can you expand on this or give tell me more about it? I havnt ever really messed with Ruger rifles before even though I have a few. Thank you!
Free floating barrels and pillar blocking and glass bedding actions are all pretty well described various places online. Correcting the sear angle of the Ruger lockwork is also well described online, but should only be pursued if you’re familiar with this type of work, and comfortable with the idea of owning your own destiny.
For fitting Ruger bottom metal and free floating the mag box, as mentioned above, remove the mag box and first fit the bottom metal to the stock. This should be done when pillar blocking and bedding the action. The floor plate should ride flush to the stock, so if it is standing proud without the mag box installed, you know one or both ends of the floorplate are not inlet deeply enough. I prefer to do the finish inletting work, then skim bed the trigger guard and front “hinge” into the stock. Explaining it in detail makes it seem more complicated than it is - it’s just inletting. If the part isn’t sitting deeply enough, identify the high points and reduce them until it’s sitting deeply enough. Pretty simple. The ONLY complication at all is the floorplate moving forward as it moves down - and the penalty for going too far in this case is nothing; simply add bedding beneath (can bed with a shim or washer for desired height), so there really is “no harm in trying”.
Note: pillar blocking and bedding the Ruger action isn’t as simple as doing so for tube type actions with 90degree action screws. The Ruger process takes more steps. I go back and forth between setting the front or rear pillar first (both options have merit), but they largely need to be done one at a time, and then the action skim bedded at the end, rather than potentially doing it all in one fell swoop for a tube type action (which I still typically do in 2 steps anyway, but not 3).
Once the bottom metal is properly fit to the stock, floating the mag box is simple. There are three potential points of contact on the bottom edge - there’s a slight recess in the front of the box for the tongue of the floorplate hinge, another recess in the back for the tongue of the trigger guard, and finally, the side rails can nestle against the floorplate when closed. I generally fit the trigger guard first to ensure the top of the Mag box will continue to key into the action appropriately at the rear. Then I float the front recess for the hinge plate. I do both of these with hand files, exclusively. Once the front and rear are properly fit, I’ll test the floorplate fit. The floorplate should at most kiss, but really not contact the mag box. I use handfiles for this, as powertool options may take off too much material too quickly, or may not do so evenly (front to back or side to side).
Note: I prefer to remove the optic when doing this work. Less risk of bumps and bruises when dis and reassembling over and over to fit the action, better opportunity to lay the rifle flat on its back to work in the inlet, and better access to the port to observe and manipulate the mag box from the top.
If so desired, you can also then bed the magbox into the stock - free floating - by wrapping a layer or layers of tape on the sides and front of the box. I often do so, simply because I’ve bedded everything else, and it doesn’t take much time or effort. Just be mindful to not lock the mag box into the stock.
All of that text may make it seem daunting, but it should not be. It’s a quick and simple task. Blocking and bedding is far more tedious than fitting the mag box.
