Anyone on here witness a problem with the recoil-lug arrangement on the Sako M85s? It’s a weird setup--a sheet metal piece screwed into the stock inletting with a hole into which a lug on the action drops. A cost-cutting design, I guess, and it doesn’t look nearly as capable of handling recoil as the older integral recoil lug. A failure would be a split or damaged stock, I imagine. Has anyone seen or heard of this happening with a Sako 85?
Sako 85 Recoil Lug Setup - any Problems?
- Thread starter South Pender
- Start date
Here are a couple of pictures. The impact on the stock is provided by that part that drops down into a cutout in the stock near the screw holes--seen in the second picture. Hard to understand how this arrangement would be easier to fabricate and cost less than simply welding a standard recoil lug onto the bottom of the receiver.
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I agree. When the action recoils, the metal tenon attached to the receiver impacts the flat metal form, which then pulls this form back impacting the cutout below the metal form. I'm not sure pillar-bedding would help much. Maybe some glass behind the part that drops into the cutout in the stock would make it a stronger setup.
Next-to-no experience with it yet. Yes, the barrel is floated.
You know I'm a Sako guy... but that just looks hokey.
Sure it's well engineered, but also from the profit side as well, which is disappointing knowing what they charge for a rifle these days. The bedding is never a bad idea, and can only improve the situation and offer peace of mind. Unless you are considering sending it down the road, then leave it as is, and let the next fella decide?
R.
Sure it's well engineered, but also from the profit side as well, which is disappointing knowing what they charge for a rifle these days. The bedding is never a bad idea, and can only improve the situation and offer peace of mind. Unless you are considering sending it down the road, then leave it as is, and let the next fella decide?
R.
Yeah, I don't know about bedding it. The way it looks now, the front part of the action sits on the two rails on the flat metal piece, and so I'm not sure how you would bed it. I suppose a pillar at the rear action screw might not be a bad idea. My concern at this point is more focused on the strength of the recoil-handling with this arrangement. One possibility for added strength that I noted above is to put a thick layer of glass behind the piece that drops down into the slot in the stock. Not sure whether this would help much. I might add that it has two cross bolts in the stock; it's a .270 Win. Picture below:
I toss that tuning fork device as far as I can and bed with a Tikka T3 lug, the way it should have been done from the start.
Looks like this.
edi
That would require milling a crosswise slot in the bottom of the receiver as well as another slot in the stock inletting--not something I'd want to do.
Here's another picture of the Sako 85 recoil lug piece that better shows how it operates. There is a nub on the bottom of the receiver that drops into the crosswise hole in the unit and takes the front action screw. Then you can see how recoil is transferred to the stock by the crosswise extension on the bottom of the unit slamming against a crosswise channel cut in the stock. I guess it works or we'd be hearing about it from Sako owners, but that was my main reason for starting this thread--to see whether anyone has heard about this arrangement failing. It's a goofy setup for sure. I was thinking that the whole thing could perhaps be strengthened by opening up the slot in the stock where the crosswise extension on the bottom of the unit drops and adding in a thick pad of glass. This would eliminate any possible backward play of the unit on firing.
You can see how the action must sit on the lengthwise rails on the top of the unit (keeping the receiver almost-completely separated from the stock at that location) and so it's hard to see how conventional glass-bedding would work--unless you replaced the unit entirely. I've read that some guys have had their 85s glass-bedded (possibly with pillars), and I'm curious about just how a good gunsmith would do this.
You can see how the action must sit on the lengthwise rails on the top of the unit (keeping the receiver almost-completely separated from the stock at that location) and so it's hard to see how conventional glass-bedding would work--unless you replaced the unit entirely. I've read that some guys have had their 85s glass-bedded (possibly with pillars), and I'm curious about just how a good gunsmith would do this.
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Maybe you should of bought a different rifle, you’ve been shown a solution to a problem you haven’t experienced, yet for some reason it’s unacceptable.
Why not shoot it and see if it’s an issue for you. Same with the known 85 ejection issues some have em some don’t. If your looking for members to walk you through bedding it maybe just pay a competent person to do it. No wonder it’s getting discontinued
Why not shoot it and see if it’s an issue for you. Same with the known 85 ejection issues some have em some don’t. If your looking for members to walk you through bedding it maybe just pay a competent person to do it. No wonder it’s getting discontinued
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Blastattack
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Much ado about nothing. Just shoot it. You, and the rifle, will be fine.
Couldn't have said it better...
