not any stain is needed. Walnut will often darken up nicely, as in the photo above by SKB. I don't usually want it much darker than that. But, sometimes you need to match the forend, or vice-versa, when restocking and retaining either of the aforementioned. I am doing that right now to a Sterlingworth ejector gun. It required four coats of dark walnut, with a little even added to the old forend wood, to get the two pieces of wood to look like they came from the same tree. But, they do now.
I'd never leave maple as is. Many do, but I do not care for blond wood on a gun. Certain stains really make curly maple pop.
SRH
