Free float or not.
I have this old custom mauser in 7mm06 made in Austria after the war. The walnut stock makes contact with the barrel for the entire length of the stock.(slightly less then half the length) Accuracy is marginal and when it heats up its all over the place. Who would be in favor of free floating the barrel? Or should I look elsewhere? The action is fitted very nice into the stock and is not loose.
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IMHO the stock if properly inletted should look like the wood GREW around it however the more burl grain in the forearm part the more likely the wood will warp as it gets hotter. If you are hunting with this rifle I would leave as is if target shooting I would get another stock and either pillar bed it or free float. 0 -
Are the bullet whole stacking? What do they do as it heats up? 0 -
Are you loading for it? How, and have you tried all the tricks? You might shim that last 1/2" of contact to dampen the osilations. Although I don't mind micro bed bbl channels, true works of art in fitting are a shame to lose.
While you at it you should seal up the mag box and the butt, I'd do the sling studs holes too.
My experience is skinny whip bbl always shoot patterns.0 -
mto7464,
First, you need to decide how much accuracy you need. To me, "all over the place" is still well within hunting standards.
As Perry said, if it's a hunting rifle leave it. However, I'm not one who enjoys bullets 'walking' all over the place.
My suggestion is to bed the rifle with shims holding the action up .020"-.030" some where where the bedding compound isn't touching. If it walks all over the place then it's the barrel and needs changed anyway.
FWIW, a lot of older stocks were made this way. Especially the Mannlicher style. We now know, what we didn't then, that the barrel is best held off the wood. The wood can warp and push the barrel or the barrel will heat up and press against the wood, changing point of impact.
Bottom line for better accuracy, get the barrel off the wood, even though it may look really nice. If it'll work for you hunting, and you like the way it looks accept what you have for what it is. In this, disappointment is your quarry getting away. Not a 3" group when you want 1".0 -
To answer a few questions:
Accuracy is okay about three to 4 inch groups at 100 yards but POI does change with temp/humidity.
As far as getting hot, I was working up some loads, it was a hot day, 90 at least. This rifle has a light weight barrel and once it started getting hot the groups opened up a lot but I do not remember a pattern to it.
I have tried several loads and narrowed it down to what I am shooting now but by all means have not tried them all (who has other then BR guys). One load was as bad as 5-6 inch groups at 100.0 -
It needs to be pillar bedded, and have the barrel free floated. You have to do both to get the results you are looking for.
Best
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quote:I don't know as it needs pillars , but bedding and floating won't hurt it .
No sense in just bedding, unless it does not have bottom metal. As long as you are bedding, pillars are not that much more work, and enhance stability and rigidity of the whole platform.0 -
I don't know as it needs pillars , but bedding and floating won't hurt it . The 03 provides it's own pillar in the front as part of the floorplate assy. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by oneoldsap
I don't know as it needs pillars , but bedding and floating won't hurt it . The 03 provides it's own pillar in the front as part of the floorplate assy.
When I was working at High Tech we built and bedded hundreds of guns, I know of only ONE which did not shoot better after it was bedded and floated (properly).
What was said above applies.[8D]0 -
After free floating, seal the wood so as to keep humidity from warping the stock.
A rifle isn't much good if it wont shoot.0 -
mto7464,
This answer may be a little tedious but I want to cover the variables with process.
"IMHO the stock if properly inletted should look like the wood GREW around it..."
This is all well and good when you have to stick to the absolute classic formula for stocking big game rifles. But it simply doesn't work when the barrel and wood are not stable (stress-free) to begin with, then gets subjected to humidity and temperature fluctuations. It might be impressive for looks but function definitely suffered. Craftsmen and wood services were much more careful about which blanks were used and when in years gone by.
"...however the more burl grain in the forearm part the more likely the wood will warp as it gets hotter."
Usually Burl is reserved for the butt stock area and straight grain or nearly so (semi-fancy) was allowed for the forearm. This was the balance required to attempt to control the stresses found in the exhibition grade claro or burls. The highly figured wood could unleash the stresses at any point in time when the stock was being worked or even after it is finished.
I've lost only two stocks in a couple of dozen years to stress. One was a Harry Lawson exhibition maple stock made for an M98 Mauser with a full octagon barrel. It was made in Tucson (dry) and shipped to another area also known for dry weather, completely finished. After a little over two months the stock twisted and broke through the wrist and the action area rendering the stock useless. The second was an extra lusso exhibition blank of claro which I did the basic inlet on and then put it aside to stabilize as I always do. It too, twisted in the action area and was useless. Both the stock and the blank came to me dry and were used in an equally dry environment.
If you have to keep the wood as your primary stock, I suggest that you relieve the barrel channel then bed the action on pillars as suggested. Have the gunsmith pay close attention to the space between the magazine box and the bottom of the action when setting up the pillars. Be sure to have the barrel channel sealed with thinned clear 2-part epoxy like Acraglas from Brownells. Also be sure to seal areas such as under the recoil pad and in the magazine/bottom metal area.
If you want to solve both problems, have the barrel replaced with a new stress relieved barrel before doing any bedding.
The best of all worlds would be to remove the wood stock (save) and pillar bed the action with a new barrel attached in a modern fiberglass stock. This will surely cure all of the problems you seem to be getting. I understand the expense but if you really want to solve the problems, this is the best solution. You can always go back to the wood stock if you choose to sell it as originally built.
Best.0
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