A Sixty Minute Lazy Guy Project

My current long term project rifle is a Remington 799 Mini Mauser. The Models 798 and 799 were imported from the manufacturer in Serbia as barreled actions and fitted with a laminated stock by Remington in Mayfield, Kentucky. Remington offered this product from 2006-2008. Prior to Remington's importation, the same basic hardware had been offered for an extended period of time under both the Interarms and the Charles Daly brand names.

One of the check list items for the Remington was to reduce its weight. At six and three quarter pounds for this tiny Mauser, it was hardly a lightweight and my future goal was to have a gun in the mid five pound range, chambered for the .500 Jeffery. Yes, of course I am kidding. The goal was five and three quarter pounds. I had considered gutting the laminated stock with router and drill, but I wanted to change the aesthetics of the stock, and its geometry.

My foot dragging on making the improvement has been a fear of fitting gunstocks. The last time I made the attempt, I began with a really nice walnut stock blank and ended up with a really low end table and a box of presentation grade toothpicks. But then, what would life be without its little challenges...

Brownells lists a Bell & Carlson's Carbelite synthetic stock for the Mini Mauser, # 137-000-004, with a price of approximately $209. The Carbelite construction is a hand-layered composition of Kevlar, fiberglass, and graphite that is high strength, light weight and unaffected by changes in weather and humidity. The Carbelite includes a good recoil pad, swivel studs and clean inletting with the barrel channel floated the exception of support at the end of the forearm.

The Mini Mauser model is listed at twenty nine ounces. The example pictured weighs twenty eight ounces as received, compared to forty-four ounces for the factory laminate stock, a full pound less, or five and three quarter pounds compared to six and three quarter pounds.

All that was required for correction was to introduce the stock to Mr. Dremel and his associate Rotary File. While the stock's material is very strong for its purpose, it is also easy to shape and finish with very little effort. Sort of like the bass boat refurbish project I took on one summer that unintentionally resulted in a glass bottom boat... another story, another time.

Using the flat bottom rotary file allowed me to get the right contour to conform with the trigger guard, and it also allowed me to take the cut down in a controlled fashion until it was level with the rest of the inletting. After this was done, the trigger guard assembly dropped right in, flush with the stock and tight all the way around the edges. Yes, I did have the RPM set to maximum. Thank you for asking.

This step is optional. The factory trigger guard assembly spacers were too long for the Bell & Carlson stock. Length is checked by installing the barreled action, holding it securely and level, then dropping in the spacers from the bottom of the stock and checking for flush. The measurement cannot be taken without the action in place because the spacer rests against on the action.

Measured with the depth gauge end of a digital caliper, the front spacer was 0.075" too long, the rear 0.040" too long. Additionally, the aft hole in the Carbelite stock was a tad egg shaped so the spacer would not center over the hole in the action. Without using the spacers, the stock hole alignment was fine as is and none of the rework in this section would be required.

I checked in with Bell & Carlson and was told the spacers were not required with the stock and, therefore, could be omitted. Unfortunately, I am a bone head who doesn't like the idea of tightening a trigger guard and action against relatively soft stock surface.

I chucked the spacers in the lathe, any excuse to use the lathe, and faced them to the proper length. I could have just as easily taken them down with a bent sander or file, but I look so incredibly skilled when I pretend to know how to use a lathe.

With the action and guard assembly installed and tightened down to 45 in/lbs, the forward end of the bolt release lever dragged on the stock. A little mill file work cleared the end and a drop of gun oil put the color back into the stock where it was grated by the file.

Finally, the gun was ops checked, including safety function, bolt release and floorplate operation. Because the trigger guard spacers were shortened, the fasteners were checked to make sure the front didn't bottom out before the stock was clamped and the aft fastener didn't protrude into the bolt track at the aft end of the action. All checked OK. The fit was better than that of the factory stock, the gun's accuracy improved and it's weight dropped to 5¾ pounds.