Gunsmithing Bedding Sticky?

[RmeJu]

I'm looking into bedding and been poking around the site to learn more about how to do it, what areas to/not to bed and why/why not (just lug? also in front of lug? tang? action?), what to use (epoxy, release agent, etc.). Several of the posts say there is a bedding sticky here somewhere, but I can't seem to find it. Is it still around?

Thanks!

 

[jeepwilson]

I do front and back, every where from the recoil lug back to the mag well and I let it flow about an inch in front of the lug. I just wrap some plumbers tape around he barrel in front of the barrel. I cover the bottom of the of the action from where the trigger cut out is to just in front of the mag well to keep it from getting to messy. I use Devcon plastic steel in the tubs, I have used the tubes too but they are quite a bit thinner and tend to be more messy. There is a little bit of a learning curve to know how much you need per rifle. But once you figure that out it gets easier. I run masking tape on the stock where I don`t want it. I use liquid Turtle wax, car wax, as releasing agent and use a Q-tip to put it every where on the bottom of the action and on the tape where I have covered areas I don`t want it to go. Don`t forget to put it on you action screws as well. After it dries you can take a chisel and chip out ant you don`t want. It doesn`t take much to get it out. I have been told you can use spray pledge to cover the action and barrel for releasing agent but I`ve never tried it. That would be a lot easier though.

 

[RmeJu]

Thanks for the reply. I get it that people often bed everything. But from what I've seen, it's much simpler to just bed the lug (and maybe the tang), both of which may provide a functional benefit. But some of what I've been reading is that bedding the action requires more care, skill, and prep work (remove trigger, plug up all the little holes and recesses with clay, etc.), and more could go wrong, but... what does that get you, functionally? It also looks like it might require a mill to finish up properly (although I see dremel/chisel could also work).

I'm happy to bed the full action, if it actually gets me something beyond that it looks nice or scratches an OCD itch. But if it doesn't, my preference, seeing as this would be my first go, would be to just do the lug and maybe the tang, since that seems much easier with less to go wrong.

 

[jeepwilson]

I would bed the tang and lug area. You want a good cradle for it to sit in. A lot of fun companies are just bedding the lug area and when you pull one out of the stock it is a really crappie job. It will be literally the size of a quarter. My Dad always says “If you’re going to do something, take pride in what you do.”

 

[padom]

Bedding properly isnt a quick thang. It's all in the prep.

The point of bedding the entire action vs just the lug is to ensure a solid base for the action to sit on with multiple points of solid contact. I just bedded my CZ 455 into my ACC last week.

Yes, disassemble everything off the action, plug everything up with modeling clay. Dam/wall off magazine well, trigger well, inch in front of recoil lug... makes for less milling after.. prep inside of the chassis/stock for good adhesion by rough sanding, drilling small holes, etc. Whatever you choose, coat action and barrel with wax or what I use is the Acraglas release agent from Brownells. Tape off the entire chassis. I bed with Devcon 10110.

Lots of info, videos out there but yes, it's a ton of work. But nothing better than a good bedding job.

 

[DJL2]

Timely topic. I'm going to bed my M70...twice. 1. a "redo" on the factory job and 2. bedding it into a new McMillan stock I ordered for it.

As I was thinking about it, I theorized that the flat bottom on the M70 ought to make things a bit easier. My thought is that I'm not trying to cradle a cylinder...I just need to create a solid platform/base for the action to sit on.

 

[Sieg]

This video from Cavedweller does a good job of covering the basic bedding fundamentals in grassroots fashion. You may need to add pillars depending on your application.