How to add weight to a rifle?

[JImbothefiveth]

I was wondering, what are some easy ways to add weight to a rifle, to reduce the recoil? I know you could change the stock or barrel, and also add an optical sight and a bi-pod. Are there any other ways?

 

[Claude Clay]

load it

some slip on or velcro'ed cheek pads have a pocket for ammo. perhaps something in the pocket besides ammo?
wearing padded shooting gloves may help with the perceived recoil.
a P.A.S.T. for your shoulder? or a slip on recoil rear butt pad? a lead sled eliminates all recoil--but is rather limited to bench shooting.
if its a wood stock--mill a channel below the barrel to place a steel rod. balance the gun by drilling from the butt and putting a rod there(if you stock pad is removable).
load lighter rounds for practice and sight in before the hunt with your 'real' rounds.

 

[Wes Janson]

What rifle are you referring to?

 

[JImbothefiveth]

I would like techniques that would apply to most any rifle, especially autoloaders fed from detachable magazines

 

[telomerase]

I was wondering, what are some easy ways to add weight to a rifle

Let the Army add specifications to it. Soon you'll have a 9-pound monstrosity which only shoots 5.56, but whose barrel can be used as a prybar.

But seriously, you should make sure your LOP is correct for you and install a suitable recoil pad. And use your sling.

 

[marsche]

The AR type rifles have a trap door on the bottom that will allow a lead weight to be inserted. Bushmaster sells a lead wedge that fits in the compartment under the door. I think the weight is marked so you can cut it to a specific weight – I can’t remember if that is true.

I have an FN PBR that has a Hogue stock and the butt of the stock is hollow. A lot of the new rifles have hollow butt stocks. I added weight to it by removing the recoil pad and filling the cavity with lead shot, tamping it with my thumbs as I went. Then I used modeling clay to top it off and pressed and screwed the recoil pad back into place (keep the BB’s from rattling). I was able to increase the rifle weight by four pounds and reduce the recoil for use in F/TR matches. I did the same thing with rifles that have wooden stocks by boring several one inch holes length wise in the butt of the gun.

You can add a couple of pounds with lead shot in the forearm too. Many of the synthetic stocks have channels that you can fill with lead. If you fill them, make sure they don’t contact the barrel and then pour epoxy over them to seal them in place.

The nice thing about using the lead shot is it allows you to be very precise in how much weight you add. If you use it in the butt and in the forearm, you can achieve a very good balance. The rifles I use in both High Power and F Class competitions all have lead added someplace, whether it is for balance or reduction of felt recoil.

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

Well, if it has a plastic stock with a hollow buttstock, then you can do what I did with my Traditions muzzleloader - mix some lead shot with liquid nails and place the mixture into stock, filling up the lower third of the stock, give or take, depending upon how much weight you want to add. Leave the buttpad off for about a week to allow it to fully dry. My guess is a silicon sealant would work better than liquid nails.

 

[TehK1w1]

Ask a mall ninja, they can triple the weight of any gun out there with scopes, lights, can openers, ect for only 4X the original cost of the gun.

 

[W.E.G.]

 

[jordan1948]

Strap it down to something.

Seriously

 

[trstafford]

Shooting from the Bench

Buy a lead-sled from some place like Midway

 

[JImbothefiveth]

Not shooting from a bench, though.

 

[Rich_Lather]

I put a pack of BBs in the butt of my Rem 700. It balances the bull barrel quite well too. Wal-mart sells Copperhead containers of 6000 BBs. That's all you need to put in the hollow stock of an sps varmiter. The nice thing is, when I go hunting with it, I can just pour them out.

For generalized use for all rifles, get a panzy pad for your shoulder to spread out the area of impulse contact. It's a hell of a lot cheaper than alternative stocks.

 

[scythefwd]

I also have a gun that I think is too light (in the forearm specifically). I find that I am steadier with a heavier gun. I will be routing out a couple of lines in the forearm and then adding a mixture of lead shot and epoxy (while making sure that it is just below the level of the wood in adjacent to it). I do this not for the kick (its only a .30-30, and I dont feel it kick) but for the muzzle jump. I don't grip my forearm, just support it with my hand. The weight will keep the jump more under control. This will be the first step I take to getting the gun under moa (will be bedding the stock and if I can floating the barrel at the same time).

 

[jjohnson]

Ask the Army.

Let the Army add specifications to it. Soon you'll have a 9-pound monstrosity which only shoots 5.56, but whose barrel can be used as a prybar.

Oh, come on! The Army would never do that, would they? :banghead:

Well..... the M16A1 I had to carry for three years was made a little more tolerable when they attached a real weapon to it. Personal favorite of mine for close in - the 40mm grenade launcher - added a bit of weight there on the front end. A real crowd pleaser with buck or flechette rounds

Never did like the mousegun, but if the caliber "begins with 40" and is measured in millimeters, it's gotta have something going for it....

 

[scythefwd]

telo,
The army cant even do that right. Only one of the 5.56 guns they have (non machine guns atleast) had a good barrel on them. You can actually bend the one on the A2 by locking in to the sling like a target shooter would.