Old recoil pad - rejuvenate??
- Thread starter Potashminer
- Start date
I don’t know about how modern polymers are better. My last couple pairs of shoes the soles dried out and fell apart before the rest of the shoe.
Shoes made in the far east? Canadian made work-boot soles seem to outlast the rest of the boot today; 30 years ago, we would wear the souls through to the steel plates... always gave you the warm fuzzy feeling when changing a welding electrode on a steel structure!!
Crap is still crap; good stuff is better than ever now.
It really depends on the material the pad is made from and of course its design.
I've never had any luck with the cross braced type pads at all.
When it comes to soft rubber pads, even up to 3/4 in thick, sometimes they can be brought back by boiling them in water at a slow bubble for an hour or so.
If they're oxidized at all, they aren't worth trying to save. They may plump up again but will start to fall apart quickly, with any use.
Installing butt pads isn't rocket science but if it isn't done properly, with the proper tools, they look terrible when finished and usually don't add to the value of the firearm.
When I purchase a firearm, with a home bubba recoil pad, I knock $75 off the price for the time and cost of replacing the pad to something that is presentable.
I've never had any luck with the cross braced type pads at all.
When it comes to soft rubber pads, even up to 3/4 in thick, sometimes they can be brought back by boiling them in water at a slow bubble for an hour or so.
If they're oxidized at all, they aren't worth trying to save. They may plump up again but will start to fall apart quickly, with any use.
Installing butt pads isn't rocket science but if it isn't done properly, with the proper tools, they look terrible when finished and usually don't add to the value of the firearm.
When I purchase a firearm, with a home bubba recoil pad, I knock $75 off the price for the time and cost of replacing the pad to something that is presentable.
Great information but the compounds used in making recoil pads is different enough that AT-205 from ATP will cause the pad to become gummy and to soft.
- Location
- Western Manitoba
Guntech is absolutely right. I'll bet that pad is so hard you will have to cut it off to get at the retaining screws.
OP, do you know how to properly fit a recoil pad, such as the ones in your pic???
Your choice should be the one that is best for your comfortable length of pull. Most people are good with 13.25 in to 13.75 in. If you have a particularly long LOP, make up some spacers out of scrap plastic icecream bucket lids or something thicker if needed. It's also a good time to cut off a bit if you have a particularly short LOP.
LOP is very important, especially when it comes to offhand shooting.
You may find that your pads are warped. They usually pull in nicely when they're torqued down.
Go onto Google and look up how to fit and replace the pads. The biggest mistake most people make is cutting/grinding down the edges of the pads before mounting the pad on the rifle and the contour ends up all wrong.
OP, do you know how to properly fit a recoil pad, such as the ones in your pic???
Your choice should be the one that is best for your comfortable length of pull. Most people are good with 13.25 in to 13.75 in. If you have a particularly long LOP, make up some spacers out of scrap plastic icecream bucket lids or something thicker if needed. It's also a good time to cut off a bit if you have a particularly short LOP.
LOP is very important, especially when it comes to offhand shooting.
You may find that your pads are warped. They usually pull in nicely when they're torqued down.
Go onto Google and look up how to fit and replace the pads. The biggest mistake most people make is cutting/grinding down the edges of the pads before mounting the pad on the rifle and the contour ends up all wrong.
- Location
- Western Manitoba
Thanks, Bearhunter. I have a little fixture from Brownell's - Gracoil Universal Fitting Fixture - that seems to work out not bad to get the contours correct - top edge and bottom edge following angle of the top and bottom of the butt stock. Watched a decent video - Brownells?? Pachmeyer?? - guy finished by using different grits on a 4" wide bench mounted belt sander - WD40 sprayed on finest grit to get a finish. Makes awful mess in the shop - sanding dust everywhere. Needs patience to not scar up the wood stock. I think I have made most mistakes on previous attempts - selecting a pad that is too short to start with, or too thin or too fat, rushing and gouging the stock wood, etc. Not really a job that I like doing, nor am I good at it, but I think I know what a good job should look like; hence my question about re-juvenating - consensus here seems to point to replacement, so will grit my teeth and git 'er dun!!!
Sounds like you've got a decent handle on how to do it.
I don't particularly like the job either. Sadly it's just about the most common job I get.
I usually send folks to the local gun shop to purchase the recoil pad of choice. Most come back with sticker shock.
I have some other material on hand that I didn't see in your pics. No not enough to share.
it's high density rubber, used for scraping "will nots" off conveyor belts, just under the head roll. Not nearly as good as sorbothane molded pads but not bad on rifles with medium recoil.
I don't particularly like the job either. Sadly it's just about the most common job I get.
I usually send folks to the local gun shop to purchase the recoil pad of choice. Most come back with sticker shock.
I have some other material on hand that I didn't see in your pics. No not enough to share.
it's high density rubber, used for scraping "will nots" off conveyor belts, just under the head roll. Not nearly as good as sorbothane molded pads but not bad on rifles with medium recoil.
