New Savage Axis owner wanting to swap stock, bed, and add pillars

Hey everyone,

I got my first modern bolt rifle couple days ago; Savage Axis .223 with bull barrel (I started with WWII bolt rifles). I really want to change the stock, and perhaps try bedding it and adding some pillars to it (because the internet says it accurizes the rifle)

I am currently looking at Boyd's Pro Varmint (Which I believe it was used to be called Tacticool), bedding that, and adding pillars to it. I watched a lot of videos on how to bed an action (was planning to do it to a Mauser 98) but the difference with the Axis is the separate recoil lug piece and something about the rear tang. I haven't seen a write up, video, or some kind of documentation on how to properly bed an Axis action to a Boyds stock.... Can anyone please point me to that? or help me out?

Likewise with the pillars... Will the Savage 110 pillars work with the Axis? or do I have to get some kind of piping and cut it?

Final question... so I'm really new to bolt rifles (always been a semi auto guy); action bedding sounds like shaping the stock and tailoring it to the action so it has a stiffer fit, and pillar bedding sounds like you add pieces of metal to wood (or polymer) and when you screw on the action to the stock, you get a consistent (or more consistent) torque on the screws. Is that correct or am I off? haha.

I am planning to shoot perhaps 500 yards absolute MAX. Usage... I'd say 60% 100-200 yards, 35% 201-350, 5% 500.
If i'm shooting 100-200 yards most of the time, I'm wondering if it's even worth it to bed and/or add pillars.

Anyways, thanks for your time and help!

Here is one approach. I do something similar but only bed from the recoil lug back in the front.

Pillars can pretty much be anything metal and tubular. I use 1/8" brass pipe; others typically use lamp rod. I suspect pillars manufactured for Savages that aren't Axises in stocks that aren't Boydses will not be right choice for this application, but I could be wrong.

Thanks for the reply DrThunder88! When you say only bed from the recoil lug back in the front, do you leave the entire recoil lug alone and bed around it?


In the linked post, it looks like the guy tapes the lug with the action... and he installs the action with the epoxy, then some how later, it's untaped with some kind of modeling clay around it. That part confused the crap out of me haha.

I also don't know what that piece of rod that's on the action (front screw?) I wonder if anyone has the link the OP is talking about regarding the 80 photos and instructions.

EDIT** Does anyone know what the length of pillars are for the Axis?

I put two layers of masking tape on top and sides of the lug, leaving the front and back bare. Then I build clay dams on both sides, reaching over the rails of the stock. Finally, I put a third dam in front of the magwell. The rear bedding is harder to explain but almost as easy to do.

The pillar lengths are going to be something you should measure yourself with dial calipers used as a depth gauge. Off the top of my head, the lengths for an Axis in a Pro Varmint are about 0.3" for the front and 0.9" in back.

The rod you mention is what I would refer to as a "stud". It's just a 1/4-28 screw with no head so it can be inserted from the top. Mine were made from hardware store bolt with the head cut off and that end beveled.

What is the stud used for? To line up the action when you bed it to the stock?

Is it a bad idea to screw in the action to the stock when I'm bedding it? (If so, why is that?) I saw couple methods, one is the rod (which I am assuming right now, is to line up the action + stock), wrapping tape around the front + rear of the action with electrical tape, and the third (which I saw from rem 700, mauser, or mosin bedding videos) is to use the screws to secure the action to the stock as if it was being assembled normally.

Regarding the clay dams, is it to cover the front/rear part of the recoil lug to "fill" the recoil lug part of the stock? or I'm not sure what the purpose of the dam is for.

Thanks so much! I'm learning a ton

the stud is used rather than the actions screws because the whole objective is to prevent any kind of binding of the action. Theoreticaly, if you use the action screws, you will / can cause stress or binding when you tighten them down into the epoxy. Instead, if you use studs, you simply press the action into the epoxy, hold it in place with electrical tape, and let the studs guide it into place. THe epoxy will then set against the bottom of the action and form into the action's "stress free" shape.

Putty is used to keep any epoxy from seeping into areas it's not intended (into the action) or flowing away from the action, down into the barrel channel. Ideally, there's just enough epoxy to spooge out over the top of the stock along the sides of the action, not flowing away (down the barrel channel or the trigger area) leaving voids under the action.

I don't know if I am explaining it well. But using action screws will almost certainly impart some binding, defeating the purpose. In the end, you can be pretty sure you have a stress free bedding job if, when you finaly use the action screws to assemble the finished product, they spin freely then suddenly STOP when its tight. If they tighten gradually (maybe a 1/4 trun or more of gradual tightening), you can assume there's binding going on. Relieve the top portion of your bedding material and try again. I have been known to try 2-3 times before I get a truly stress free bedding job.

Okay so I might sound dumb, if one is using tape, guiding rods/studs then let the epoxy dry, won't that theoretically make the dried epoxy "bigger" than it needs to be to fit the action when it's screwed on?

I knew I wasn't being clear. Sorry.

after relieving the stock where necessary (make the recess larger than original, your intention is to resurface it all with expoxy.) and making dams where you want to keep epoxy from seeping past.

1. strip clean the action.
2. apply tape to sides, front and bottom of recoil lug. (2 layers might be better than 1)
3. put guide rods in place of action screws. wrap thin layer of tape around guide rods.
4. test fit. Rods should slide into the pillars smoothly.
5. apply release agent to entire action, and guide screws making sure it goes anywhere the epoxy might touch.
6. put epoxy into the recess
7. In one smooth motion, ease the barreled action into the epoxied stock. Press firmly and do NOT lift the action back out or away from the stock or epoxy once you start.
8. use electrical tape to hold the action in place. (Press the action into place, wrap electrical tape around the action and stock so the action is held where it should be when done. The epoxy tends to push it back if you don't secure it with bands of tape.)
9. wipe away any seapage/spooge. Q-tips and patches wetted with wd-40 helps clean it up. Keep checking for more oozing epoxy and wipe away as necessary. Once the epoxy sets, its almost impossible to remove without damaging the stock.
10. let set for 12-24 hours, depending upon epoxy's instructions
11. remove tape and pull the barreled action from the stock. With any luck, the epoxy will have set with a perfect impression of the underside of your action.
12. remove the guide rods.
13 clean everything up.
14. install action with action screws.
15. notice how the screws behave. If they don't turn easily then stop, there's a problem. Said another way, if they gradually tighten, there's a reason for that. Most likely the action is binding in the stock, which is precisely what you are trying to correct in the first place.

One final step, that probably isn't necessary, but I do it anyways because I want to be CERTAIN the action screws are free floated...

(only because I use lamp rod, and the internal diameter is a kind of small), I ream them out a bit before my FINAL reassembly.

I heard I should fill the notches on the end of the barrel with clay/putty is that true? apparently itll create a mechanical lock if I don't.

and for the pillars, are they supposed to touch / float the action? or is it just for the stock/wood? (so if it doesnt float the action, the epoxy would I'm assuming)

thanks so much

Sure, the notches can be filled. If they are aligned "just so", I suppose they could cause a mechanical lock. However, I try to keep the epoxy behind the nut anyways.

As for the pillars, they should be the exact height you want the action to be when done. I purposely cut them a little long and then file, grind, whatever is necessary until the action is at the right height. I also keep them flat on top. Then. after the epoxy is poured and sets up, the epoxy fills the gap between the upwardly curved bottom of the action and outer edges of the pillar. The only role pillars play is to prevent the action screws from compressing the stock material when tightening the screws. or, allowing the wood to expand and contract against the screw causing stress. Having said that, before I add the epoxy, they ARE acting as a temporary support structure for the action. The DO offer a reference/stop point at which I "hit" or press the action against when pushing it into the putty. Once it has hardened, though, the pillars don't do much as far as supporting anything. It's all the bedding at that point.