I don't understand why they tried to send you to a gunshop for shipping. It's perfectly legal to ship a gun back to the maker for repair and to receive it back again; no FFL required. UPS requires you to go to a Customer Service Center, not an UPS store. Ruger emailed me a pre-paidshipping label for my Bearcat and reimbursed me by check for the previous shipping I paid out of pocket.
The Ruger bottom metal is just fine as is, certainly better than the pot metal or plastic that most makers use these days. The barrel bedding is pretty much standard and easily altered to free floating if so desired.
Considering how many things Ruger did wrong, I surprised you bought it, what with all the perfect Tikkas out there.
