Ruger 782 Replacement Stock?

[ws450r]

My dad has a Model 782 22mag, which has been in the family as long as I can remember. The issue I have is there seems to be some rotation play and is loose, where the barrel and such sits in the stock. It's not a lot, but it is noticable if you grab the stock and barrel area, in which you can see it moves back and forth just a little. It's kind of hard to explain.

Has anyone ever came across this issue? I don't know if I need a replacement stock or what, so I'm trying to troubleshoot it and if it does need a replacement stock, what a good website is to replacement parts.

 

[hammie]

@ws450r: I don't recall a ruger 782, but I'm not an authority on ruger model numbers. There were ruger 77, mark II's with a 782 serial number prefix, but they were centerfire rifles. Perhaps you mean a marlin 782, with a detachable box magazine?

The marlin 782 is attached to the stock by means of a steel cylinder which is dovetailed to the barrel. The other end of the cylinder is threaded to accept the stock retaining screw. The steel cylinder sits in a round hole in the stock. The action is then secured by the stock retaining screw, located just forward of the magazine on the bottom of the stock. That is the SOLE means of attachment. If the stock hole gets battered or the wood shrinks (thus expanding the hole), then you could get forward and backwards movement of the rifle action in the stock and the action could also pivot around that point. If this is the case, then it should be an easy fix with any of several stock bedding compounds.

Marlin replaced the 780 series of .22 rifles somewhere in the mid -1980s with a new model. Gun Parts Corporation may have the older replacement stocks, but I don't know where you could get a new stock, otherwise. As another suggestion, you may want to try posting this question on rimfirecentral.com in the marlin sub-forum.

 

[ws450r]

Derp.....you are right. It is a Marlin. For some reason I had Ruger on my mind and went searching for the first forum, lol. At lease this gives me some idea as to where to look at what might be causing it to be loose.

I'll take a look at that other website and maybe get the "marlin" part correct this time.

 

[hammie]

I honestly think you could fix it easily with a thin coat of bedding compound. On my marlin 782, I bedded the bottom of the receiver and also bedded from the front of the receiver to the attachment stud and hole. It is literally rock solid.

There are various bedding compounds you can use from Devcon to even JB weld. However, Brownell's acra-glas always gave me the best results. You can get acra-glas directly from brownells.com or sometimes local gun shops carry brownell's products (mine does). Midwayusa.com is also a good source of bedding materials.

If you do that, make sure you follow the instructions about release agents, applying them liberally and even in unlikely places where the bedding compound could go. Otherwise you will end up with "A" rifle (i.e., a single unit rifle, which can't be dis-assembled).

The older marlins are real shooters and are worth improving or customizing. Basix makes an after market, drop-in trigger which vastly improves the factory trigger. At 100 yards or less, my 782 is a tack driver.