Newbie Rifle Mod Questions

[bartman9]

Ok guys, I am a long-time bow hunter that just started rifle hunting last year (white tail deer). I have a Tikka 7mm-08 that I love. Never even considered doing anything to it until I started reading this forum. It has opened my eyes to a whole new world of modifying (improving) rifles. So I am hoping you guys can shed some light on a bunch of newbie questions I have about this.

1) Why replace the barrel stock? Does that have any effect on how the gun operates?

2) What is bedding and why is might that be helpful?

3) What is bottom metal and why is that important?

4) Beside looks, is there a reason to fluting the bolt?

5) What makes a trigger a good trigger?

I appreciate any insight you guys might have!

 

[robtattoo]

Before you get any answers to the above, ask yourself this:

Do you like the rifle & is it accurate enough for your needs (not ambitions, actual use)?

If you answer yes to the above, leave it alone.

 

[robtattoo]

To quantify my question, this is a rabbit hole I've been a loooong way down. I've dumped thousands into rifles in the last 10 years; modifying factory, full custom, the whole shooting match (pun intended) & these days, my go to gun is a factory standard Tikka t3x in .30-06 wearing a Leopold 2-7x32 scope & I've never been more confident in a shooting setup, out to 500yds on deer sized game.
If I HAD to sell all my guns but one, I'd dump all my custom stuff & keep this. In a heartbeat.

 

[bartman9]

Yes, I hear you! I am happy with the gun, but my engineering mind knows it could be better... (as he slips down the rabbit hole).

 

[swampthing]

Modifying rifles started out in attempts to improve accuracy. These days, modern rifles like the tikka come in a pretty accurate form as they are. I own one tikka, a left hand 270wsm. It shot .5" new but I couldnt leave it be. I had it bedded, trigger job and the stock painted for a custom look. The trigger and bedding made no changes to the already great accuracy.
Bedding is how the metal fits into the stock. In years past this fit was often poor which allowed the action to actually move in the stock a bit while firing. Not good for accuracy. Your tikka is well bedded.
The bottom metal is the trigger guard and floorplate. Your tikka has a plastic trigger guard and a clip.
A good trigger is one that doesnt "creep" as you pull it and doesnt have too heavy of a pull weight. Your tikka has a better than average trigger.
Basically your tikka is a quality rifle with no real flaws. If you get the urge to modify it I suggest custom paint or dipping of your stock for a "custom" look.

 

[robtattoo]

Yes, I hear you! I am happy with the gun, but my engineering mind knows it could be better... (as he slips down the rabbit hole).

The only thing I would consider changing on my Tikka (were I not me) would be the stock. Not to reduce weight, not for any cosmetic reasons, but purely to get a perfect fit to me. Luckily, the standard stock fits me as well as any custom. The fit of a rifle to your body & shooting style (just like the grip, weight & drawlength of a bow) is far more important to repeatable accuracy than the midst expensive barrel money can buy. I have a 6.5 long range target rig that I've sunk thousands into. The barrel & action are as close to perfection as I could afford. The trigger breaks like a glass hair. The scope is perfect for my needs. The stock........was a financial compromise. I had to literally take a chop saw & angle grinder to it. I had to bed it, add a riser, change the length of pull, grip angle, shape & thickness, camber (offset) & add weight for balance.
Before I did the stock mods, it was a 26" 1000yd gun. After the stock mods (everything else remained the same) I'm consistently shooting 9-12" groups (I'm obsessed, not talented!)

To sum up, fit is number 1. Everything else is jewelry & make up.

 

[OXN939]

Yes, I hear you! I am happy with the gun, but my engineering mind knows it could be better... (as he slips down the rabbit hole).

As stated above, most rifles made these days are made to be pretty darn accurate once you find a load they like. Most of the easier upgrades include fixing something about the shooter- for example, high end aftermarket triggers like Triggertech or Timney make it very easy to execute a trigger pull sequence consistently and without anticipating.

First thing that will probably increase the effective range at which you can achieve acceptable hunting accuracy is to make sure your optics and mounts are top quality, as even an expertly made custom rifle can only provide decent practical accuracy if these components are not up to par. It's not improving the rifle itself, but it *is* improving the practical accuracy of your rig overall. The difference between a top quality optic and whatever was already on your rifle will often improve this accuracy many times more than all the small tweaks you can make to accurize the rifle itself.

After that, you could look into a custom stock. Often, glass bedding these is standard. This basically means you inject resin (think epoxy) into the area where the action meets the stock to fill in any tiny voids and make the fit like a glove. As previously mentioned, this may not help your rifle's accuracy at all if it's already a pretty good fit. Youtube videos abound for this process, but word of warning, you want to practice on a junk stock if possible before doing the real thing. People glue actions into rifles permanently all the time while attempting this.

Have fun either way! 7mm-08 is a great caliber with which you can't go wrong.