Gunsmithing

Hey guys, nothing here in the way of solicitation. (I'm usually behind 5 weeks ) Any questions or gunsmithing issues I can help with let me know and I'll do my best to give you my help (or at least my best guess ). I am heading into my 36th year in the trade.

Blessings and good hunting to all.

Bill McKay
McKay's Gun Shop

 

Hey thanks for the offer I think many here will appreciate it.

 

Thanks Bill, just as we have a resident wally from upsidedownland, it'll be nice to have our own resident 'smith. While I'm here, what's the inch-pound torque on the action screws for a Ruger .375 wearing a Hogue stock..?

 

gday bill ist wally from upside downland here, it good to have a smithey onboard , will definitely be borrowing your brain from time to time
please excuse doc he is lactose intollerent and it looks like he put jagermeister on his cornflakes again this morning at breakfast

 

Thanks for the offer, I may be taking you up on that now and then.

 

Sorry for the slow reply....appreciate the welcome . I swear this IS the friendliest bunch of blokes I have met on the internet! How absolutely refreshing.

Docman, regarding torque on your action screws. Couple of things ....any barrel blocks or pillars? Torque is a guideline or a marker. You can over-torque action screws to their detriment. Once you over-stress the screw threads, you have lost optimum pressure. Range can be from 18inch/lbs up to 45 or 50 depending on the action / manufacture and so forth. I personally use a method taught me as an apprentice ( re-iterated many times from the master over my career). I place my cheek against the top of the driver as I turn that last bit. I have learned to feel the torque or tightness of the screw. Now I realize that isn't a specific answer, but it's how I do this. The torque driver is a good guide to keep one from over tightening. Place a piece of paper between the barrel and stock to help watch for too much flex when tightening stock bolts. If it was loose and then it tugs as you remove it you either went too far or your barrel wasn't floated properly to begin with. Listen to the action as it seats, ( this bit is mostly for precision rifles) you can hear the action set in the stock material. It really is a feel thing. Hope this helps

One more quick bit, this may ruffle some feathers but here goes.......most modern screws, (specifically gun screws) are crap. This is my observation. Proceed firmly but gently. Make darned sure your screwdriver fits and is of decent quality. (They are getting poorer in quality too.)

 

Welcome to AH.

Damn, I just learned something again. Thanks.

 

I have a 338 win mag in a Rem. 700, I built the stock for it and the fore end of the stock is 6 " of ebony glued on to the rest of the stock I want to put a sling on it but I am afraid to drill into the ebony at the fore end to fix a swivel on it. Is it possible to put a ring on the barrel for the swivel or will this change the accuracy, or is it not recommended to do so for other reasons?

Thanks

 

I certainly wouldn't, I want my barrel free floating, anything tugging on that barrel is bad to me

 

Thanks, for the prompt answer. That is what I was afraid of. If I do drill the ebony end, should I drill it the size of the outside diameter of the screw then epoxy the screw into it that will hold the swivel? I am just afraid that the ebony will split if outward pressure is put on the wood.
Phil

 

Drill through and counterbore in the barrel channel. Use a nylock nut and I always put a washer for reinforcement in the counterbored hole. That way you never have to worry about it pulling out or splitting the wood.

 

Thanks, will do
Phil

 

Seeing as it is ebony and probably looks pretty darn good I might consider throwing a small plastic washer on the outside between the swivel head and the wood to minimize any crushing of the wood that might occur there.

Cheers,

John

 

I would want to know how well the ebony was fixed to the stock. My worry about fixing a sling eye to the ebony is that the rifle weight under some instances may be more than the joint can stand. A carefull walk has almost no real loading but stepping off any height (jumping or slipping) may load up the weight considerably. It is all very well having all the counterbore and washers etc but it is the joint between the ebony and the forend that will take the most shock.

 

First the barrel is free floating and the joint is at a 30 degree angle and when I glued the ebony to the other wood (the other wood is a pretty, wavy grained wood that I found in Africa, I only know the Gbaya name for it) I drilled several holes 1/2" in into both pieces filled the whole thing with epoxy and clamped them together. It has held for eight years but I have always had to carry it over my shoulder. Now that I plan to use it more I would like to have more possibilities for carrying it.

Phil

 

If the strength of the joint is a concern you can always move the planned location of the swivel back to the parent wood and not go through the ebony cap.

 

This would probably be the best solution though it would put it 6" back on the stop. I haven't done it yet because the rifle is in Cameroon awaiting my arrival there the first of Dec. I have the tools there to do it with. One other possibility might be to drill all the way back into the parent wood and put in a hidden burr. This might even strengthen the joint. I would have to weld a rod onto the swivel bolt and thread the end of it but that too is possible.

I appreciate all the help and suggestions I have received here.

Phil

 

You could always inlet a 6 in length of flat bar into the forend so that there was the majority of it was in the parent wood with good epoxy bond and a few screws. The sling eye could then be fitted into the ebony and if the bar was about a 1/4" thick then it could be threaded for the end of the sling eye stem and the majority of the weight would transfer back to the parent wood.
I always use at least 2 brass dowels (1/8" thick is plenty) with a good epoxy when I fit a forend tip

 

This would probably be a little easier than my solution. The main thing is that the strain is transfered to the parent wood.