Ok so i bought a used stock that was supposed to be a bell and carlson mountain, which is a full free floating stock... but i put it on and ran a dollar through and found that near the front of the stock was touching. Upon taking it apart and inspecting things i realized that there are two pads built into the stock. I got on b&c's site and it appears to actually be an alaskan II. Wanting a full float i immediately grabbed the dremel but while deciding how i wanted to go about it i got curious and would now like to know if there are any benefits to having the barrel supported before i start grinding. I had noticed that the original stock also had them but i assumed it was to give the stock a point to rest against while loaded such as on a bipod to keep the stock from flexing any further. But with an aftermarket stock with very little flex i assumed it wouldnt have them and it appears to be putting a significant amount of pressure on the barrel.
- Thread starter Colt250
- Start date
And i forgot to mention i cant currently test the rifle to see how it does as it is now. Im working out of state so untill i make it home to my reloading gear i cant do much unless i run across any ammo locally which has been a loosing battle so far.
I am of the conventional wisodm of free floating a barrel. I just like the idea of no pressure points, I think with the vibrations during firing, you have more chance of throwing a shot off with pressure points.
I would remove the pads, but would not use a dremel to remove them. Use a socket and wrap sand paper around it.
I would remove the pads, but would not use a dremel to remove them. Use a socket and wrap sand paper around it.
If you know the rifle shoots well enough free floated then grind them off.
But...
Some sporter weight barrels shoot better with pressure on them. The problem with those bumps is that you don't know exactly how much pressure there is on the barrel. I would shoot it first at home to see how it shoots with pressure on it. Then remove the bumps, free float the barrel, skim bed the action and if you can't get it to shoot as well as you'd like, you can use a nylon washer or something else bedded to the stock to put a known amount of pressure back on the barrel. By using a torque wrench to refasten the action to the bedded stock you will know and control how much pressure you apply to the barrel.
But...
Some sporter weight barrels shoot better with pressure on them. The problem with those bumps is that you don't know exactly how much pressure there is on the barrel. I would shoot it first at home to see how it shoots with pressure on it. Then remove the bumps, free float the barrel, skim bed the action and if you can't get it to shoot as well as you'd like, you can use a nylon washer or something else bedded to the stock to put a known amount of pressure back on the barrel. By using a torque wrench to refasten the action to the bedded stock you will know and control how much pressure you apply to the barrel.
It's used to be a common way to bed a stock. Contact with the stock can reduce vibration and make a rifle shoot better. The trouble is that it's tough to make that contact consistent. If I were you I'd shoot it before grinding just to see how it does. If it's not really accurate grind away and see if it makes a difference.
Most factory Remingtons have a pressure pad up front, Tikka buts them about 3/4 way down the tube. Considering the barrel is not match grade, it "can" alleviate barrel wander by applying gentle pressure upfront. In some cases, removing the pressure pad will cause your groups to open up considerable, or your poi will shift a few moa after 3 shots.
I say stock it, set the actions screws to the correct torque and shoot it. Since it is a mountain stock, you are prob shooting a sporter barrel. You can just shoot a string of 9 (3x3) and see if the groups wander.
Here is a quote from the late Gale McMillan:
Posted: 01-08-2000 07:08 PM
Quality barrels will perform better free floated but poor quality barrel will perform better with a 3 to 5 lb fore end pressure. The reason for this is that
poor quality production barrels are not stress relieved and will tend to walk as it heats up. By putting fore end pressure you are actually bending the
barrel upward in an ark so that as the bullet starts down the bore it is trying to straighten out the gentle bow induced by fore end pressure and it holds
the barrel against that force. This causes the bullet to exit at the same vibration point shot to shot even though there may be a velocity spread. It is best
to bed the rifle with free floated barrel as it is easy to bed the barrel with fore end pressure should it not shoot free floated. Just hold the stock in a
vice and hang a 5 lb weight to the front swivel and put bedding material in place in the fore end tip and let set up. This means that free floating is not a
panacea and does not always help. Some do and some don't This is why all factory barrels are generally bedded with fore end pressure"
I say stock it, set the actions screws to the correct torque and shoot it. Since it is a mountain stock, you are prob shooting a sporter barrel. You can just shoot a string of 9 (3x3) and see if the groups wander.
Here is a quote from the late Gale McMillan:
Posted: 01-08-2000 07:08 PM
Quality barrels will perform better free floated but poor quality barrel will perform better with a 3 to 5 lb fore end pressure. The reason for this is that
poor quality production barrels are not stress relieved and will tend to walk as it heats up. By putting fore end pressure you are actually bending the
barrel upward in an ark so that as the bullet starts down the bore it is trying to straighten out the gentle bow induced by fore end pressure and it holds
the barrel against that force. This causes the bullet to exit at the same vibration point shot to shot even though there may be a velocity spread. It is best
to bed the rifle with free floated barrel as it is easy to bed the barrel with fore end pressure should it not shoot free floated. Just hold the stock in a
vice and hang a 5 lb weight to the front swivel and put bedding material in place in the fore end tip and let set up. This means that free floating is not a
panacea and does not always help. Some do and some don't This is why all factory barrels are generally bedded with fore end pressure"
I agree with previous statements. Try it with the pads. Much easier to remove them if it isn't consistent than the other way around. I suggest getting specs (torque, pad height/width, etc.) before grinding. In case removing them decreases accuracy. Then you can go back to near original setup.
I guess I should have mentioned. It's a rem. 700 24" sporter weight. I haven't shot it yet and I'm not expecting a tack driver, just a nice convenient hunting rifle. On my heavy barrel guns I ALWAYS free float so I guess I had it stuck in my head that that was better. I see how with the light barrel the pressure could help combat the poi changes do to the barrel heating up. I will leave it alone untill iv got some trigger time with the gun and see if it needs a change. And as far as not dremeling I will use the socket idea if it comes down to removing the pads, thanks for the tip.
I have the same stock on a 300 RUM I picked up. I had the same intentions you did with sanding the pads out but decided to develop a load and shoot it first. For a hunting rifle, it shoots just fine with the pads in there and I decided to leave them. I would definitely shoot it first to see what happens.
Vmaxed, since you mentioned you have the same stock how do you like it? Over all what do you think of it and how has it held up for you. Mine happens to be a 300 SAUM As I mentioned earlier I haven't been able to actually use it yet. But first impression just looking over the stock it hasn't quite met my expectations.
I agree 100%. I wasn't floored by the stock. The finish around the aluminum block was pretty rough and required some cleanup. It was however a big improvement over the tupperware stock and will work for what I use the gun for. I have another B&C stock that seemed to be "better" IMO as far as fit and finish.
If you do decide to float it use a dowel with sand paper wrapped around it. With a drenel you will most likely remove material too fast and not even. A dowel wrapped in sand paper running back and forth will keep it even.
Yes. A huge improvement! Not bashing on B&C. This is the first of their stocks iv owned. I just noticed several small things that for the price I didn't expect. For example a flake out of the finish. Now considering it's a used stock the damage was not an issue it was just that the nick in the stock was very small. But the area of paint missing was relatively large. It just seemed like the paint wasn't properly stuck. It's was in the barrel channel so no problem anyway. But it's going to be used as a hunting rifle and surely will end up dinged at some point and I just hope a small ding doesn't leave a large black spot on an otherwise good looking finish. Also my bipod stud seems to be off center. I didn't notice it untill I mounted my bipod which is a swivel model. The gun leans noticeably more to one side than the other. As far as the finish around the aluminum block I can't comment because mine had been inletted befor I got it. But I did notice a decent sized air pocket that the inletting exposed.
