Savage 116 Tupperware stock - Can it be accurate?

[TORCHRIDER]

I picked up a used Savage 116 flat back in 7mm Mag. The stock is a Savage plastic fantastic without any pillars. It doesn't seem to me that this can be a very accurate setup to just compress the plastic against the action. Is there anyway this setup can be accurate or should I be looking for a replacement? This is a hunting rifle, so .25" groups are not a requirement.

[foxx]

In my opinion, if you only hunt with it out to 300 yards, and don't use a bipod, it should be fine the way it is. Bedding is more for wood stock to prevent various temp and humidity from changing things. Plastic does not do that. Pillars are pretty important, usually. Most important, I think, is bedding the recoil lug.

[J.Baker]

That depends - how is it shooting as-is and are those groups satisfactory for your needs/intended use?

[GaCop]

That depends - how is it shooting as-is and are those groups satisfactory for your needs/intended use? +1, give us an idea of the kind of accuracy your getting now. With a little bit of work, the flimsy forearm can be tightened up to eliminate it touching the barrel. I'd make sure the barrel is free floated in the barrel channel and that the tang is free floated. Glass bedding the action may/ may not improve things but it definitely won't hurt either.

[wbm]

Savage 116 Tupperware stock-can it be accurate?

Yes.

[the continuum]

I still have my tupperware stock on my 30-06 Model 116. I used the Dremel and sanded the forend to make sure the barrel was free-floating. I also decided to try my first bedding job, since the stock was so cheap. That way, if I ruined it, I wasn't too upset. It turned out decent. The bedding job doesn't look that great, but it really stiffened everything up, and the rifle shoots much better. I also used some more bedding compound (Devcon) and steel rods in the hollow areas of the forend to stiffen that up as well.

Overall, I'm glad I did it. I learned a ton, and I now have a deeper appreciation for really nice bedding jobs. (Now I know that I'd probably pay a professional gunsmith to do the bedding on a stock I paid a high price for.) Plus, I do think it improved the accuracy of my rifle. It's shootting 1 MOA with factory ammo.

-Seth

[TORCHRIDER]

Thanks for the great feedback guys.