I'm posting some detailed pictures for constructive feedback. After looking I see the following.
1) The wood on each side of the barrel is still too thick
2)The wood on either side of the floor plate should be reduced and tapered to match the plate. Soften the front transition and move reward.
3)Soften the rear darts and alter them so the right side crosses just under the rear edge of the bolt groove.
4)Remove some wood behind the tang to improve the transition.

looking good!!! the barrel might be a hair above middle point at the tip.

bastogne?

you get a package from me?
jeffe

quote:

the barrel might be a hair above middle point at the tip.

What color hair? I'm impressed. Just measured. .37" above and .35" below. I had some finish&dust build up on the inside edge of the channel. Wouldn't free float. Few hits with 300grit and a dowel and it clears. .362" above and .358" below. I have clearance below. I'll check the front of the action before I bed it.
Yep it is bastogne. Hard, dense and heavy.

Paul,
hmmm, i'll leave the hair color out!!! though I have an opinion!!

.020 difference? WOW!!! my eyes are getting bad, i thought it was less than 1/2 of that!!

jeffe

quote:

.020 difference? WOW!!! my eyes are getting bad, i thought it was less than 1/2 of that!!

Heck I might have measure wrong. But, I bet it was the camera angle that threw you off the additional .01"

looks good post some pics of the cheek piece.

Ramrod, the easiest way to check depth is to use a small square and insert the 90 degree corner in the barrel channel. If it is touching on all sides and if the wood touches the sides of the barrel it is nats ass.

You did a nice job on the forend tip shape.

You might want to round the stock into the sides of the rear tang and up along the sides of it. It looks a bit flat on the top.

When you shape the forend round it into the front tang and then you will end with another small dart where the tang flares out to widen at the beginning of the butt plate.

Chic,
It took me a minute but I follow the square. I'll check it. It is real close to half now. I floated it before I started finishing but after several coats of finish and mud spilling over it was tight in a couple places not allowing the barrel to drop in all the way. Truth be know channel might be a touch deep.

Thanks on the tip. Third attempt was the charm.

I agree 100% on the rear tang area.

There are small darts at the front of the floorplate. I need to move the rounding further back thus moving the dart back. Did you mean "floorplate" if not I don't understand the "beginning of the butt plate"

Ramrod, you can even use a flat file to round the front tang ahead of the floorplate at the same time you're rounding the wood. It'll move the transition dart a little further back and allow you to slim down the stock quite a bit.

quote:

you can even use a flat file to round the front tang ahead of the floorplate

The picture doesn't show it but the front tang has been rounded to about 1/8 in past the start of the tap on the floorplate. I just did a pi$$ poor job of the transition. I've got rounded metal hitting the wood then a flat portion of wood before the edge. I was trying not to have the metal proud to the wood and ended with wood proud to the metal.

Ramrod

Far be it from me to give any advice as I have only done a few myself, but I have to say that one thing that helped me immensely after my first botched job was to inlet the action first and then put the barrel on and inlet. By doing it that way I went from having all kinds of trouble to actually doing a passable job.

Question. Did you have that barreled action bead blasted and rust blued, or blasted and hot dip blued, or did it come that way?

quote:

Did you have that barreled action bead blasted and rust blued, or blasted and hot dip blued, or did it come that way?

Actually I did bed the action, the floorplate separately then added the barrel and then bedded it. I got a little ahead of myself. I thought I had the rough shape done enough to send the the barrel and action off to have it put together and blued. Now after getting it back I wish I had waited.

The barrel was mounted, chambered, bead blasted and hot blued by Mel Doyles in Idaho.