Bent stock bolt on H&R Topper single shot 12 guage and the fix

[Onmilo]

I have a Topper I use as a Barn and Beater gun.
Because it is left out in the elements, I decided to replace the hardwood stock and forend with a Choate plastic stock and forend.
The forend went on without issue.
When I went to remove the buttstock, It was very difficult to get the bolt to turn.
Once it did, all it took was two and a half turns and the buttstock came right off, hmmm.
Once it was off, I couldn't get the stock bolt out of the stock and I needed it for the Choate stock.
After fiddling around with it for a bit, I finally got it out, took a look and WOW!
The factory stock bolt was bent!
Worse yet, whatever genius had force installed the stock at the factory botched the threads on both the bolt and the hole on the rear of the receiver.
The through hole in the buttstock was misdrilled so the bolt didn't quite line up correctly with the hole in the receiver. Instead of getting another stock, the factory assembler just forced the bolt down into the hole until it tightened the stock to the receiver cobbling the screw and the receiver threads, but hey, the stock was tight, good to go right? Wrong!.
Take a look,

I went ahead and ordered a new bolt from a factory repair center with a one week delivery but decided I could do better than the factory bolt.
My solution came from Fastenal in the form of a hardened stainless steel bolt and lock washer.
I also chased the threads in the receiver with a taper tap to clean them up.
The new stock assembled without issue.

If you ever need to replace one of these screws, they are 3/8"X24NFX4" long
Don't order a factory bolt which will set you back $6.00 plus shipping.
The Fastenal Stainless steel bolt complete with a new lock washer came to $4.00 including tax.HTH

 

[Onmilo]

I took the gun out and shot it yesterday.
Some things to note here.
With the plastic stock in place, which is hollow and drops the weight of the gun by over a pound and even with its recoil pad which the factory stock doesn't have, recoil is much more noticeable.

The stock being hollow, if one were carrying a Swiss Army Knife with a Phillips blade, which I do, One could add a small survival kit or a dense block of oak wood to kick the weight up.
I am also looking into a prefit Kick-Eze pad or a grind to fit model for this stock now, at least as soon as I get my eyeballs set back into their sockets! Oww.

 

[Old Shooter]

I wonder if that was the case of on-the-job training or mayby put together the Monday after the Superbowl?

That had to take some serious torque to bend a bolt that size and they had to know it was in wrong but didn't take the time or make the effort to correct it. You're lucky it was able to be fixed with a new bolt and a thread chaser.

Those H&R's do make nice barn guns don't they?

 

[Onmilo]

Yes they do.
I'm thinking it was assembled on a friday third shift, about 04:30

 

[dagger dog]

The hollow plastic stock on my Savage .22 has enough room for a 10 round magazine and 10 rounds of ammo.

See if you can get a couple of rounds of buck shot in there.

I have a 20 Ga NEF wood stock single shot 3" chamber it serves as my behind the door gun.

 

[HOWARD J]

I have a 12 ga. topper--recoil was always nasty--Being on Plavix I don't use it anymore.
Recoil must murder with a plastic stock.
Have fun

 

[USAF_Vet]

My Mav 88 12gauge had a plastic hollow stock, and recoil was manageable. Recoil is much heavier with the 6-position PG stock than with the factory original.

My Stevens 20gauge single shot I can hold one handed and shoot. not highly recommended, but manageable even with the 28" barrel. Recoil doesn't hurt even after a full evening of target practice.

What did Customer Service say when you told them about the bent bolt?