Skip them, they only seem to match on rifles that have white spacers on the grip cap and butt plate.

 

My brother used to build custom electric guitars. When attaching strap buttons on a variety of curved or shaped surfaces he would tailor a piece of thick leather that he salvaged from an old pair of boots. He would trim it to the appropriate size. It worked great and looks very nice. Would probably work well for you as well and it's free!

 

I like the idea of leather, very attractive.

Does the nylon washer play any functional role? If it were softer, I would imagine it would help in making sure the opening in the swivel stud aligned perfectly, by allowing a little wiggle room.

Related to that, the instructions were silent on how to start screwing the swivel stud in. Should I begin with the eye in any particular position?

 

Related to that, the instructions were silent on how to start screwing the swivel stud in. Should I begin with the eye in any particular position?

I recommend putting the pointy threaded end in the hole first...Tom

 

+1 Thomasconnor. Excellent point.

All joking aside, the eye in the swivel studs needs to be perpendicular to the barrel for the sling to attach correctly. The wood will compress slightly, so I have some leeway. I guess I can examine the threading and see if the screw makes a whole number of rotations between the point and the end of the threading at the base of the swivel stud.

 

You might find black in the faucet washer section for plumbing.
You mention the location as just forward of the recoil/butt pad, most rifles do not have the stud/eye that far back. The toe of the stock is actually quite weak, you should be a few inches forward of the back end.
Ive found it best to have the stock clamped firmly and the run of it horizontal where you want to fit the eye 'straight in'.
Be sure to use the proper size drill for the hole! And be sure the hole is not drilled off kilter; see above.
To get a starting thread Ive dug thru my screws bin for a size and thread 'Phillips' head screw to initiate the thread by about a turn. That gives a good lead-in when starting the eye.

 

To gcrank1, I am looking at a spot two inches forward of the butt. The sharpness mellows towards the palm swell, so it’s easier to drill, but I don’t want to go too far forward since it’s a compact rifle.

 

also, if you rub some candle wax on the screw threads prior to screwing it into the wood it makes it much easier to inset.... and less chance of buggering up the finish

 

I owe everyone an update since I installed the swivel studs this morning. I liked the idea of leather, but I didn’t have a ready source. So I installed the swivel studs without the nylon washers. I think the result looks fine.

BTW, the instructions called for drilling a hole with a 5/32 drill bit inside of a hole drilled with a 7/32 bit. Since the swivel stud was larger than 7/32, I first drilled a hole 1/8 inch deep with a 11/32 drill bit. Then, I drilled a hole with a 5/32 drill bit. The front swivel stud was a half inch long, while the rear was an inch long, so the two 5/32 holes were different depths.

I thought about using candle wax, but opted for a touch of wood glue.

I considered using a drill press and then an elaborate plan of using a drill block taped to the stock. But I couldn’t see the first hole when I needed to move the drill block when I tested this plan on an old rake handle. Instead, I involved the whole family. I drilled while my middle son held the stock against the table with my wife and oldest son checking that I was square in both directions.