Davidson Loading Ramp Remington Rifle Installation

The basic principle of the onepiece cartridge ramp is to provide a loading channel for the cartridge, guiding it at an upward angle as the bolt pushes it forward into the chamber. Most of these ramps are not cartridge specific, meaning the groove is somewhat oversize and the cartridge tip-point may not always find the bullet tip above the chamber opening as it moves forward. Thus, it may be necessary to manipulate the cartridge with the fingers to find chamber opening.

This will depend somewhat on bullet length and weight as well as the cartridge being used. In the case of a switch barrel rifle, it is not likely that one ramp will serve more than one kind of cartridge. In this application I will cover installation of a Davidson Loading Ramp for Remington Short Action, available from Sinclair International (sinclairintl.com), and chambered for a customer’s 6mm XC and .220 Swift switch barrel rifle.

Cartridge Ramp Installation The Davidson ramp has essentially the same outer dimensions as the opening milled out in the Model 700 receiver where the magazine box fits. Side-to-side it’s a bit undersize and a little over-length, needing a notch ¼-inch wide and about 1/8-inch deep filed or milled at the square end. There is sufficient space for bonding material at the sides and ends. J-B Weld was used as bonding material to permanently lock the loading ramp to the receiver.

Below center: A common square ¼" wide file was used to notch-out the loading ramp to fit the Model 700 Remington magazine box outlet. The inside milled-out receiver race should be thoroughly cleaned for solid bonding of the ramp. I used the tip of a Dremel tool bit to etch the side surfaces of the ramp to aid bonding. This part should also be thoroughly cleaned with lacquer thinner or similar. Be sure to try the bolt for clear passage over the milled out surface of the ramp before bonding the ramp in place.

There may not be adequate clearance between the bolt groove radius front and rear. Where sufficient bolt clearance is not present, some material must be removed or polished from the ramp groove either before or after bonding the ramp in place. In-

This includes the bottom and top of the loading ramp and the insides of the bolt race. The magazine box is shown for comparison. sertion of a bolt-sized rod or the actual bolt would test side-to-side ramp alignment as the ramp is installed. Light oil or release agent to the bolt or rod would be needed if left in place as the bonding material dries. With things prepped, the cartridge ramp can be solidly bonded into position.

To prevent any spill-over cleanup of the bonding material, I applied release agent to those areas immediately adjacent to the receiver and flats of the ramp. Though any of the high impact bonding materials such as Brownells Steel Bed or similar cold weld product would serve nicely to permanently bond the cartridge ramp, I used J-B Weld. Given the small amount of side play between the receiver magazine cutout and the sides of the cartridge ramp, be sure the part is well centered as it is lowered into position.

If the receiver is held horizontally, the ramp should remain in place as the bonding material sets. Once set, clean up as necessary and be sure the bolt enters the rifle and moves freely forth and back. The oval groove at the rear shows the close tolerance where the bolt will travel. The cartridge base falls into the milled-out groove as the front is tipped upward. Here we see the close tolerance of the bolt head and bolt groove machined into the loading ramp.

Conclusions The reasons for installing a cartridge ramp are obvious and once completed yields a single shot rifle. As a bonus, the action will have added rigidity which should help improve accuracy. AG