Here’s the results of bedding a M1A rifle action in its stock permanently; that is, epoxied together as one unit. Ancillary comments on increasing stock rigidity are included.

by J. C. Tate, CDR USN (Ret)

May I introduce you to “Blue”? About 1981 while at NAS Key West, I bought an old “Devine” M1A, serial number 00082X. The metal was OK but the wood was horrid; a bit beat up, truly ugly, and – what mattered – flexible. I lean hard into the sling in prone and the stock would give a bit.

As a fix, I covered the stock with layer upon layer of fiberglass and clear, marine-grade epoxy. The truly ugly wood was still visible, so I put on a final coat, a color coat of – you guessed it – blue! While at Camp Perry in 1985, Glen Nelson had a booth and a small, mobile shop and I had a heavy barrel installed. These upgrades set us up for the main theme of this story: Bedding.

Read more in the August 2018 issue.

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