HOW TO CHANGE A SAVAGE 110 TYPE RIFLE TO BLIND MAGAZINE
By: Tom Powell
April 2011
Introduction:
Many shooters have purchased the Savage long action rifle with a plastic stock having a removeable floorplate and wish to replace it with an aftermarket wooden stock such as a Boyd's laminate or similar type. The laminate stock is much stiffer than the factory plastic stock and gives a excellent platform to make a target or tactical type rifle. The trouble is Boyd's currently only makes a blind magazine stock for the Savage long action with the staggered magazine box. (A blind magazine is one that doesn't have the removable metal floorplate on the underside of the stock.) You must feed cartridges into the rifle from the top. To modify one of these stocks to accept the removable floorplate assembly that came with the original plastic stock is beyond the capability of most amateur riflesmiths since it involves some rather tricky cutting and fitting of the stock to accomplish a nice fit of the bottom metal that came with the original rifle.
This modification is for Savage rifles having the staggered magazine box. You can tell if you have this rifle type by opening the magazine floorplate and see if the magazine box and cartridge follower come out and is attached to the floorplate. If the magazine box is attached to the receiver, then you have a straight line feed magazine and these instructions do not apply.
If you are somewhat skilled in performing some intermediate type stock work like epoxy bedding the action into the stock, you shouldn't have any trouble attempting this modification.
Some people on the internet say " no problem, just drop the old parts into the new stock, screw it all together and you're good to go". Well, you might do this but expect some cartridge feeding problems. Savage makes a specific part called a Magazine Retention Clip that is used to hold the magazine box in correct relationship to the receiver to prevent misfeeding cartridges. Since the magazine box of the Boyd stock is a little longer than needed to accept all sizes of magazine boxes, some epoxy work is also needed which is explained here in detail.
What do you need:
Parts:
You will need the original magazine box and cartridge follower/spring assembly from the rifle.
You will need an additional part from Savage (Magazine Retention Clip). You will also need
epoxy compound.
Here is the original magazine box and follower/spring taken from the original stock out of a Savage Model 111. These parts plus a Magazine Retention Clip (purchased separately) will be used to make the new blind magazine assembly.
You can get the Magazine Retention Clip directly from the Savage Parts Department. Reach them by calling (413) 568-7001. The cost is about $10 including shipping. The part number to ask for is #106130.
Savage Magazine Retention Clip Part No. 106130. Notice hooked end that fits into the cutout in the magazine box.
Tools:
You will need the following tools:
Screwdriver or allen wrench to disassemble screws from stock
Epoxy applicator (like a tongue depressor)
1/2 " Flat file
1/4" Round file
200 grit sandpaper
Sharp 3/8" wood chisel
Dremel tool (optional)
Time Required:
A couple of hours. (not counting epoxy hardening time)
Here we go!
As mentioned earlier, the magazine box is a little long in the Boyd's stock. Drop the magazine box into the cutout in the new stock an you'll see you need about 1/8" to 3/16" of material added to the front of the stock cutout to prevent the magazine box from moving forward. This is accomplished with some epoxy compound that is used to build up a shoulder on the wood in the front of the magazine cutout. (Since the recoil lug cutout in these stocks is oversize, you may want to epoxy bed the lug cutout and the first inch of the barrel too. This is a second subject and will not be covered here.) Here's what the barrel bedding would look like if you do it.
Bedding the action in epoxy is a great accuracy enhancer for almost every rifle. Although the amateur can do it, make sure you read up on how to epoxy bed a recoil lug and first inch of the barrel as shown here. (If you screw it up, you'll glue the gun to the stock so be sure you know what you are doing.) There's a lot of info out there on the web on how to do it. Buy Brownell's Acraglas Kit and follow the directions exactly. It has all the stuff you need in the kit for about $28.
Building up the front of the magazine cutout.
If you just want to build up the front of the magazine cutout, you don't need to buy the Brownell's kit. You can use some hardware store epoxy. Mix it up and build up a shoulder of material about a quarter inch as shown in the next picture. Make sure it hardens (follow instructions) and when it is set up, you can file it to shape to allow the magazine box with the attached magazine retention clip to fit into the well. Here is how the built up epoxy should look when you have finished shaping it with the files after it is hardened.
Magazine box well built up with epoxy and filed to shape for the magazine box and retention clip assembly. The fit of the assembly should be snug but not tight. This modification keeps the magazine assembly from moving for and aft in the stock.
This next view shows how the magazine box assembly should look with the Magazine Retention Clip installed. The clip holds the magazine box in the correct height with relation to the bottom of the receiver. This insures the cartridges feed smoothly from the magazine and the bolt doesn't ride over the cartridges when the bolt is cycled.
Magazine box assembly with the magazine retention clip installed in the small cutout on the end of the magazine box. Note, it is not installed in the notch cut in the bottom of the magazine box, but the small cutout just above it. It is held loosly in place so you need to hold the whole thing together when you put it in the stock.
Now you can press the whole shebang into the epoxy modified magazine well in the stock. This is how it should look when it is installed.
This view shows how the front of the magazine box fits against the front of the magazine well with the epoxy shoulder installed. This will keep the magazine box in place when the bolt is cycled.
This next view shows the whole assembly with the Magazine Retention Clip installed in the rear. Remember, you want the whole assembly snug but not tight. The Magazine Retention Clip must have the hook end placed into the small cutout in the magazine box. There is a tensioning prong on the Magazine Retention Clip that will hold it securely in the stock when the whole assembly is pushed home in the magazine well. Here's how it looks installed, but we're not done yet!
Here's the whole assembly installed in the stock. Note how the top of the magazine retention clip sits on top of the rounded stock bed. This is the next thing we fix.
As noted in the previous picture, the flat top of the magazine retention clip sits on top of the rounded stock bed. If left this way, it prevents the receiver from fully seating back into the stock when you reinstall the receiver and try to screw it down. This is what we fix next. You will need to scribe around the magazine retention clip, take the whole assembly out and use your wood chisel to mortise out a place for the magazine retention clip to seat. Make sure you mortise out enough wood so the top of the clip is slightly below the level of the wood. This will prevent the tab from interfering with the bottom of the receiver and will make a nice snug fit. The receiver then holds everything locked together when it is reassembled to the stock. The next picture shows the mortise you make for the magazine retention clip to reside in.
Mortised out area for Magazine Retention Clip to reside. Make sure the top of the clip is at or slightly below the level of the wood.
The next picture shows how the Magazine Retention Clip should fit in the mortised area of the stock. Looks good, doesn't it?
Magazine Retention Clip installed in the mortised out stock.
Well, we're all done! Here is how the whole assembly looks before you put the action back into the stock and tighten it in place with the action screws. If you've done it all right, the rear action screw will snug up and the receiver will sit flush in the stock. The magazine assembly is installed snugly into the magazine well, it cannot move fore and aft and it is set at the correct height in relation to the receiver so you will have trouble free cartridge feeding.
Completed assembly place in stock ready to install the barreled action.
Now all you have to do is intall the barreled action and screw it into place. The front screw should be set to about 50 inch-pounds for standard calibers and 60 inch-pounds for magnum calibers. Snug up the rear action screw. The rear trigger guard screw is a wood screw and just holds the rear of the guard to the stock. Drill a pilot hole for this one and snug it up like a normal wood screw.
You may want to make up some dummy rounds and cycle them through the magazine to see how it works. If you did it all correclty, it should work like a champ.
Grab some ammo, head to the range and try her out!! Good shooting, and remember, BE SAFE.