Glass bedding quandry!!

[Alibiiv]

I have a glass bedding dilemma that I would like other's opinions on. I have a friend who wants me to pillar bed/glass bed his pre-64, Winchester model 70 in .270 Winchester. The stock is not original, the checkering was nearly sanded off, and I don't know what it "had" on it for a finish, but it's gone!! The walnut stock is a nice piece of wood, I redid the checkering, the stock is still unfinished. I've got the pillar bedding done, and....now the dilemma!!

This rifle has a screw that goes through the stock and into the barrel about half way down the length of the barrel. I've glass bedded a number of rifles over the years, but....never one with a screw half-way down the barrel!! The process that I usually use is to relieve the wood around the recoil lug and then glass bed around the recoil lug and the first 4 inches of the barrel channel in front of the recoil lug, and then float the barrel the rest of the channel by around .020 thousandths with plumber's tape. I cannot do this process with a screw that is around 10 inches in front of the recoil lug. Do I glass bed the entire barrel channel just past the screw and then float the barrel, or glass bed the entire channel!!??? Presently my thoughts are leaning toward glass bedding from the recoil lug down the entire barrel channel. Anyone with any suggestions, knowledge or experience with this situation??

 

[Dosh]

I've seen some vintage bedding jobs done the full barrel channel, but none were very accurate. I've only looked at new 70's, so never encountered the screw 10" down the barrel. Looking forward to seeing what responses show up.

 

[bororthenn]

Also looking forward to see what responses show up.

 

[Bigeclipse]

I have a glass bedding dilemma that I would like other's opinions on. I have a friend who wants me to pillar bed/glass bed his pre-64, Winchester model 70 in .270 Winchester. The stock is not original, the checkering was nearly sanded off, and I don't know what it "had" on it for a finish, but it's gone!! The walnut stock is a nice piece of wood, I redid the checkering, the stock is still unfinished. I've got the pillar bedding done, and....now the dilemma!!

This rifle has a screw that goes through the stock and into the barrel about half way down the length of the barrel. I've glass bedded a number of rifles over the years, but....never one with a screw half-way down the barrel!! The process that I usually use is to relieve the wood around the recoil lug and then glass bed around the recoil lug and the first 4 inches of the barrel channel in front of the recoil lug, and then float the barrel the rest of the channel by around .020 thousandths with plumber's tape. I cannot do this process with a screw that is around 10 inches in front of the recoil lug. Do I glass bed the entire barrel channel just past the screw and then float the barrel, or glass bed the entire channel!!??? Presently my thoughts are leaning toward glass bedding from the recoil lug down the entire barrel channel. Anyone with any suggestions, knowledge or experience with this situation??

Ive heard of rifles with screws in their barrels just like this and there is always a consensus to just remove the screw and not use it. The thought of this design was it could act as a pressure point to help with barrel harmonics to make the rifles more accurate but from what I have read is most people found them to be accurate with out the screw there. I am not sure if the rifle in question is like the rifles I am talking about but I would look into that if I were you because if it were, you may want to simply bed it and free float it like a normal rifle with out the screw and leave the screw out.

 

[FURMAN]

If it were mine I would bed up to and including the barrel lug. I personally would put putty in the screw hole and in the stock hole for the screw then bed like normal. I would then clean up as usually. This should give you a nice stress free bedding job.

I am going off memory here so I may be wrong but I believe some of the "classic" model 70s in the past few years used this setup and they had spot bedding in both lug recesses.

 

[Alibiiv]

I like the ideas about putting putty in the screw hole and leaving the screw out completely. I can make a small bushing, sort of like a pillar to replace the factory bushing that is presently in the stock, glass bed the new bushing into the stock where the screw hole is, tap the bedded bushing and put a short screw into the bushing to make it "look" like the original; it will be non-functional/cosmetic and look original. I've always had good results bedding 4 inches in front of the recoil lug and then floating the rest of the barrel channel; I'd like to stay with that process. Thank you for your input/replies.

 

[FURMAN]

I like the ideas about putting putty in the screw hole and leaving the screw out completely. I can make a small bushing, sort of like a pillar to replace the factory bushing that is presently in the stock, bed bed the new bushing into the stock where the screw hole is, tap the bushing and put a short screw into the bushing to make it "look" like the original; it will be non-functional/cosmetic and look original. I've always had good results bedding 4 inches in front of the recoil lug and then floating the rest of the barrel channel; I'd like to stay with that process. Thank you for your input/replies.

To clarify I meant just to keep bedding out of the hole. I personally would use the screw after bedding and cleaning. Your suggestion might work as well.