If a guy wanted to replace his factory recoil lug on a Remington 700 (during a build of course) was planning a using a ADL build and a Laminated stock, what after market recoil lug would he be best suited to purchase for best results if he wanted accuracy and dependability?

Why is one thickness offered over another?
What is the difference between going with a parallel v/s tapered?
Is one brand head and shoulders over another?

Just looking for general discussion b/c I'm as "lost as a rat's turd in a bucket of buck wheat" with respect to recoil lug differences and what they mean to me in the end...

The thicker ones are supposedly stiffer and often come drilled for a pin. Aftermarket lugs are supposed to be more dimensionally true and many are tapered for easy bedding with less likelihood of creating a mechanical lock. I've never run into a bedding issue with a factory lug but I use Holland's lug when possible. It pops in and out of bedding fairly easily.

Are there any CONS to going thicker? Should one go as thick as possible?

I couldn't see any point in going thicker than .250" but the aftermarket will create whatever folks claim they "need".

Can you explain the pinned aspect?

Having the lug pinned to the receiver allows the lug to be removed and replaced in the exact same position, via the pin. Should you choose to swap barrels, the lug positioning will not be a problem in utilizing the bedded stock.

Since M700 lugs are a separate "collar" arrangement, they can tend to spin just a hair when you tighten the barrel down, taking them out of plumb (straight down below the center of the barrel). Frustrating, and if off too far, could lock it into a glass bedding job.

The pins are drilled into the face of the receiver, and go into corresponding little holes in the lug. Prevents them from moving.

Handy, but they require precision drilling (don't do it with a handheld drill). They also make a nifty little jig that will hold it, or as most do, just scribe a small witness mark, and give it a try or two till the barrel snugs down and the lug is exactly where you want it.

and last thing, JPro - you are the wikipedia of custom builds today... I appreciate you putting up with my repeated questions. I assure you, your help is very much appreciated and I hope this thread goes further to help other "green horns", like myself, answer questions that they have before diving head first into custom builds...

God Bless...

Thanks for the note... Seems having it pinned would be wise.

Nothing wrong with a factory lug after it's surface ground, which should be part of the rebarrel process, along with the action work.

I think my DONOR is going to need a little TLC or replacement of the lug...

I use Holland lugs on all my rifles builds. The thicker lugs are supposed to flex less under recoil but that is debatable unless the rifle is a super magnum, the taper makes it easier to remove the action after glass bedding from the stock. If you are building a rifle the 30.00 dollar spent for a custom lug is well worth it, especially if you don't have a surface grinder available. Pin only if you plan on building a switch barrel rifle.

I'm no guru, but the folks here have always been nice enough to answer my questions. Share and share alike....

I would NOT want to try to get that out of a fresh epoxy bedding!

You could try having it ground, but are probably better off trying to pick up a used factory lug, cheap, from guys that swap out to aftermarket lugs. Or check www.brownells.com for a good selection of various shapes, sizes, and thicknesses.

I use Hollands on all my builds, and .250 is the perfect thickness in my opinion,$ 30.00 well spent! good luck on your new project!!

My smith has been putting Hollands on mine. Would the factory lug work? Pretty sure it would be fine, but what the heck. Kind of like pillar bedding, might not need it, but it eliminates potential issues down the road.

IMHO, the standard lug is ok up to a point, but if you're building a big boomer it would be wise to use something like the Holland lug..

For $30 +/- it seems to be a non-issue now that I know more about what they do, how they do it and what the differences are.

One last thought to consider....

The thicker lugs, for the most part, rule out buying any factory or custom take off tubes for a switch barrel gun in the future w/o work.

Ah... Good point...

Hope once this one is built that I don't have to switch barrel any time soon though...

there are two reasons i buy the holland style recoil lug
they are easier to get in and out of the bedding when you clean your rifle
and buy the time i pay the smith to true the stock one i can almost pay for the new one


gene

There are some shops that will heli-arc the recoil lug to the action. There are several custom actions that come predrilled for pinned lugs. My smith cautioned against thick lugs as you are giving away some of your thread surface area of the barrel tenon to the lug. Don't know if that holds water, I am just repeating what I was told.

When I was considering a custom build I liked the idea of the heli-arced lug to the action. That was then. I am now purchasing a Borden Rimrock SSR action.

Were I to do a custom build up from a factory action I would likely go with a Ruger MK II over the Remington 700.

Not sure what he means by that? You just set the shoulder further forward, and still have the same amount of threaded barrel sticking out behind it.

It sounds like he is talking about just taking a take off barrel and screwing it in with no modifications? That ain't gonna work...

It doesn't... Geez...

i like the tubb lug, i get them ground down to .250". on .375 and up i use em at 3/8 inch. as far as pinning goes, i only have one that is now but any more i get built will be pinned. think of it as insurance for ur bedding job in case you rebarrel down the road.

lol i'd find a new smith if he told you you would lose tennon thread to a thicker lug.

I had Pac-Nor Barreling use a Holland lug on my 40X, it works fine. Had Greg Tannel use his double pinned lug on another Remington rebuild, it also works well. Some fellows have the 40X action drilled for a center action screw and pillar bed all three screws in conjunction with the precision lug. In any event, the action needs to be trued to get most good out of the lug.

The Savage Precision Target Action comes with a thick target lug and pin, but the lug has to be hand fitted a bit before installing the barrel (filed shorter a couple of thousandths). You can build all the switch barrel rifles you want with any of the Savage bare actions available, single shot ot repeater. In fact, you can switch between cartridge head sizes all the way to magnums, with a corresponding replacement bolt head, although the magnum switch requires a longer firing pin and magnum baffle. I have two PTA's with barrels in .223 Remington, .204 Ruger, 6mm PPC and one on order for .243 WSSM. It's the ultimate in versatility, accuracy and value. Best of all, you can do it yourself.

greg is good people, does nice work too.