Ranger412
09-08-2014, 05:02 PM
It would be best with pictures, of course, but I didn't snap any when I was doing the pillar install and glass bedding job. But, here's a step by step.
1. Pick up some lamp rod from Lowe's or Home Depot. Usually found in the lighting section. There are a couple of different sizes, I believe I got 3/8". I got it slightly oversized, I'm sure, for the action screws. But, the action is secured really by the recoil lug for fore and aft movement so the actions screws really just hold things down.
2. I enlarge the action holes in the stock 1/64" or 1/32" under the size of the threaded rod. This allows the threads to actually bite into the stock. By placing the stock upside down on the drill press you, in theory, should be keeping everything square. Drill out the two action holes.
3. I take a small section, say 3", of the lamp rod and make some vertical cuts near one end with a cut-wheel chucked in a dremel tool. This effectively makes this section of lamp rod a tap. I chuck this "tap" into my cordless drill and set it on low speed. Keeping everything square I drill (tap) out the hole in the stock. Now I've "threaded the hole."
4. I cut two sections of lamp rod slightly oversized, measuring each from the bottom of the action to the inletting under the trigger guard. You want to make sure that the lamp rod pillar is long enough to support the action to bottom metal distance.
5. Using the cut-off wheel in the dremel tool, I make a cut across the opening of the lamp rod on one end. This makes a screwdriver slot for adjustment purposes.
6. I screw the pillars into the action holes and make sure that they are proud within the inletting for the action. Using a deep-well socket about the size of the action, I wrap it with sandpaper and sand the tops of the pillars so that they're contoured to the action.
7. Measure the distance from the action to the inletting and determine actual length of pillar. I used the digital caliper I had with that depth measuring tool that comes out the backside.
8. Chuck the pillar into a drill press and lower the slotted end of the pillar onto a sheet of coarse sandpaper over and over again until the pillar reaches your desired height.
9. Re-install the pillar and test fit the bottom metal to action fit.
10. If you are going to glass bed, I leave the pillars installed and use a dremel to grind out wood around them. I make sure to make a mark on the bottom metal side of the pillar so that it installs again at the same height if I have to remove it.
11. You can remove the pillar and add epoxy to the threads to secure it in place if pillar-ing only. Actually, I didn't do it on mine and expected the glass bedding job to hold the pillars where they are. It doesn't, but at this point I don't want to remove them and they're currently doing the job I need them to without being epoxied in place.
11. Sounds pretty crude and low-tech, but for about $4 I am able to pillar bed a stock and have consistent torque settings.
1. Pick up some lamp rod from Lowe's or Home Depot. Usually found in the lighting section. There are a couple of different sizes, I believe I got 3/8". I got it slightly oversized, I'm sure, for the action screws. But, the action is secured really by the recoil lug for fore and aft movement so the actions screws really just hold things down.
2. I enlarge the action holes in the stock 1/64" or 1/32" under the size of the threaded rod. This allows the threads to actually bite into the stock. By placing the stock upside down on the drill press you, in theory, should be keeping everything square. Drill out the two action holes.
3. I take a small section, say 3", of the lamp rod and make some vertical cuts near one end with a cut-wheel chucked in a dremel tool. This effectively makes this section of lamp rod a tap. I chuck this "tap" into my cordless drill and set it on low speed. Keeping everything square I drill (tap) out the hole in the stock. Now I've "threaded the hole."
4. I cut two sections of lamp rod slightly oversized, measuring each from the bottom of the action to the inletting under the trigger guard. You want to make sure that the lamp rod pillar is long enough to support the action to bottom metal distance.
5. Using the cut-off wheel in the dremel tool, I make a cut across the opening of the lamp rod on one end. This makes a screwdriver slot for adjustment purposes.
6. I screw the pillars into the action holes and make sure that they are proud within the inletting for the action. Using a deep-well socket about the size of the action, I wrap it with sandpaper and sand the tops of the pillars so that they're contoured to the action.
7. Measure the distance from the action to the inletting and determine actual length of pillar. I used the digital caliper I had with that depth measuring tool that comes out the backside.
8. Chuck the pillar into a drill press and lower the slotted end of the pillar onto a sheet of coarse sandpaper over and over again until the pillar reaches your desired height.
9. Re-install the pillar and test fit the bottom metal to action fit.
10. If you are going to glass bed, I leave the pillars installed and use a dremel to grind out wood around them. I make sure to make a mark on the bottom metal side of the pillar so that it installs again at the same height if I have to remove it.
11. You can remove the pillar and add epoxy to the threads to secure it in place if pillar-ing only. Actually, I didn't do it on mine and expected the glass bedding job to hold the pillars where they are. It doesn't, but at this point I don't want to remove them and they're currently doing the job I need them to without being epoxied in place.
11. Sounds pretty crude and low-tech, but for about $4 I am able to pillar bed a stock and have consistent torque settings.