TheReluctantCraftstronaut
Member
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2017
- Messages
- 1
Hi everyone, this is my first post here, but I've been a long time reader on the forum.
I have a sporterized mauser in .270 winchester that I got years ago. It came from the previous owner with a scope mounted on it and with cheap Federal power-shok ammo, I can get about 1 MOA to 3/4 MOA at 100 yards with sandbags. It's my deer gun and it is more than accurate enough for that, but I've been chomping at the bit to increase its accuracy as a fun project, so I'm posting here to bounce my ideas off you all, in the hopes that you'll help me refine my plan before I make changes to the rifle.
The side is stamped with Gew. 98 and some other marks on it lead me to believe it's Turkish. The remaining markings are covered by the scope base, which has evaded getting removed for now. Other than that, I don't have any other history.
First step is a new trigger. I have already purchased a Timney featherweight trigger and plan to complete the install first.
I also want to add a steel ferrule to the rear action screw, glass bed the action, and free float the barrel. I have performed none of these tasks before.
Plan:
Products:
Ferrule: Steel ferrule from midway
Epoxy: Devcon Plastic Steel Putty (1 lb)
Bedding Tape: 2" electrical tape
Release Agent: Johnson Paste Wax
Masking Tape: regular old blue masking tape
Clay: Generic modeling putty
Execution:
Use liberal amounts of past wax to allow release of everything.
Rear action screw: Drill action with a drill press to get a straight hole and use devcon plastic steel to set the ferrule in. Wrap some tape around the action screw to center it in the ferrule during curing, to help insure that it does not press against the ferrule when everything is cured in the stock.
Bedding: Bed only the rear action screw area, the lug area, and about 1.5 inches in front of the lug. Leave the mag well area alone and leave some of the original wood surfaces alone, to allow for a "reference" where the action will sit at the proper height while the epoxy cures.
Free floating: I plan to put epoxy down the entire length of the barrel channel to not only seal the wood, but also to provide a stiffer "spine" down the length of the stock, so relative humidity won't impact the free float much, if at all. I plan to put on two layers of bedding tape along the barrel where it is to be free floating. Then I will slowly inlet the barrel channel until I get about 1/16-inch of clearance between the tape and stock. This 1/16-inch area will be epoxy filled, and once the bedding tape is removed, I will have about a dollar bill's worth of clearance between the barrel and hardened epoxy within the barrel channel.
View media item 1133
Now for my initial questions:
1. Is there real value in using epoxy in the barrel channel, or should I shave it to free float only, then reseal the wood?
2. There are flat surfaces near the tang and recoil lug that the flat parts of the receiver sits on. Should I leave some of these flat areas untouched, so that the receiver sits at the proper height during the bedding process? Is there another/better way to orient the action, so it's not angled/binding in the stock during curing?
3. Should I leave the recoil shield alone and just chisel out the horizontal surface behind it? I'm assuming I need to leave that vertical surface alone, so the recoil lug sits right up against it during bedding. Is this correct? If not, how to I make sure the recoil lug is seated properly during bedding, if there's nothing solid for it to press against? Maybe this all doesn't matter, so long as the action screws are in, and not binding, but it seems like I need a way to make sure I have proper alignment of the action. Other than leaving some surfaces alone as a reference, I'm not sure how to do it.
4. In the photo below, you'll see an integral "pillar" where the front action screw goes. Should the top of this pillar come into contact with the bottom of the recoil lug, for proper alignment? If not, what is the proper alignment, so I can measure the correct length of the rear ferrule I plan to install?
View media item 1134
Sorry this post was long, just trying to cover all bases. Maybe this will be a good guide or a good warning to someone in the future as I go through this project.
Thanks!
I have a sporterized mauser in .270 winchester that I got years ago. It came from the previous owner with a scope mounted on it and with cheap Federal power-shok ammo, I can get about 1 MOA to 3/4 MOA at 100 yards with sandbags. It's my deer gun and it is more than accurate enough for that, but I've been chomping at the bit to increase its accuracy as a fun project, so I'm posting here to bounce my ideas off you all, in the hopes that you'll help me refine my plan before I make changes to the rifle.
The side is stamped with Gew. 98 and some other marks on it lead me to believe it's Turkish. The remaining markings are covered by the scope base, which has evaded getting removed for now. Other than that, I don't have any other history.
First step is a new trigger. I have already purchased a Timney featherweight trigger and plan to complete the install first.
I also want to add a steel ferrule to the rear action screw, glass bed the action, and free float the barrel. I have performed none of these tasks before.
Plan:
Products:
Ferrule: Steel ferrule from midway
Epoxy: Devcon Plastic Steel Putty (1 lb)
Bedding Tape: 2" electrical tape
Release Agent: Johnson Paste Wax
Masking Tape: regular old blue masking tape
Clay: Generic modeling putty
Execution:
Use liberal amounts of past wax to allow release of everything.
Rear action screw: Drill action with a drill press to get a straight hole and use devcon plastic steel to set the ferrule in. Wrap some tape around the action screw to center it in the ferrule during curing, to help insure that it does not press against the ferrule when everything is cured in the stock.
Bedding: Bed only the rear action screw area, the lug area, and about 1.5 inches in front of the lug. Leave the mag well area alone and leave some of the original wood surfaces alone, to allow for a "reference" where the action will sit at the proper height while the epoxy cures.
Free floating: I plan to put epoxy down the entire length of the barrel channel to not only seal the wood, but also to provide a stiffer "spine" down the length of the stock, so relative humidity won't impact the free float much, if at all. I plan to put on two layers of bedding tape along the barrel where it is to be free floating. Then I will slowly inlet the barrel channel until I get about 1/16-inch of clearance between the tape and stock. This 1/16-inch area will be epoxy filled, and once the bedding tape is removed, I will have about a dollar bill's worth of clearance between the barrel and hardened epoxy within the barrel channel.
View media item 1133
Now for my initial questions:
1. Is there real value in using epoxy in the barrel channel, or should I shave it to free float only, then reseal the wood?
2. There are flat surfaces near the tang and recoil lug that the flat parts of the receiver sits on. Should I leave some of these flat areas untouched, so that the receiver sits at the proper height during the bedding process? Is there another/better way to orient the action, so it's not angled/binding in the stock during curing?
3. Should I leave the recoil shield alone and just chisel out the horizontal surface behind it? I'm assuming I need to leave that vertical surface alone, so the recoil lug sits right up against it during bedding. Is this correct? If not, how to I make sure the recoil lug is seated properly during bedding, if there's nothing solid for it to press against? Maybe this all doesn't matter, so long as the action screws are in, and not binding, but it seems like I need a way to make sure I have proper alignment of the action. Other than leaving some surfaces alone as a reference, I'm not sure how to do it.
4. In the photo below, you'll see an integral "pillar" where the front action screw goes. Should the top of this pillar come into contact with the bottom of the recoil lug, for proper alignment? If not, what is the proper alignment, so I can measure the correct length of the rear ferrule I plan to install?
View media item 1134
Sorry this post was long, just trying to cover all bases. Maybe this will be a good guide or a good warning to someone in the future as I go through this project.
Thanks!
