Re: 7mm08 AI Light Hunter
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Toebuster</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Quick question, how strong is the filler material you use, and why not bed it in a stock that is already inletted?
Not questioning your capabilities or judgement, just curious.
Thanks. </div></div>
Our filler material has been tested to 338 Lapua Magnum. So far it has yet to produce a failure. Every bit as strong as what the major manufacturer's are using and I'll go on a limb to say its actually a little better in some regards because we get pretty particular in the application. As a result the porosity issue is almost non existent compared to others.
Why an uninletted blank? In every build I go to great lengths to photograph the final outcome of the bedding work. I obsess over it actually. Look at what any other builder does and decide for yourself if there is a difference. Look closely at the film thickness, the machined lines, the fit at the tang, the ejection port, etc.
I don't blast through a stock with a 1-1/4" ball endmill and call it an inlet. I map each receiver and barrel contour individually and use it to drive a fully surfaced model of the footprint it'll eventually occupy. Then I inflate it by .05" so that I know exactly how thick my bedding is going to be. <span style="font-weight: bold"> Nobody else in this industry does this.</span> We are the first. The intent is have a uniform thickness at every contact point. The reasoning is pretty simple. Mix up some of your favorite epoxy and spread it out paper thin and allow it to cure. Now beat on it with light taps and see how long it takes for it to loose its adhesion to the substrate. Now spread a layer slightly thicker and do the same. Which lasts longer? The thicker stuff. Go too far however and shrinkage becomes an issue since its a percentage based on the volume of material used. ALL resins have some degree of shrinkage. The good ones are less than a percent, but its still there.
I went down this path because I couldn't buy an off the shelf stock that fitted up the way I wanted. Some may call it BS, unnecessary, and foolish. That's fine. They can get work done at any number of other shops. There's a long list of folks fully qualified to build a rifle to their desires.
We also have our clientele that identifies with what were doing and believes in it. Just a different way to peel the skin off a cat.
Is it more expensive? Yes and no. If you as the consumer buy a fully inletted McMillan/Manners stock your going to pay somewhere between $600 and $850 bucks. Then I'm going to fill it back up, reinlet, bed, finish, and soak you for about the same amount.
IF however you contact us first or do the research and buy an uninle1tted blank you'll find that the 600-850 dollar stock is now between $299 and $600 bucks. We charge what we charge and your total out of pocket expense is right next to what you'd of paid for your inletted blank and pillar bedding offered by any other marquee gun plumber. The difference/justification is hopefully self explanatory with how the bedding/inletting presentation comes out on our finished work.
Last. I don't use Marine Tex. In fact I hate the stuff and consider it crap. I use a resin system designed for commercial boiler repair. The compressive/tensile strength, shear strength, shore hardness, and chemical tolerance far exceeds that of Marine Tex. <span style="font-weight: bold"> We</span> offer an unconditional lifetime warranty on our stock bedding. Were one of very, very few that offer this. To date, none have ever been returned in over 9 years.
Pretty good track record so far I think.
Hope this helps.
C.