Here she is:
Her story starts with a real desire to shoot long range. Long range to me is 600 yards. I have had a hunting rifle sighted to 400 and killed to 300, but this was desired to be a bench rifle to practice and play with. The goal is MOA with room for improvement AT 600.
Rifle started out as a gift from my wife, a 700 308 Varmint ADL. I chose 308 for a bunch of reasons, but that's another thread. Anyways, it came from dicks in one of the camo sps stocks. I've only put 40-50 rounds through it but it has not been impressive. The stock has so much give it's like holding a noodle, and I knew that's where I had to start.
My Stocky's Long Range Composite
It's still a fresh wound, so let me just say, WHAT A POS this thing has been. Coming from an ADL, I couldn't find any of the stocks that I "wanted" without changing to BDL. Bottom metals... why are bottom metals as expensive as a whole rifle? It's a piece of stamped steel.... So, improvise I did. Magpul box mag setup for the Magpul Hunter Stock. Box mags are cool, right? So, after 32 sanding bits with the dremel, the "bottom metal" fit into the stock. Just slide the barreled action in and done right?
So, I set the action in. The safety is too short, binding on the stock. The action is canted, the trigger assembly tight to one side, with the trigger in a bind. The barrel is tight to the barrel channel on one side and a 1/8" gap down the other. Bolt won't close, rubs Stock. What In the actual "head explodes". The action is so canted the magazine won't insert. Pissed.
I study it. The spring and slider for the bolt release are rubbing the aluminum bedding block. Dremel it out. It's 5% better. I study it some more and enlarge the pocket for the safety, then dremel the top of the stock to allow more clearance under the safety. I have my wife look at it. Can't figure it out. Finally I put some playdoh in the recess for the recoil lug and try to twist the action to square, and pull it back apart. The recoil lug was holding it out of square. I don't know if the bedding block wasnt inletted (I made up a word) enough or if the block is not perfectly square in the stock, but either way... I couldn't get a bit into the inlet so I had to shave to lug. That's right, I dremeled the side of the recoil lug to make it fit into the stock correctly.
Boom. Success. Now the action is square, the barrel is floating (needs a tiny bit of love right at the recoil lug where the chamber swell is), and the safety is free, trigger is not bound. The bolt rubs hard when closing, I'll have to give it some love also. Assembly and paint photos coming.
Her story starts with a real desire to shoot long range. Long range to me is 600 yards. I have had a hunting rifle sighted to 400 and killed to 300, but this was desired to be a bench rifle to practice and play with. The goal is MOA with room for improvement AT 600.
Rifle started out as a gift from my wife, a 700 308 Varmint ADL. I chose 308 for a bunch of reasons, but that's another thread. Anyways, it came from dicks in one of the camo sps stocks. I've only put 40-50 rounds through it but it has not been impressive. The stock has so much give it's like holding a noodle, and I knew that's where I had to start.
My Stocky's Long Range Composite
It's still a fresh wound, so let me just say, WHAT A POS this thing has been. Coming from an ADL, I couldn't find any of the stocks that I "wanted" without changing to BDL. Bottom metals... why are bottom metals as expensive as a whole rifle? It's a piece of stamped steel.... So, improvise I did. Magpul box mag setup for the Magpul Hunter Stock. Box mags are cool, right? So, after 32 sanding bits with the dremel, the "bottom metal" fit into the stock. Just slide the barreled action in and done right?
So, I set the action in. The safety is too short, binding on the stock. The action is canted, the trigger assembly tight to one side, with the trigger in a bind. The barrel is tight to the barrel channel on one side and a 1/8" gap down the other. Bolt won't close, rubs Stock. What In the actual "head explodes". The action is so canted the magazine won't insert. Pissed.
I study it. The spring and slider for the bolt release are rubbing the aluminum bedding block. Dremel it out. It's 5% better. I study it some more and enlarge the pocket for the safety, then dremel the top of the stock to allow more clearance under the safety. I have my wife look at it. Can't figure it out. Finally I put some playdoh in the recess for the recoil lug and try to twist the action to square, and pull it back apart. The recoil lug was holding it out of square. I don't know if the bedding block wasnt inletted (I made up a word) enough or if the block is not perfectly square in the stock, but either way... I couldn't get a bit into the inlet so I had to shave to lug. That's right, I dremeled the side of the recoil lug to make it fit into the stock correctly.
Boom. Success. Now the action is square, the barrel is floating (needs a tiny bit of love right at the recoil lug where the chamber swell is), and the safety is free, trigger is not bound. The bolt rubs hard when closing, I'll have to give it some love also. Assembly and paint photos coming.
