[SKS182]

Finally got around to putting a Ramline stock on my mini thirty. I got it because I had read that many times they are tight enough that bedding is not neccessary. "Tight" is an understatement. I finally managed to get it installed but found that the mag well ears ( don't know what else to call them) where being bent inwards by the receiver. Not the ears that the stock screws attach to but the forward ones. After playing around with it what I discovered was that the holes for the stock screws are set back too far by about 3/16th inch. Ok, so I elongated the holes which wasn't too tough. However, the heads of the screws sit flush in raised diamonds on the side of the stock. So I had to also move that cutout in the diamond forward the same distance. For that matter, I don't like the look of that raised diamond anyways but what are you going to do. I believe it's there to strengthen the stock in that area. Ok, so now I got the holes lined up. Well not exactly. I had to trim the shoulders inside the stock that the mag well sits on as the well protudes out of the stock towards the rear. So now I got the well installed in the correct position and screwed to the stock. I then got the rest of the assembly done. It was very tight in the area of the trigger but I figure that may loosen up over time. Actually, it already has. So it was off to the range today to try it out. Well guess what. The bolt will not cycle with a round in the mag. What I've figured it that the operating rod is binding at the front of the stock. The channel there is too thin so I will have to carve it out some. I had to squeeze the metal insert to get it into the stock so I'm sure that is the problem. The operating rod was also rubbing on the rt edge of the stock but I've elimated that problem by trimming. The rifle cycles empty but when it has to pick up a round the spring will not overcome the binding at the front of stock. So I was pretty disappointed. I had to assist the operating rod to get it to chamber. One other thing I also found out. My Promags barely fit into the well now. There are some additional areas within the stock that I will have to relieve to get them to insert freely. I'm sorry this is so long winded but I was pretty disappointed by all of the fit problems. I actually like the feel of the stock so I'll keep working at it. Anyone else have similar problems? Is there as much "fitting" on the Hogue stocks? More to follow....

Brett

 

[EdinKali]

Bret,

I had to do a fair amount of trimming with a dremel to get the magazines to fit properly(this is pointed out in the instructions for mini-30 owners, it is not required for mini-14's). I also had to do a little trimming up near the front end of the stock but I didn't have to elongate the screw holes as you describe. There was a small gap near the magazine well but I filled that with some epoxy recently for asthetic purposes but the gap didn't affect the operation of the rifle in any way. The tightness of the stock helped the accuracy quite a bit and I have been able to produce groups in the 1.10-1.15" range @100yds. with handloads and a muzzle brake.

Despite the trimming I needed to do i consider it to be very minor compared to fitting a custom wood stock to an action(most come 95% inletted, you have to finish the fitting yourself). If it were to drop right in, you would probably not end up with a very accurate rifle. I don't think I spent more than 5-10 minutes with the dremel and I was quite pleased with the results.

Ed

 

[SKS182]

Hey Ed,

You caught me whinning. Actually, the more I thought about it the more I realized that you were right. I should expect some fitting, etc. I think it was the fact that I have been so busy and hadn't been to the range in weeks. I know, no excuses, but the flu knocked me down for awhile and now I'm playing catchup at work. In any event, when things didn't go right after a number of hours getting it to fit then I was disappointed. I actually did all of my fitting with hand tools as my dremel does not have variable speed and I was afraid to use it. I'm in the market for a new one soon. With the dremel it would have been much quicker. In any event, I'll try some more corrections this weekend and see how it goes. Thanks for the hint on the epoxy in the elongated screw holes.

Brett

 

[raf]

Having fitted a number of actions to stocks of different manufacturers, I always install a stainless steel stock reinforce, heat shield, and stainless steel stock reinforce screws in each new stock, AND MODIFY THE STOCK REINFORCE TO FIT THE ACTION IN THAT PARTICULAR STOCK.
The stock reinforce is that stamped metal item that interlocks with the legs of the action, is fixed to the stock by one large screw on either side of the stock, and wraps around in a "U" shape inside the mag well of the stock.
So, the fitting of a new stock consists of two steps:
Installing and fitting the stock reinforce to the action, and bedding the action/stock combo.
Each aftermarket stock mfr seems to be a little different dimensionally. The differences in dimensions are accomodated by altering the stock reinforce to fit a particular action in a particular stock. Generally this is accomplished by removing metal from the reinforce so that it mates exactly with your unaltered action.

LEAVE THE ACTION ITSELF ALONE. MODIFY THE REINFORCE TO FIT THE ACTION.

Once you have properly modified the stock reinforce, it is a custom-fitted part. By that I mean that another action may not necessarily fit that stock with that particular reinforce installed. Might/might not. If you are an incorrigable stock-swapper, the answer would be to have a reinforce modified for each action, in each stock, and so marked.

The reason for choosing a stainless steel reinforce over blue is that no re-finishing is required after modification.
By buying a stock reinforce/heat shield assy for each stock, each one can be fitted to your action, and assembled as a unit. So, to change stocks you just drop-in your action and trigger-group on your pre-fit stock, and it's off to the races.
Costs a few bucks more, but the custom fit and not needing to switch out the reinforce and heatshield (remember, now, the reinforce is now a custom fitted part/interface between your action and its particular stock) is WAY well worh the minor additional expense.