I have a custom stocked Ruger RSM in 300 wby. When I purchased the rifle I pulled it apart to look at the bedding. It was bare wood. I have since sealed it and I also relieved a small amount of wood from the back of the tang by slightly undercutting and scraping so that it is not visible from above. On these Rugers, the tang has a radius on each side which reduces the width of the tang (similar to the clover leaf tang on a M70). I did not relieve these spots and my question is, should this area be relieved slightly as well? I have also read that torquing the front guard screw to 90 inch lbs (corrected from ft lbs!) is necessary. Would appreciate your thoughts. JB

I would spot it in and assure you have good contact under the ring and back of the recoil lug as well as under the tang where the rear screw is. That should be 90 inch lbs, not ft lbs. It would be 8 ft lbs.

Head bolts on WW2 Jeep engines are only 65 Foot Pounds!
I glass bed the rear tangs, and of course, recoil lugs and the first two inches of barrel.
Ain't had one fall off yet.

Generally speaking, the rear of the recoil lug should contact. Every other rear surface should have some clearance. Bill

I do, have done a few ruger 77s. I bed front (recoil lug area) 1 to 1 all the way around. Drill bolt hole out so that epoxy creates a pillar. torque to 45-inch pounds, take rear to 25, if barrel moves, (using dial indicator) I go up 5-inch lbs., then continue 5 at a time till no movement in barrel relative to stock. Have yet to go past 65-inch lbs. I always relieve rear tang by two layers of electric tape.

I've read the 90-inch lbs thing, but it seems excessive for one of their wood stocks to me.

Screw one down to 90 on wood, leave it in the safe for 6 months, take it out and check it and it won't be 90, wood compresses.

Thanks for the input and of course I meant 90 inch pounds! Can't believe I put ft lbs. I know when I pulled apart a .270 with a wood stock the screw as a bugger to loosen. My little torque wrench only goes to about 60. It is a wheeler. I have heard of Rugers cracking at the rear tang on occasion.

I never use a torque wrench, on rifles; (just on engines); I know how tight is tight, and with a walnut stock, torque will change every month, depending on your humidity. Even when glass bedded.

quote:

Originally posted by Bill Leeper:
Generally speaking, the rear of the recoil lug should contact. Every other rear surface should have some clearance. Bill

Well..I'd call that sloppy inletting! There are plenty of surfaces available for robust contact..,thereby spreading recoil forces over a larger area Just look and analyze.. Careful inletting is the key...

wanna bet it was 90 INCH/LB? no, wait, i see that's been corrected.. i've built engines with less than 90 ft'lb specs!

I rarely disagree with Bill, but on this one I do - NOTHING in the vertical rear radius should TOUCH the wood -- this is a #1 cause of "chips flying" on big bores - the flat should fully contact ..

i have a longish story about the $100 1903, but let's cut to the chase, I used "Steel stick" to spot bed the front and rear lugs into a bishop stock, went from 3+ to 1.5+ in 30 minutes