question about gunsmithing

[bigbucksrule]

this has me wandering i took a gun to a gunsmith last year to have the barell floated the stock bedded and get a trigger job done to it.when i got it home i decided to take a look at his work don't know why because i know nothing about it but when i took the trigger out some washers fell out i called him and he said put em back in the hole closest to the butt now you guys got me to thinking is this right or not.i did carry it out and shot it a few days ago and it is a tack driver but now i am a little concerned can someone help me out here please all info appreciated thanks alot

[hangunnr]

I wouldn't accept adding washers under the action of a rifle as a permanent method of floating the barrel. The action and recoil lug should make full contact with the stock. With that said... The gun may shoot fine for awhile with the whole action floated from the stock, but in the long run the action screws will bear the brunt of the recoil force which will eventually damage the stock.

I will admit that I've shimmed under the recoil lug on a couple rifles to float the barrel while trying to determine if the barrel shot better with or without the contact point common on some factory rifles. If it was determined the barrel shot better the shims were removed and the barrel channel opened up to properly float the barrel.

hangunnr

[wtnhunt]

Welcome to the forums. Care to share with us what smith? If not openly you can feel free to pm me, want to make sure I never have any work done there.

[Leo]

Are the washers under the rear action screw or simply under the trigger assembly? In other words did you take the trigger assembly off of the action? If the washers are between the trigger assembly and action they may have been there from the beginning. If they were added as part of the "floating" procedure, that indicates to me he didn't open up the barrel channel in the stock he merely raised the action.

What he did, still might be OK. It depends on the trigger assembly.

The main thing is washers under the action screws and no bedding is a no-no.

I can't really tell from your description what he did. At any rate since he now knows you took it apart and looked at it. If anything goes wrong it's your fault not his. He can claim you put it back together wrong.

Don't be so quick to accuse him of wrongdoing. Take the gun back to him, have him check out your re-assembly and explain what he did.

If you are uncomfortable with his answers find another gunsmith and get a second opinion. Don't base your confidence on whether the job was done right or wrong solely on the replies you get here.

[bigbucksrule]

the washers are between the stock and the trigger assembly it looks to me like they were designed to go there. they are shaped the same as the hole kinda half moon shaped and fit down in the stock real nice but i have no clue i can see where he bedded the stock and did some sanding on it so i don't know maybe this will help

[wtnhunt]

the washers are between the stock and the trigger assembly

Guess maybe I read this wrong initially, but with seeing this you more recently posted, not so sure. So with a typical breakdown cleaning those washers would have fallen out, correct?

At any rate since he now knows you took it apart and looked at it. If anything goes wrong it's your fault not his. He can claim you put it back together wrong.

Don't be so quick to accuse him of wrongdoing. Take the gun back to him, have him check out your re-assembly and explain what he did.

I would agree with taking the gun back and asking some questions, but being that all you did from what I am reading here was to take the stock off the gun to look, I don't really think anything would be considered as being "your fault" as taking a stock off a gun has to be done from time to time for a thorough cleaning. I think the smith at the very least should have informed you that he shimmed the action at the trigger guard to meet the bedding if it had to be done that way for some reason so you would know there was a possibility of the washers coming out. Just my opinion.

[bigbucksrule]

i don't know if they are shims the stock is recessed where they are and it looks like they fit there perfectly.i am gonna call weatherby monday and see if they are in there from the factory it looks to me like they are just by the shape and the way they fit if they are not factory installed i am gonna find a new gunsmith to check it all out

[bigbucksrule]

i called weatherby today and they told me that these are factory installed and are for cosmetic use they said they help raise the hinged floorplate to where it will be even with the stock they said depending on the gun and the wood some may have 1 or 2 and some may not have any and that it is perfectly fine to shoot this gun they described the washers right down to a tee so that has me relieved thanks for all the help