Bedding options for this action-stock combo?

zoeper

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 20, 2008
Messages
85
Hi guys,

I would like to improve the acuracy of my Steyer-Manlicher rifles by bedding them. There are however some problems with the design that makes it less than ideal.
sideview.jpg

Bottomview.jpg

1. The magazine box and trigger guard is made of plastic/ backalite making it almost impossible to torque them properly.
2. The action does not have the standard front recoil lug, but rather an protrusion at the rear of the action.
3. The magazine cutout in the stock is huge, leaving verry little wood in contact with the action in the middle section.
4. The safety runs past the side of the rear tang, making proper bedding contact there also difficult.
5. verry little wood remains between the action and the magazine box, so you cannot remove more than 1/16" to allow for the bedding .
6. the contact point between the action and the stock is minute, and you can see where the stock has gone shiney at this point (presumably from movement)
7. I beleive the stock has been weakened by the huge magazine cutout.

My plan of action at the moment is to:
1. Remove 1/16" under the front of the action
2. remove 1/16" under, behind, left and right of the rear tang.
3. Strip action, fill cavities with putty and coat with release agent.
4. tape barrel with electrical tape and devise spacer for rear of action to allow for alignment.
5. bed with epoxy
6. release, re-assemble, and torque.

If need be i can use the die grinder to clean away bedding if it interferes with the operation of the safety.

Any advice, input, cautions etc greatly apreciated.

Pieter
 
Wow! That IS going to be a project!

I can see some sense in the rear recoil lug as the the stock would most probably flex quite a bit if it had a front lug and for some reason the rear screw was not tight.

To make even more of a project I'd suggest pillars front and rear which should help with the torque problems.

I'm not sure of what I see at the bottom of the action but I'd be careful that the action not touch the bottom metal.

Your process seems well thought out which should help with any surprises that jump out.:D and they will.;)

If Manlicher means the stock goes to the muzzle, I don't any idea about what to do about that.

Keep us posted.
 
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(Fortunately ??) it is not a full stock manlicher and the barrel is floated. the clearance is little over 1/32 though, and with the huge chunk of wood removed from the stock, the forend is quite flexible. there is wear marks on the barrel from where the stock touched, so i also intend opening up there a little bit.

There are pillars of some sort (i suspect also plastic) imbedded in the stock. Maybe i should drill them out and epoxy in some decent Stainless or aluminium pillars. That would still not solve the torque issues, as i still have to tighten through the plastic mag housing.

Maybe for phase 2 i should make the new pillar ttetup as follows:

1. roughen up pillar outside and stock hole inside (posible fine threads or similar grooves) to allow for proper gluing.
2. open up mag housing holes to make them straight through and not countersunk (or one size up)
3.make pillars slightly longer, so that bolt shoulder tightens up against pillars and not housing, while stil retaining the housing. (this might require turning up new bolts)

Note: RHS detail should read "After"

243bedding.jpg


P
 
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Job done and it went much easier than i first thought. I opted to install stainless steel pillars as well, and as i drilled out the plastic ones, they just pushed out the bottom of the holes. Epoxied the action in the stock one evening and bedded the magazine box the next evening. I took it shooting the next morning and after two fouling shots i took two shots @110 yds. (one perfect hole) took it up to 165yds and printed a 1/3" group. Then up to 220 Yds and printed 1/2" for three shots with two going through the same hole. This was much better than what i expected, so to verify i took another three shots @220 Yds. This time it opened up to about two inches, but in an almost perfect horizontal line. considering that the wind was by this time pushing quite strongly in the direction of the drift on paper i am putting much of the blame on wind. Considering that i'm using a fixed power (6x) scope with the crosshairs covering just under 2"wide on the target @220, i reckon it to be mission accomplished.The cherry on top was that in Saturday's competition I was one shot from full score and that was a shot that i pulled just right of the score zone.I'm definately going to do my other one as well!Thanks for the advice RoyP
 
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