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Last year I purchased a Ruger model 1-A rifle chambered for the 7x57 mm cartridge. A Burris 4-14x Fullfield II scope was used for testing. The rifle displayed considerable dispersion in point of impact when fired from a Bald Mountain front rest and rear sandbag. Groups ran 1-1/2 to 2 inches, and were tall and narrow. Bright marks inside the forend at the tip indicated pressure of the forend bearing on the barrel. Various tension settings of the forend screw made no improvement. Best accuracy seemed to occur when the forend was rested near the receiver, where it is stiffest.

Earlier this week I found time to install a Hicks Accurizer. To install, the forend is removed and the pin is removed from the forend hanger. The device is placed over the end of the hanger, and a new, longer pin is put in place to hold it. The channel in the forend is then widened and deepened to accommodate the device.

The first problem was with the mechanical assembly of the parts. The holes in the Hicks device and the Ruger hanger did not line up. First I had to file about 0.030” from the bottom of the hanger. At that point, the holes appeared to line up, but the pin would not pass through, though it would enter from either side. Apparently the hanger was slightly warped from being welded to the receiver. A 5/16-inch straight reamer was used to clean up the alignment.

The instructions say a milling machine is best for enlarging the channel in the forend, but that a Dremel tool is sufficient. I took one look at the amount of wood that must be removed, and put the Dremel tool away. Instead, I went to the shop of a friend who has a milling machine. There is really no way to measure for the depth of the cut, except by Mk I eyeball, which is what we did. My objective was to cut a channel that was a slip fit for the width of the Hicks device, and only just deep enough so that when the forend was installed it would be free floated. An end mill the same diameter as the width of the Hicks device was used to make the cut in several passes. A steel block was placed in the channel behind the work area to take up the strain of being clamped in the padded machinists vice, so the forend wouldn’t split under pressure. A dollar bill now passes between the barrel and the tip of the forend, when the forend is tightened in place.

A Burris 6x Fullfield II scope was installed in Ruger medium rings. At the fifty-yard range the gun was shot with no tension on the setscrew, and then tension was added in 1/4-turn increments. Groups were small, and no change was seen at different settings of the setscrew. The gun was moved to the 100-yard line. Five three-shot groups measured 0.625, 0.813, 1.031, 0.531, and 0.781 inches, for an average of 0.756 inch. Almost all of the dispersion was vertical. Average horizontal width was 0.237 inches, with the greatest being 0.357 inches.

In conclusion, I am very doubtful that varying the tension of the setscrew has any effect on the accuracy of the rifle. Adjusting the tension did not result in any noticeable change in groups. On the other hand, I strongly suspect that some tension is beneficial. The Ruger forend hanger is not very stiff. The setscrew bears against a stiff portion of the barrel, and probably serves to reinforce the hanger, and to damp vibrations of the hanger and receiver. Almost all of the dispersion in groups was vertical, even after the Hicks Accurizer was installed. However, this is not a bench rest rifle. As a hunting rifle, I am now confident that accuracy is sufficient. I consider the installation of the Hicks Accurizer to be a success, and it is probably superior to free-floating the barrel by bedding.