Gunsmithing To re-pillar or not

[Insayn]

I have a McMillan A5 that has previously been pillared with Holland 2 piece pillars in Marine Tex. I am not fond of the 2 piece setup of the Hollands because the inner screw can loosen while loosening the outer. I am going to be getting a DBM bottom metal setup that includes a set of traditional style aluminum pillars. I want to drill out the Hollands and reinstall the DBM pillars. Does anyone see any reason I should not do this? What is the best method to drill out the old pillars? I was thinking of mounting it in a drill press with the appropriate size bit. The old bedding will be partially removed to skim bed a new barreled action into it.

 

[former naval person]

Re: To re-pillar or not

Nit picks. If solidly epoxied in...ain't gonna loosen. JMHO

 

[Insayn]

Re: To re-pillar or not

Its not the pillars in the stock that I refer to as loosening. Its the inner screws with the shoulder that hold the action down. The bottom metal is secured by another set of screws that attach to the screws with the shoulder. Its not a big deal, just peace of mind.

 

[Nocalphoenix]

Re: To re-pillar or not

FWIW I have run the holland pillar in a couple of 700s for several years and never had a problem with them loosening unless I wanted them to. I like the way it removes the bottom metal from the equation of bedding.