In my recent Hepburn restocking effort (I did the best I could) I found the lower tang fit a bit looser than I would like. The length and width were ok but the depth was a bit deeper than it probably should be and I hate fillers so I went with it. When you tighten it you can see the lower tang bending slightly but due to the length I wasn't too concerned. How much is too much and should I use a shim or filler to correct it. It is a 32/40 Hepburn so the recoil isn't too bad impacting the stock and it fits well up around the receiver. I don't have a lot of experience doing pistol grip stocks.


JMH

I agree with Bob, bed it. Remove some more wood so the bedding compound is not too thin. Wax the metal and screw and don’t tighten the screw down, this way the tang will be in its normal position with no strain on the tang.
Cheers Richard

I would consider the addition of a steel sleeve or liner for the tang screw like those seen on older military bolt action rifles. Cut the sleeve to the appropriate length then bore the tang screw hole a bit oversize so the sleeve will drop in. Use bedding compound to secure the sleeve in the stock and create good supporting contact for the tang. I like acra-glas gel for projects like this since it can be colored to match the surrounding wood.

Once the bedding is dried make sure you run a drill bit through the sleeve to prevent and loading on the tang screw. I'm sure you already knew to make sure the screw and the inside of the sleeve are well coated with mould release when you bed the tang so you can get them back apart later