For me, it depends on the wood - laminate vs. hardwood, country of origin, commercial vs. surplus vs. rare vs. common, etc. It also depends on my overall plans for the rifle - BFPU, gloss black finish, etc.
What about you though? What do you like? Is this a Century build, and is the wood from the factory or has it already been refinished? Hungarians seem to favor the blonde finishes and I think they look best on these guns. If you're going for a darker finish, I've had good luck with the Rit dye & alcohol route (I have some rough "recipes" at home using blends of Cherry Red, Tangerine, and Dark Brown, if you're interested). I've also played around with Iodine stains, and have used straight Zinsser shellac (several coats), as well as Danish and Tung oil finishes. Lots of experimentation with mostly acceptable results. I usually seal all projects with poly, except when using shellac.
Also, if it's good Hungarian wood on there, consider leaving it as-is and picking up a spare furniture set to play around with. It's easy to stain light wood dark, but not so much the other way ... especially if you don't like your results.
Nice addition. Post pics!