Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Converting Ruger M77 skeleton stock sling mounts to studs...

I just got a great deal on a used Ruger M77 MKII with the old skeleton boat paddle stock and I want to convert it to detachable sling swivel studs, anyone here done it before?

The rear looks like it has enough "meat" for a stud but the forend is pretty thin. Thoughts?

Drill the rear and install a standard wood screw type swivel. Use a machine screw type with a nut in the barrel channel on the forend just like you would a wood stock.

I've converted 4 or 5 boat paddle stocks.

Use a fine threaded machine screw stud with a nut on the forend. Make sure the stud isn't long enough to hit the barrel. Wood screw threaded stud on the back. Lock-tite everything in place, and you're good to go!

Something like the kit linked below would probably work fine, though I usually just rob studs from whatever extra factory stocks are laying around:
http://www.midwayusa.com/product/366960/uncle-mikes-sling-swivel-stud-115-b-set?cm_vc=ProductFinding

I've got a couple of those stocks and each one is converted...

just drilled in a small hole, and I have a whole bunch of those sling swivels, I picked up at a store close out for 10 cents apiece...

simple job... and at least in my case, a very cheap investment..

There might be some penalty for modifying the OEM boat paddle stocks. There is somewhat of a cult following of the boat paddles. Unmodified get a little premium.

Yep. If the rifle is in one of the more rare chamberings, it would be worth keeping in stock form, as some of these have really become collectibles, and quite valuable. If the rifle is a 270 or 30-06? Screw in some studs. If it's a 260? Sell that baby and pay for a new rifle and Mcmillan stock to go with it.

Are 260s with those stocks worth all that much?

I have two of them... got em cheap because BiMart here in town couldn't give them away....

the second one I got after it had been in stock for like 4 years....

Here's one that sold for $1285 a few weeks ago:
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=509540400

WoW!

The response of the locals around here if I put it for sale for $250, would be "WTF is a 260???"

and half of those would ask if they could shoot 243 ammo thru it...

I don't think it's so much a want for the 260 on it's own merits, it's just that boat paddle Rugers are apparently a collectible for some folks at the moment, and the rarer chamberings bring a premium. 7mm-08s, 264 mags, things like that are rare enough that people will pay good money to complete their collection.

It's an '06. I removed the factory sling mounts then drilled into the rear of the stock right where the bulge is and screwed in a stud.

On the front, I drilled the hole where I thought looked best and used a machine screw stud but I put a fender washer on the inside of the stock, I cut 2 opposing sides off the washer to make it somewhat oval so it would clear the sides of the stock, then used a stainless steel nylon lock nut on the stud. Plenty of barrel clearance.

I haven't decided what to do with the horizontal through holes. Black epoxy? Not sure what will stick to the stock.

I'll give you $250 for one of them! And no it wouldn't be for turning a profit. That said, if I had 2 of them like you do one would definitely be going up for sale if they are fetching over $1K. It'd pay for a hunt somewhere with the other one.

I simply added another sling stud so I could use a Harris bipod. I believe I used a machine screw stud with a nut. It was easy and cost almost nothing.

I drilled for the rear stud and then cut it off a bit after starting the stud. I used a machine screw type stud in the front and mounted it out the end of the fore end parallel to the barrel.

Bad juju to modify a stock like that. If you want the easiest and best solution, simply remove the original "swivels," thread paracord through the holes, and tie your sling to the gun. Turns out much more useful than wrecking the original stock, and can be returned to normal with no problems.

Drilling holes in a "boat paddle" is costing you about $100 of value on the current market, if not more, just for the stock alone.

Most every rifle I have has the machine screw and nut on the fore end and the wood screw on the rear whether wood or composite stock. Most all fore ends are thin and need that configuration to hold a sling securely.