JC's 2008 Semi-Custom slug gun project! (pics project descri

[jcchartboy]

Hey Guys,

As a number of folks may know in each of the past few years I have started working on some time of semi-custom project gun for myself. In 2006 I completely stoned and polished by hand a VZ-24 Mauser 98 action, while in 2007 I refurbished and customized a Browning A-Bolt shotgun.

This year I took on yet another project. In the series of posts to be presented below I will describe the project from start to finish, sharing what I have learned in the hopes that members might be inspired to take on some type of similar projects themselves in the future.

This year?s project was focused on solving a dilemma for all Savage 210 shotgun owners. The gun, which already shoots like a rifle, fails to handle like a rifle due to the unnecessary ?magazine? well that extends from the bottom of the stock. This mag wel, (as seen on the stock pictured below), was originally designed in order to make the capable of holding of three shells, (one in the chamber, tow in the ?well?). Realistically, with a gun as accurate as the 210 there is absolutely no need for the gun to be a three shot gun. In fact, after owning the gun for almost a decade I have never been in a situation where a third shot was presented to me and I would not have been able to simply reload the gun if I wanted to take.

Determined to resolve this problem and create a semi-custom gun for myself I set forth on the project that will be described below.

First however, let me say, as is the case with any project of this type there are any numbers of possible ways to reach the same results. So, while I will post the way I went about it, I am sure others can, and will, find many other alternative methods and improvements that can be adapted to this project....

To get started the first thing I did was to find a second Savage stock for my gun. This way, no matter what happened, I would always have a usable stock to fall back on. I was fortunate to find a camo stock for $35 shipped off ebay...

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

Next I went out and purchased a small Dremel tool kit to use for detailing work. I believe this kit cost about $15.

I later added an additional set of dremel 1/8 and 5/16 high speed cutting bits. These cost $5 each

Finally, I also picked up a deep throat copping saw for antother $5.

With these tools I was ready to start the project...

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

To begin the project I started by removing the mag well as close to the "body" of the stock as possible using the copping saw.

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

Using a sharp knife to "lift" the edges of the freshly cut plastic I then ground down the remaining mag well edges using the dremel rotary sanding bit.

As you can see form the final picture, if this is done slowly, only a slight roughing of the surface of the stock around the mag well should be apparent when this step is completed.

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

The next step in the project was one of the more difficult steps in the process. In fact, this is the part that most people underestimated when looking at the finished product.

In order to achieve the strongest, most rigid, bond between the new floorplate and the existing stock it is imperative to create the greatest amount of bonding surface and the greatest number of mechanical locks between the floorplate and the stock. That means that simply ?filling in the whole? in the bottom of the stock is not really a feasible option. In order to accomplish the job in a high quality fashion the best route to go is to actually inlet the existing mag well back up into to the stock. This means that the existing mag well piece that was previously removed needs to be shortened, and squared, to fit into the inlet once it is created. Then once that step is done, the actual inletting in the stock needs to be completed. The pictures below will show the actual process I went through to accomplish this initial phase.

(A key factor to note here; the dremel cutting bit can be used as a gauge for both the depth of the inletting and as a measurement for the final height of the mag well piece that will be inserted into the inletted stock section.)


JC

Initial trimming of the mag well section that was previously removed from the stock..

 

[jcchartboy]

Ready to start inletting the stock?.

Initial inletting?

Once the initial inletting is nearing completion, it is time to begin to size the inlet width and dpth to match the height of the mag well bottom and make adjustments accordingly?

Done correctly, here is what the stock should look like after completing the initial cuts and inletting?

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

Once the inletting is complete and the mag well base can be inserted deeply enough into the stock to sit flush with the stocks center line it is time to prepare to bond the two parts together.

First however, it is wise to create additional surface area on the edges of the mag well bottom by creating indents in its surfaces that will mate with the stock. An example of this can be seen on the corner of the mag well pictured below. I created several indents like this all around the sides of the mag well.

Also, as you can see from the pictures below, after thoroughly cleaning all debris from the stock you first want to tape off all of the areas surrounding the mag well opening. Once this has been completed you can start mixing your bonding material.

I used ?JB Weld? as the bonding material and mixed it with ?Brownells Epoxy Black? to achieve a darker color in the final epoxy finish.

 

[jcchartboy]

After the epoxy is thoroughly mixed, it is time to apply the epoxy to the inside of mag well opening edges, to insert the mag well bottom into the opening, and then to ensure that the epoxy completely fills all voids. The two critical areas of concern in this step are 1). To ensure that the inside of the mag well is completely and smoothly epoxyied in all areas where the inletting was done, paying special attention to ensure a smooth junction where the two sections of feed ramps join, and 2). To ensure tate the exterior of the gun is fully covered in a manner that will allow you to attain a smooth finish once the excess epoxy and stock material is eventually removed.

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

Assuming all has gone well to this point, it is now time to wait for the epoxy to dry. After holding your proverbial breathe for about 2 days you can then remove the tape that you used to protect the stock and you will be able to get your first look at the end of the second major phase of this project.

With any luck, here is what your stock should look like?.

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

The next major step in this process involves, much like step one, a lot of very detailed hands on work. Specifically, the bottom of the mag well that has been epoxied into the stock is flat, while the actual bottom of the stock is semi-rounded. What this means is that you not only have to sand all of the extra epoxy that is covering the bottom of the mag well and its edges, you also have to sand through a good deal of the mag well bottom itself in order to achieve a finished result that blends evenly with the stock. This step is best accomplished with a series of fine files and various weights of sand paper. Once the final shape is being approached all of the final work should be done with fine sand paper on a firm backer in order to ensure a smooth rounded finish.

After many hours of work, here is what my stock eventually looked like after grinding, filing, and sanding it to a final acceptable finish?

JC

In the first picture you will note that even with the Brownell?s black mixed in the epoxy it came out somewhat grey?In the second and third picture you can see that with a simple permanent marker the epoxy can be darkened if necessary?

 

[jcchartboy]

With the magazine well work done now it was time to mo e on the exterior of the stock. With the exception of doing some sanding and cutting of the JB weld inside of the well to ensure that the follower and spring feed smoothly you could end the project at that stage. Most however, will choose to complete the project properly which requires applying some type of even finish to the exterior of the stock.

In my case I chose to not only paint the stock but also to give it a bit of a custom look as well as to attempt to give it a little added texture.

In order to paint any stock the first thing that needs to be done is to prepare the exterior of the stock so the paint adheres properly. In the case of a molded factory stock one additional step is advised but not necessary. That is to remove all of the ?mold? lines that are visible running down the middle of the two halves of the stock. All of this can done very easily in just a few steps. First using a fine sand paper, remove all of the mold lines. Next using a stiff scotch brite pad buff the entire stock to a single roughed finish. Lastly using acetone or any other similar solvent clean the entire to area to be painted in order to remove any residual dirt, oil or debris.

Once the stock has been prepared for painting the next step is to completely tape off all portions of the stock where you will not want paint to be applied. This includes the buttpad, pistol grip, swing swivels, guard screw holes, barrel channel, and of course the action area. The best type of tape for this is the blue painters tape readily found at hardware stores.

Once the taping of the stock is completed the next step is to rig some means by which the stock can be freely suspended and accessed from 360 degrees. By doing this you will be able to ensure that you can apply even coats of finish all of the way around the stock on each coat without having to physically touch the stock.

Below is a picture of my taped stock rigged in preparation for painting. As you can see I used the wire from a clothes hanger, strung through the guard screw holes, and taped off securely as a means to suspend the stock for painting?

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

After reviewing several other projects of this nature I decided that I wanted to do a multicolor paint finish that gave something similar to what is referred to as a ?mudpie? finish. Additionally, as I was hoping to add a little texture to the finish it was an easy choice as to which paint I would be using. Krylon recently introduced a product called Fusion for Plastic Textured Shimmer which appeared to meet my needs perfectly.

After testing a numbers of different colors I decided to do a green on black pattern. In order to ensure that my completed pattern would meet my expectations I spent a good deal of time creating ?test patterns? prior to actually placing any paint on the stock. Essentially what I did was to use several large sheets of 4ft x4ft brown packaging paper as a test canvas. This allowed me to test color schemes and coating thickness without any worry, prior to actually working on the stock. Once I was happy with my abilities to achieve a desirable finish I started painting.

For my particular gun I decided to start with a simple black textured base. The picture below shows the stock taped, hanging and with the finished first base coat applied.

JC

 

[jims]

Nicely photographed and well written. As I mentioned once to you that is the gun Savage should have sold initially. Well done.

 

[jcchartboy]

As I was now approaching the final stages of the project all of the work was almost done. Unfortunately, with the final coat of paint yet be applied it was really hitting me that if I screwed up the final coats I would have done a lot of work only to have a poorly finished product. Knowing that the textured black finish I already had was perfectly acceptable I almost stopped at that stage. However, wanting to achieve the mudpie type finish I originally set out to create I decided to take my chances on the last coats coming out as my test pattern had.

Below is the stock while drying after the final coat?

JC

 

[jcchartboy]

Well, the time had final come that I would be able to remove the painters tape from the stock and unwrap my present to myself to see how the final product came out? So far things are looking very good!

JC

 

[Anonymous]

Good post Jeff. Keep 'em coming!!

 

[jcchartboy]

At this point in time I am going to have to sidestep here to discuss how I addressed another issue that bothers many Savage 210 owners, the trigger. As is true with all Savage 110 and 210 factory triggers the weight of pull on the 210 is simply controlled by the tension exerted by a ?piano wire? lever and adjusted with a screw. Unfortunately, while this trigger is reasonably good by factory standards it is far from great. Not only does it only adjust safely down into the high 3lb+ area it does not offer a particularly crisp release.

In the first few years of owning the gun I searched for a replacement trigger and found that, at that time, the only reasonable upgrade to the trigger for hunting use was a Timney aftermarket trigger. This trigger, which is essentially nothing more than a modified 210 trigger with a different weight of pull adjustment, functioned properly with a weight of pull just below 3lbs and was very crisp... All in all for several years this appeared to be a good trigger... However, over time, due to its design where the weight of pull is controlled by a spring that rests against the moving safety mechanism the trigger became unsafe. In fact it was not until I encountered a slam fire at the range that it became clear that the weight of pull spring had bent over time leaving it prone to complete failure. (If the spring bends and moves from its intended location the trigger essentially has no weight of pull adjustment.)

Obviously, unwilling to risk unintended discharges with the gun I immediately started looking for another option. Fortunately, I was happy to see that since the time I installed the Timney, Rifle Basix has introduced a new, higher quality trigger for the Savage 110/210?s.

JC

Below, in the first picture, is a standard Savage trigger assembly showing the ?piano wire? lever. The second picture shows the very similar Timney aftermarket Savage trigger and the accompanying trigger weight adjustment spring.

 

[jcchartboy]

After researching the SAV-2 trigger it quickly became clear that this trigger was a whole new generation of trigger when compared to the previously available Savage factory, Timney and even earlier SAV-1 Rifle Basix trigger. Essentially the big difference being that the newer
SAV-2 does not rely on a single central pivot pin for the bulk of its stability as does the original Savage trigger. The problem with that earlier design is that it allows for a meaningful amount of swivel, left to right, of the entire trigger assembly. As you can imagine, at low trigger pull settings, when the sear should sit parallel to the rest of the mechanism for consistency, it often does not. (This results in inconsistent trigger pull pressure from shot to shot? Realistically, what this means is that your 2 3/4lb may release at 2 3/4 or 2 1/4 depending on the angle the trigger is sitting at relative to the pin. Or in other words, if you want a minimum 2 3/4lb trigger pull you really need to set the pull at 3 1/4 to protect against the situations where it releases at 2 3/4.)

The other thing that immediately became clear when researching the SAV-2 trigger is that it is more complicated to install then one might expect. Fortunately, Rifle Basix being aware of this fact issues a full length DVD with each trigger showing a step by step display of how to properly install the trigger!

While I am very happy to say that the installation of the trigger was as simple as following the video, I must note that for my Savage 210 installation some minor additional work was required that is not addressed by the company.

The first problem I encountered after installing the trigger was that the bottom of the new mechanism extended lower than the old trigger mechanism. Quite simply all this meant was that I needed to inlet the trigger guard slightly to open it wider to allow the mechanism room to recess in it. This was a simple procedure to say the least and required no special skills or tools other than repeated trimming based on trial and error for sizing until everything fit without obstruction.

Once I got the trigger in the gun and the action in the stock, it took me a short while to realize that the bolt release was no longer working properly. A quick inspection revealed that the factory bolt release was being partially blocked from rotating as it was intended. Once again I was able to easily correct this problem. All that was needed was a few minutes with a bastard file to shorten the bolt stop slightly. Once again with a repeated little trial and error for sizing the problem was corrected in just a few minutes!

While it might sound like the installation was complicated, it really was not and anyone should be able to complete the installation and fitting in a half hour or so.

Once everything was completed I did several safety test on the trigger and it even at weight below 2lbs it passed with flying colors!

JC

Pics?

1) Trigger guard inletted to allow the trigger mechanism to recess in the guard
2) Bolt stop that required filing after completion
3) SAV-2 Trigger before installation

 

[jcchartboy]

Now getting back to the original discussion of the stock work? As could be seen from the last pictures taken of the stock after I finished painting it, the original final finish was a bit too shiny for my liking?..Fortunately, I was ecstatic to find that with a simple light buffing with the scotch brite pad again I was able to achieve a final finish with a very nice muted sating finish.

So with that?I present the final results of my work!

Below are the completed pictures of the stock work on my 2008 Savage 210 project gun!!!...

 

[n8dawg6]

JC, thats a downright cool shotgun you've created there. 8)