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Gunsmithing DIY Action bedding on Manners stock

Ugly_Duck

Sergeant of the Hide
Full Member
Minuteman
Jan 17, 2019
122
27
Wisconsin
I have a manners stock that I have been considering bedding myself for some time. I understand there are plenty of youtube videos out there on it but looking for any helpful suggestions here before I take on the project.
 
Sell it and get a mini chassis lol

In all seriousness though, prep is key. Just make sure you get removal agent everywhere necessary and cover all holes in your action with clay or putty so you don't glue your action to the stock mechanically or orherwise.
 
Robert Gradous has some excellent bedding videos on his youtube channel.
 
I did pillars and bedding on my Manners for a CZ455 rimfire action. Turned out well I think. The gun shoots very well, where it did not before. Richard Franklin on accurateshooter.com has a good article on the topic. I also bought his CD that went into great detail. Here recently I found Rabert Gradous's youtube videos which is a very similar approach. RIchard goes into alot more of the details. Not hard if you are meticulous in what you do and remember RELEASE AGENT IS YOUR FRIEND!
 
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I've done 2 of my own this year. My Manners PRS-2 will be #3.


It's really easy. I've been using Devcon and it's user friendly. I haven't had issues.


Hornady 1 shot works well as a release agent as does any sort of wax. I have used renesance was and 1 shot.


Like was said, fill the slots and holes. I use Play-Doh.

A couple layers of tape under the lug and on the front face. Can do the sides if you're lug isn't tapered.


Mix up a decent amount. It doesn't take much. But you don't wanna have to mix more or not have enough.

Relieve some area to give the bedding a place to go and stick. Clean the area to be bedded with alcohol or similar degreasing agent.


Lots of ways to tighten till it dries. I've been using the action screws as that makes the most sense in my head. Just make sure you get the threads coated in release agent.


After a period of time when the Devcon firms up I trim all the excess I can and clean up what I can.
 
After reading this post late last week I searched on Youtube for Robert Grampus's action bedding videos. He has a video posted that says video #1 of 4. I read in another post yesterday that Robert has passed away so I am assuming the remaining three videos will not be posted.

Most of the videos I have found on youtube are not very good and poor quality. Can anyone recommend a good and detailed video that shows you how to bed an action from start to finish?
 
Richard Franklin made a video that showed how to bed a stock and a lot of other things, like chamber a barrel and whole bunch more. I'm not sure if he still sells them, but I have watched the one I got a bunch.
 
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I was finally able to find a few good videos on YouTube that were made by actual gunsmiths. In all four videos they were bedding the action into a stock that has an aluminum block in it, my stock does as well so I was happy to see that. In two of the videos the gunsmith only bedded the recoil lug and the tang while in the other two videos they bedded the entire action.

Which is best or does it not really matter?


In one of the videos the gunsmith wrapped tape around the barrel but in the other three videos they didn't. I have read in other threads that you are supposed to and seen a number of other videos where they did as well.

What is the purpose of wrapping the barrel with tape and when should you do it or not do it?



Thanks
 
I think the point of wrapping the barrel in tape is to set the clearance for the barrel in the stock. Between that and the action screws, that's what sets your Z axis on the action relative to the stock. Without the tape, you would have to put a lot more torque on the action screws which could easily give you stress. The point is to have a stress free bedding job.

If you dry fit everything a time or two, you will see the purpose of the tape on the barrel. It will also let you know if your plan is good or needs some improvement.
 
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I really enjoyed Robert G.'s videos on bedding. Unfortunate he passed. That is where I saw the tape method
 
I think the point of wrapping the barrel in tape is to set the clearance for the barrel in the stock. Between that and the action screws, that's what sets your Z axis on the action relative to the stock. Without the tape, you would have to put a lot more torque on the action screws which could easily give you stress. The point is to have a stress free bedding job.

If you dry fit everything a time or two, you will see the purpose of the tape on the barrel. It will also let you know if your plan is good or needs some improvement.


Thank you, that is very helpful and makes complete sense. How thick are we supposed to make the wrap?
 
I was finally able to find a few good videos on YouTube that were made by actual gunsmiths. In all four videos they were bedding the action into a stock that has an aluminum block in it, my stock does as well so I was happy to see that. In two of the videos the gunsmith only bedded the recoil lug and the tang while in the other two videos they bedded the entire action.


Which is best or does it not really matter?


In one of the videos the gunsmith wrapped tape around the barrel but in the other three videos they didn't. I have read in other threads that you are supposed to and seen a number of other videos where they did as well.

What is the purpose of wrapping the barrel with tape and when should you do it or not do it?



Thanks
Can you post those videos or PM them to me? I’m sure others will be interested as well if they end up in this thread after some forum searching
 
Thank you, that is very helpful and makes complete sense. How thick are we supposed to make the wrap?

The thickness of the tape is going to be determined by the stock inlet and how thick the tape needs to be to keep everything square. Too much tape and you could be pointing up on the Z axis, too little and it would point down.

The other thing the tape does is keep the barrel centered in the barrel channel while the epoxy is drying and there is still play possible. I use electrical tape on the barrel. Then I also use some electrical tape to hold the barrel to the stock by wrapping it around the stock and barrel once it's time for the bedding.
 
The video i had watched had the pillars removed. They are already fastened into my Manners, I havent tried to push them out but they dont just want to fall thats for sure. My biggest concern is getting compound onto the threads of the action bolts and running it up into the action
 
Use some kiwi shoe wax on the threads. I use a toothbrush and buff them a little. 2 coats.
 
I used the Power Custom bedding studs when I bedded my fathers FN / Win 70 action into a McMillan stock a couple weeks ago. First time I had done a bedding job and looking back, I was way overthinking it. Kiwi shoe wax on all the surfaces I didn't want it to stick to, plumbers putty every place I didn't want the MarineTex to go, tape wrap on the barrel to center everything up, and dry fit 100 times to get good clearances before hand, removing as many high spots as possible and making sure the mag system worked properly. I didn't even remove the trigger, just encased it in plumbers putty and dry fit it to know exactly where the bedding would be filling in. It came out great.
 
I used the Power Custom bedding studs when I bedded my fathers FN / Win 70 action into a McMillan stock a couple weeks ago. First time I had done a bedding job and looking back, I was way overthinking it. Kiwi shoe wax on all the surfaces I didn't want it to stick to, plumbers putty every place I didn't want the MarineTex to go, tape wrap on the barrel to center everything up, and dry fit 100 times to get good clearances before hand, removing as many high spots as possible and making sure the mag system worked properly. I didn't even remove the trigger, just encased it in plumbers putty and dry fit it to know exactly where the bedding would be filling in. It came out great.

Whats the best way you found to identify high spots while dry fitting?
 
If you have high spots you'll often times be able to rock the action. Unless you have lots of high spots.


I'm no expert. But the 2 I've done improved accuracy and repeat even when I take the stock off.

What I've done on them is take a Dremel to everything between the action screw holes. Don't go crazy. Just remove a layer of stock material. That gives the bedding a place to go, removes high spots in between the pillars, and roughs the surface and gives the bedding a better surface to bond to.

Run your dry fit. Tape, fill voids (I use Play-Doh), apply release agent(wax, Hornady 1 shot etc) then Blow it out with air and then degrease the stock with DNA or whatever you like. Let dry.

Mix up the goop and apply it. I like to coat the action AND the stock. Nearly fill the recoil lug. Set it in place and move it around a bit. You wanna try to get it even and remove any air.


Like Heytonyman said, I freaked out and over thought the process. It's really not difficult. Just think it through.
 
I initially laid down a bed of playdoh to get an idea of the low spots and to check how much material would be between the recoil lug and the stock. Once I got close, just rubbing the stock back and forth on the action left a dark spot where the contact was occurring. Don’t have to get too OCD about it, just make sure nothing glaring is happening. The bedding compound does the work.

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