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Full length barrel bedding
- Thread starter Blancoalex
- Start date
Help Support Long Range Hunting Forum
I just did an older Ruger M77 in 22-250 that was doing 2" groups at 100 yards . I think someone took a bunch of parts and put it together nothing really fit right . The floor plate wouldn't open or close , the action moved around and you could see rub marks on the side of the barrel , the mag box was bound in the stock . I got it for 200.00 . I bedded the action cleaned the barrel channel out freed up the mag box and shot it , it still didn't group well so I did what Ruger recommended and put a pad under the barrel about an inch back from the tip of the fore end of the stock . I didn't put any pressure on the barrel just bedded it bottom and sides using wax for the release agent . That got it down to .75 groups with factory Winchester white box 40 grn hp's .
Blancoalex
Well-Known Member
Dsheetz, kinda fun to find a "problem" rifle, work out the problems and have it turn into great rifle.
Really a interesting thread! Quite a while back a friend had a new Ruger M77 in 7mm Mag. it was a real mess when it came to grouping. I removed the pressure point and it was worse. Next I glass bedded the action with a floated bbl. no improvement. Then I took plastic shims and put 7lbs of forearm pressure. Got down to 1.25" at 100yds. Next, just for fun, I full length bedded the bbl with 7 lbs of weight hung from the front sling swivel. That was all it took!! I wish I had kept the targets for display. This hunting rifle would shoot .5 moa at 200 yds. Obviously not shot rapid fire
I do not post this very often because it is generally VERY unpopular and often ridiculed. On many hunting weight rifles, full length barrel bedding works just great. All of my Mannlicher full stocks are bedded all the way and they shoot significantly better after bedding than before, I have also had very good results bedding light weight and sporter contour barrels on my hunting rifles. I also own NULAs and can attest to the fact their full length bedded rifles shoot lights out. The single biggest improvement I have noticed is that the cold bore first shot, previously slightly fouled barrel, goes the same place as the next two. I also find they shoot different bullet weights far closer to the same POI and are not near as picky on bullet and velocity, in other words shoot a much wider variety of loads really well. I don't care if a hunting rifle starts to wander after 5 or ten shots, in my whole life I have never used more than two at distance on any game animals.
Try some three shoot groups with two or three different weights of bullets and pay attention to your cold bore first shots. Bed the barrel then shoot it again. I think you will be pleasantly surprised. Look forward to hearing your results.
Here is a 308 NULA, thin 21" Douglas fully bedded barrel, gun weighs 6 lbs 3 ounces including 3,5x18x44 scope, sling and 4 rounds in mag. This target was shot with 4 different loads, 2 different powders Varget and 4895 and two different bullets, 130 TSX and 150 Hornady. All shots fired fairly close together. all were shot as three shot groups. The last 3 furthest left and higher were shoot as the 10-12 rounds of pretty much continuous fire and you can start to see the group open up due to heat. Once the barrel cooled that load dropped down to 1/2" as well. Target squares are 1/2" per side, not the standard 1".
I've been looking for some information on fully bedding a barrel to the stock.
I've got a .30-06 Tikka superlite that can shoot great groups, but there is the occasional flier or two that I think is from the barrel coming back to rest on the stock's pressure points in a slightly different position than before.
I've been reading about the Barrett fieldcraft and Melvin Forbes, and I'm really intrigued with the old school method of fully bedding the barrel to help the consistency of lightweight barrels. I've been wanting to try out fully bedding my Tikka barrel with a Boyd's laminate stock I've got coming, but the problem is that the barrel is fluted. It's got 6 flutes, with one lined up exactly center on bottom, so I don't think the flutes would end up locking it into the stock with bedding, but not sure.
Any thoughts? Any recommendations on where to look for pointers on doing full barrel bedding?
Lots of release. Not sure why a fluted wouldn't work. It wouldn't rotate. Also, you could put a couple layers of tape on the bottom of the barrel and bed the large gaps with epoxy w/ microspheres, then remove the tape and skim bed with your bedding of choice. Lots of ways to skin this one
edit: dumb of me to say that without totally thinking thru the side flutes. I was only thinking the bottom flute.
edit: dumb of me to say that without totally thinking thru the side flutes. I was only thinking the bottom flute.
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Just found the OPs newer thread with the 300 wby.
The flutes might be able to mechanically lock the barrel in to the stock if any part of the flute surfaces go passed vertical.
If you have flutes that are below the top of the forearm and on any angle that is not directly down into the stock you must fill them level with putty. The bottom flute, that faces direct down into the barrel channel, do not fill it. If you don't fill the ones on an angle they will mechanically lock the barrel into to stock. I have done a few this way and it works fine, just make sure the putty is level and smooth.
