Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Single Shots Employing the washer accuracy trick.....

Ok let's hear the different methods for using this trick in the forearm.

Thank you in advance,

Please include results -- including long term.

1B

Ok. I'll bite. What is the washer accuracy trick?

Elmer Keith wrote of it in the September, 1971 issue of Guns & Ammo. He put the forearm screw thru a neoprene washer and then back thru the forearm. Interesting story. Excerpt can be found here in the Elmer Keith serial # 15 "21 Club" rifle writeup.
http://www.classicsportingarms.com/?p=50
ENU

I've done it with a couple of H&R handi rifles. It fits over the barrel lug that the forearm screws into. It essentially "free floats" the barrel. It definately helped on the handis. Haven't tried it on anything else.


maddog

Well... I was really skeptical of such stuff, as mine have
so far shot well without any mods. But Mr. Keith is pretty
much a hero of mine, read a lot of his stuff in my formative
years. Still have a ragged old Guns & Ammo annual from
1969 full of his writings. May have to rethink my position
(on the washers)

I have read that excerpt a dozen times, I was never clear on where the forearm screw was when the washer was placed over it. I am not sure the article is clear on that, but certainly food for thought.

If the screw is in hand, then the washer over it thru the forearm creates a cushioned effect on said forearm/barrel. If the screw is already in the forearm, then placing the washer over the forearm positioned screw floats the barrel.

FWIW, I have always gone with the floating type(o-ring) in NO.1's, and it is a cheap way of trying an improvement. I hear of others using some kind of washer on the outside of the forearm with good results too, so at least the original idea spurs on thinking on the subject that might help in indivdual situations.

Elmer was a great writer, one could tell practical content in his articles.

What worked for me (and worked well) was a very hard rubber sink washer being placed between the foreend hangar and the barrel on a Ruger number 1. Washer was forced between two using a plastic dowel (as to not scratch the underise of the barrel. Groups went from about 2" (not awful) at 100 yards to 1" (quite nice). Certainly results will vary, but I was impressed. Nice thing about it is it doesn't hurt the rifle in any way and can be removed easily by just taking off the forearm and removing the washer and putting the forearm back on. I think the total cost was about 89 cents from Home Depot.

I heard that Elmer came up with it.

I did find this

http://varminthuntinginternational.com/accurizingnoruger.html

Fotis,

Thanks fopr posting this 'fix'. I never heard of it before despite years of tweaking, accurizing, and cussing some reakky cranky #1s.

1B

I tried that on my 22PPC #1 heavy barrel. It seemed to help. Then I tried glass bedding it and have the barrel solidly free floated. That improved it more than the washer.

I knew about the wedge and I tried it before. It helped immensely. The washer I never tried.

maddog,
Could you post some pics of exactly what you did to your
H&R Handi rifles? I GOT MY SON IN LAW stainless Handi rifle
in 30-06 and it has killed deer here in Bama but has always been very strange acting shooting down here .
Some days tight groups,Some days wide groups at 50 yds dead on.
It happens when we have big weather shifts.
And yes I have checked the scope, mounts, etc. They are fine.
It is in the rifle itself.
Thanks AMRA

AMRA, sorry, no pics, but let me explain a little more exact. Take the forearm off the rifle. See the metal lug, under the barrel, that the screw fits into to hold the forearm in place. Get a rubber O ring that will fit over the lug snuggly. Put the forearm back in place, and tighten the screw snuggly. The O ring should keep the forearm from touching the barrel. You should be able to slide a dollar bill easily between the forearm and barrel. In effect you just "free floated" the barrel. If the forearm is still touching, except for back near the receiver, sand paper out the barrel channel in the forarm and try it again.


maddog

AMRA, here is a link to GBOs handi rifle section[which may be the most in depth on the entire net]. This link includes pics of the O ring install.

http://www.go2gbo.com/forums/index.php/topic,82904.msg505939.html#msg505939


don't know why the link won't work. Go to their website and look up the O ring thingy under the handi rifle section in FAQS.


maddog

I've never found it necessary with any of my single shots.

It only helps in the anal minds.

I played with this trick a bit on a couple of mine, used fawcet washers cut down, got a very slight increase in accuracy. The same rifles, both #1As, responded better with slight fore arm pressure. I put a piece of business card stock under the fore arms of both, went from averages of 1.5 MOA to very close to 1 MOA for both (.270 and 30/06).

Never used the washer or wedge tricks.

i drill and tap a 8-40 hole in the hanger and turn the set screw down while shooting groups, once the sweet-spot is found, a dab of loc-tite on the threads and its a done deal.

Gunner

I do basically three things to #1s and #3s.
--Relieve the back of the forearm from touching the action.
--Shape a small piece of plastic (with radius similar to barrel on the barrel side) to fit snuggly between the hangar and barrel.
--Remove some wood from the forend tip and bed to fit snug when assembled.

If you have good groups but
--poi changes from session to session
--or groups vary significantly from session to session
--or if you just have bad groups
The above will take care of that.
jmho and experience.

Tim

I don't know about washers,but floating the forearm,then adding a pressure point up works for me. I just finished my .303 yesterday and at the range it came up with this. Note,this is my hunting load and 6X scope.
Mine have responded more to this and finding the right powder and they will shoot....rifle

Here is all I do to the forearms.Clean out the high spots,bed and seal it.....ready to go!

rifle,

First you float the forend. Then you add a pressure point? How do you float the forend, with a pressure screw in the hanger? It would seem that the pressure point actually "un-floats" the forend. I don't get it.

BigRed...
What I do is check the forearm for high spots,then sand out any I find.My forearms only makes contact at the tip(after bedding) and the screw that holds it on.This bedding adds a pressure poing up against the barrel,my barrels float from the bed back to the receiver.

I used marker dye on the barrel and hanger and look for the contact points,then sand them away,bed and seal.

I used the washer, an O ring is what I really used, to bed the forearm of a 1V. It made a huge difference. Think I would only use it for bedding.

Washers work on the Encore as well.

When I shot TC's I used Bullberry Forearms with their hanger system and never had a problem.

Can someone please give me the basics for a encore foreend with the washer trick what size and what kind. And where on the screws they go. I have custom ported barrel, custom trigger, and custom hinge pin and I cannot get better groups than a large 1.5 to 2 groups at 100 with my 300 win mag
Thanks
W.

You must not have a Match Grade Machine barrel if that's as good as it's getting!

But it's plenty loud

Thanks,
I all of my stuff are bellm. I just got off the phone with Kurt bellm.
I am looking at one major issue, and then I will move onto the spacing.
The first issue I have is the ammo I am using is too hot. To make a long story short, I was using custom ammo built by a ammo company. I gave them the recipe I got from another guy who used the another gun I was shooting before me. Anyways, the guys recipe was just too hot. Glad I found this out thanks to kurts help before I ruinded a bunch of barrells, let alone my life.
If that doesnt cure it, I will go to the head spacing. I am going to get this project shooting. Its just a cool gun.
THanks,
W.:)
PS. Shes not to loud and she doesnt kick too bad.