Ruger American Rifle - Bedding Boyds Laminate Stock

[BLOODHOUND BRO]

I know the new Ruger American Rifle isn't a long range rig by any means, but I won one at my local Mule Deer Foundation and figured I'd at least try and get it to shoot decent. Gun shoots about 1.5 MOA (after extensive load development, ±3 MOA with factor ammo) if allowed to cool completely after each shot. Any string creates major flyers.

The stock is a piece of junk, so I ordered a Boyd's (only aftermarket stock i could find). I'm curious if anybody has done any bedding work on a Ruger with the "v blocks". I am thinking of just bedding the v blocks into the stock and calling it good, but wonder if it wouldn't be a better idea to bed the entire action to the stock. After bedding, I plan to enlarge the barrel channel to achieve a little more free float.

I know it is a long shot, but if anybody has tinkered with this, I 'd love to see pics and hear about your learnings.

Thanks,

 

[Litehiker]

Bloodhound,

The Ruger American rifle can be a very long range rifle depending on what it's chambered for. Both my RAP and Ruger Precision Rifle are chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor and they easily shoot accurately out past 1,000 yards with good ammo like Hornady ELD-X and ELD-M.

Your not-so-good accuracy is not the norm with Ruger American rifles. Usually they are fairly accurate.

I have a 6.5 CM Ruger American Predator. I found that, like my Ruger Precision Rifle, it has a cold hammer forged barrel with 5R rifling.Mine will shoot 3/8" at 100 yards with the plastic stock and a bit more consistently with the Body's Classic stock.

My gunsmith said there was not enough room on my Boyd's Classic stock for traditional pillar bedding. Boyd's does not give us a full pillar as Ruger does. Ruger's is a Y-shaped combo recoil lug and pillar (two of them, actually). A Ruger Y pillar is not long enough for the Boyd's stock.

So my gunsmith said the washers I used under my action bolt heads was good enough in the quite hard laminated stock. I used stainless washers to avoid rust. I a;so used automotive wax on the underside of my action for the same reason and because I knew it would last longer than a light coating of oil.

I switch between my 1 lb. lighter Ruger plastic stock for mountain hunting and my Boyd's Classic stock for coyote hunting. But it shoots a bit better with the Boyd's stock. Better recoil control I'd guess with the heavier stock. Boy that Classic stock with the fish scale checkering looks beautiful. For $35. the absolutely perfect laser cut checkering is a bargain.

Also I added a Timmy trigger and it's the best mod I've done on the rifle. It did shoot better with that trigger.

Eric B.

 

[BLOODHOUND BRO]

pillar (two of the

I was referring to bedding the Y blocks that come with the Boyd's into the stock to reduce any movement that might take place during recoil, not actually pillar bedding.

That's great your rifle shoots so well. After all of the reviews I have read, you should consider yourself lucky.

 

[Litehiker]

BTW, one of the reasons my RAP shoots so well is the Timney trigger I installed. It is THE best mod you can make to a Ruger American rifle. You will love it and it is money well spent. I set it at 2 lbs. for hunting.

My Predator version has a heavier barrel than the normal American rifles. I get no detectable "walking" of POI when my barrel warms up and that is likely due to being heavier and less susceptible to moving. Same with my Ruger Precision Rifle barrel.

Be sure your action is torqued to 65 inch/pounds on both bolts. IF you get a Boyds' stock you may have to shorten the rear action bolt to keep it from hitting the bolt when it is worked. I had to remove almost 1/4" from the rear action bolt.

Eric B.

 

[Dr. Vette]

I went on the wild side, and have trimmed the trigger spring on 2, soon to be 3, Ruger Americans. When taken to just under 0.6 inches long, and the sear is polished with a Dremel, I think that they feel just as good as the Timney I install in my friend's RA. I adjust them to 2# as well.

 

[HARPERC]

......That's great your rifle shoots so well. After all of the reviews I have read, you should consider yourself lucky.[............../QUOTE]

Well at least you didn't pay for it up front.

Some pretty credible folks have good ones, so they exist. The only one I've had in hand wasn't one of those.

Good Luck.

 

[BLOODHOUND BRO]

Noted on the trigger upgrade, but I actually think the trigger is decent. I have mine lighted down to what feels like 2.5-3lbs and it has a very clean break.

I take it you just left your v blocks as is in your boyds stock and bolted it up? I don't think the cheap plastic bottom "metal" could handle 65 in-lbs.

 

[Litehiker]

Sorry Bloodhound, I forgot to mention that I glued (bedded) the V blocks Boys'd supplied with JB Weld. Works very well.

Just be sure not to put too much bedding compound on the underside of the V blocks and also spray the underside of your action with PAM or some release agent in case some JB Weld or Marine-Tex or whatever bedding compound you use doesn't glue the action in permanently.

Eric B.

 

[7070yshot]

I was referring to bedding the Y blocks that come with the Boyd's into the stock to reduce any movement that might take place during recoil, not actually pillar bedding.

That's great your rifle shoots so well. After all of the reviews I have read, you should consider yourself lucky.

 

[7070yshot]

Com'n man. The RAP's and precision rifles shoot very well. Yes that green stock sucks but can easily be improved or use the Boyd's. I'm bedding 2 of them right now.
I'm not normally that guy but if you are not shooting 1MOA it's either you or the ammo. I currently have 6 of these rifles as I use them to train people to shoot long range. 1000y is frequently done by new shooters. You may have a bad rifle or again it's you or your ammo.

 

[Dentite]

I did it last winter. I really wanted an X-bolt Predator in .204 Ruger. Discontinued and couldn't find one. So I settled for a Ruger American Predator rifle in .204 Ruger.

Got the Boyd's stock and Boyd's bottom metal/magazine hardware. Nice quality, but kinda expensive when all said and done.

Got the Timney trigger for it which I really like and have in my other favorite hunting rifles.

I ended up just bedding the Y blocks into the stock, then in a seperate operation, I bedded the front of the action and the rear tang. Debated doing the whole action but was concerned about making it look clean at the top of the stock.

Oh and I bedded pillars below the Y blocks so the wood isn't being compressed when you tighten the action screws. I got them online, they were made/sized specifically for the rifle and the stock I believe.

Opened up the barrel channel a bit to make sure the barrel was free floated.

Took off the rail and put on my preferred Talley lightweight mounts. A nothing special VX-3 in 3.5-10. Looking to use it on predators vs pdogs so the 10x on the high end will be livable.

Shoots less than an inch so I'm happy with it.

Of course right after doing all this, a NIB x-bolt that I wanted in the first place showed up on the local classifieds so I bought it and as result, don't use this a ton. But I have two boys so extra rifles come in handy.

I had to do a lot of messing with the stock, the Y blocks, etc to make it all fit. Don't love the huge magazine, but oh well.

My first time doing any bedding work so don't judge me too harshly haha.

Hope that helps.

 

[Dosh]

Opened the barrel channel, bedded and installed a Timney on an American with the Boyds in .243 for my grandson. With some quality components the loads shot just under MOA. He is doing the hunter safety next so he can hunt next year. For the price these Americans are quite the shooters.

 

[Litehiker]

Pretty much how I bedded my 6.5 CM American Predator in a Boyd's Classic (brown) stock.
Now you need a Timney trigger. Your accuracy will improve.

Sold everything because I kept losing cartridges while hunting when bush snagged the bolt handle and opened it.
RUGER AMERICANS HAVE NO DAMNED BOLT LOCK! And they won't fix it B/C they say there "... is nothing wrong with the design."

 

[SEGARE]

I went on the wild side, and have trimmed the trigger spring on 2, soon to be 3, Ruger Americans. When taken to just under 0.6 inches long, and the sear is polished with a Dremel, I think that they feel just as good as the Timney I install in my friend's RA. I adjust them to 2# as well.

This is pretty much what I did.

I also opened the barrel channel and bedded a piece of all-thread to relieve the interference of the barrel on the left front side of the stock (this is a typical problem/location).

It now shoots MOA without trouble.