Stock questions and bedding plastic ones

First off I'm really happy with the accuracy of my 12FV. Got it dialed in and shooting out to 1220 yards the other day and everything was right in the world.

I'm fine with the factory stock, but a little surprised by how much the POI changed when I took it off and out it back on. It was all dialed in hitting bullseye at 100, and after taking off the stock/putting back on, it shot to the right a couple inches forcing me to have to re-zero. Shooting long range requires a solid zero otherwise you're dope is useless.

I called around to ask about some stocks made by a local gunsmith. He touted his custom stocks as being better than most because aluminum blocks cause POI changes with heat/temp changes. All great info, but he sells his stocks for $600, double what I paid for the gun in the first place!

That led me to look at some aftermarket stocks within a reasonable price. Not a fan of Boyd's laminate stocks so ruled those out. B&C seem alright but way too heavy for an already heavy gun that I plan to hunt with. Some other options out there but starting to get into the $400 and up range.

That gets me to my next course of action, bedding the cheap plastic stock. Have you done it? Did it work and stick to the plastic? Can you maintain repeatable POI when removing the stock and putting it back on? I've done a little research and seeing mixed results.

It's not the end of the world, I mean realistically I won't have to remove the stock very often and now I know that can cause a POI change. Just want to see if there are some tricks to getting consistent POI hits if the stock has to be removed and put back on without re-zeroing.

I've thought of doing the lug on my 12 FV. I'd have to build a dam for the bedding material but I don't see any negatives to it,

Like you, I've been looking around for an aftermarket stock . There's a lot of choices out there.....

Did you torque the stock after you put it back on ? I was playing around with torque and found my groups moved quite a bit.

Yes, I should have mentioned I used a torque wrench each time I removed/replaced my stock and always used the same procedure and set them to 35 in./lbs.
I imagine once it's put back and re-zeroed you're good, but I am more than willing to work a little to try and make sure that POI changes are minimal to non-existent when removing the stock for any reason.

It's been my experience that JB Weld at least does not stick that well to the plastic stocks. So be sure to drill some holes at right angles to get a secure mechanical lock between the stock and epoxy. Looking at one of my 12FVs it seems like it would be easy enough to get a front lug done. To date I have put my actions in various aftermarket options and have not tried to use the OEM 12FV stock.

Try upping your torque. I use 45 in-lbs (plain 'ol M11 plastic sock) and see that others here use considerably more.

I also had to remove some plastic and add some heat to get the forend clear at the tip. After you reseated the action do you still have clearance around the barrel?

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Originally Posted by Stumpkiller

Try upping your torque. I use 45 in-lbs (plain 'ol M11 plastic sock) and see that others here use considerably more.

I also had to remove some plastic and add some heat to get the forend clear at the tip. After you reseated the action do you still have clearance around the barrel?

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Barrel clearance never seemed to be affected. Still space between stock and barrel before and after stock removal each time.
Keep in mind it's a decent POI change, easily enough to warrant re-sighting in. First round was a flier, likely from the gun settling into the stock. After that I had a good group, but had to adjust 0.5 to 0.6 Mils to the left at 100. That's about 1.8" off. Not terrible, but a big deal when you're shooting 1,000 and have your dope set.

I would bed the action, recoil lug and first forearm cavity in front of recoil lug. I'd use Devcon plastic steel epoxy from llocal hardware store. Float rear tang and barrel. Torque action screws to 30 to 45 lbs.

Unlike you, I'm a big fan of Boyd's stocks. I much prefer them over my McMillan stock costing five times as much.

I have numerous Boyd's stocks in several shapes and I'm quite happy with all of them. I pillar bed all of them and they all shoot well. The ones I use for competition do their fair share of winning too.

You say you're "Not a fan of Boyd's laminate stocks ..........." but you don't say why. Is it the look of the laminate? They have several grades of walnut and maple solid stock options with all sorts of checkering options too. They also offer some of their laminated stocks painted, depending on the model you order.

Boyd's has always delivered the exact stock I've ordered in around 10 days, one arrived in a week. My first and last McMillan took five months.

Boyd's offers the best bang for the buck on the market and for less than $150 you will have a big improvement over the 12FV factory stock which is perhaps the worst stock ever made by human kind. I think I could make a better stock with some corrugated cardboard and a roll of duct tape. I threw mine away because it's too bad to even give away.

I urge you to take another look at the Boyd's web site and reconsider.

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Originally Posted by Mozella

Unlike you, I'm a big fan of Boyd's stocks. I much prefer them over my McMillan stock costing five times as much.

I have numerous Boyd's stocks in several shapes and I'm quite happy with all of them. I pillar bed all of them and they all shoot well. The ones I use for competition do their fair share of winning too.

You say you're "Not a fan of Boyd's laminate stocks ..........." but you don't say why. Is it the look of the laminate? They have several grades of walnut and maple solid stock options with all sorts of checkering options too. They also offer some of their laminated stocks painted, depending on the model you order.

Boyd's has always delivered the exact stock I've ordered in around 10 days, one arrived in a week. My first and last McMillan took five months.

Boyd's offers the best bang for the buck on the market and for less than $150 you will have a big improvement over the 12FV factory stock which is perhaps the worst stock ever made by human kind. I think I could make a better stock with some corrugated cardboard and a roll of duct tape. I threw mine away because it's too bad to even give away.

I urge you to take another look at the Boyd's web site and reconsider.

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It's true I'm not a fan of Boyd's in part because of the colors. I didn't give them much thought, but after your post I went and looked on the website. I kind of like the varmint version and with an adjustable cheek piece, solid black option, and it comes to $200, which is reasonable.

I've heard some good and bad things about them.....I may pick one up and see what I think.

Are the barrel channels always easily free floated or do they require some work?
I'll also pillar and glass bed it, but that's pretty easy.

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Originally Posted by freediver111

Are the barrel channels always easily free floated or do they require some work?
I'll also pillar and glass bed it, but that's pretty easy.

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Every Boyd's I have bought (5 now) were free floated if ordered correctly. I do wish they were factory pillared though...

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Originally Posted by celltech

Every Boyd's I have bought (5 now) were free floated if ordered correctly. I do wish they were factory pillared though...

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Yeah, bit of a major oversight, but they are pretty reasonably priced. I could save some cash by foregoing the adjustable comb, but with a 20 MOA rail I needed one on my factory stock. Can't imagine I won't need one for the Boyd's so might as well add it.

I'll give it a shot for $200. Seems like a reasonable alternative that isn't super heavy. Some of the other options in the lower price range are just way too heavy for a gun I plan to use for both hunting and long range plinking.

Well, I bit the bullet. Placed an order for a Boyds Pro Varmint with the adjustable cheek piece and added a Limbsaver pad because I them.
For $250 shipped it's still the cheapest option out there. The equivalent B&C stock with adjustable cheek piece is $400.

I'm wondering what the weight will be in the end? I figure around 3 lbs? I imagine the cheap plastic factory stock is roguish around 2 lbs so not too bad of a weight penalty.

Now I'll just have to do a quick pillar and bedding job.