Glass bedding a rifle

[WhiteKnight]

The challenge to bed one of my rifles is a reoccuring thought I've had in the back of my head for years, and I recently decided that I simply need to do this or else it'll bug me until I go crazy.

I've read up online as much as I can, and feel I have the basic concepts understood.

I think I may order a Brownell's Acraglas Gel bedding kit in my upcoming MidwayUSA order.

Who here has bedded their rifles, or had them done by a friend/gunsmith? Did it help or hurt accuracy?

Any tips?




Thanks!

 

[Sunray]

Hi. Forget the on-line advice. Read the directions that come with the kit. Especially the part about the release agent.
When I did it, I was adapting a stock that was close but not exactly the same as the rifle I bedded. The accuracy is consistent.
The important thing is to read the instructions that come with the kit. Yes, I've said that twice. It's important.
Glass bedding won't necessarily help accuracy, but it will never hurt it. Unless you bed the whole barrel. Don't even think about that.
Generally speaking, you're filling in the voids that naturally happen between wood/stock and steel. The idea is to make the action and stock as close to one thing as is possible. Sometimes, you will need to remove about a 16th of wood and fill in that space with the epoxy.
Read the directions and you should be fine.

 

[DevilDog]

I have bedded a couple of my bolt-action rifles, and my M1A that I have used in high power matches.

The first bit of advice, float the barrel first. I think the accuracy benefits for glass bedding may be completely nullified if your barrel isn't floated. Floating the barrel and bedding it I consider a must for most rifles.

As Sunray mentioned above, really read the instructions with the kit. This part may sound silly, but consider reviewing and "practicing" where you will put the release agent. It is easy to forget an area where you will need it.

The bedding compound is fairly thick, which makes you think it will stay put. It won't. It will find its way onto your clothes, any tools you have around, onto the carpet, the dog, and definitely little bits of it want to find its way onto some moving part of your rifle to lock it up.

Get a good grasp on where you will needs lots of bedding (big gaps) or very little bedding. If you put too much on where you only need a little, then you start pushing it around and it ends up somewhere important.

One time I did my M1A, a nice little blob of bedding found its way into the magazine well. It was an odd experience to bed my M1A and then discover I could not get a magazine into it.

Have fun!

 

[mete]

I know someone who forgot the release agent , it was very embarrassing, he had to destroy the stock.Put it on everything and also plug up holes screw holes mag well etc . You can bed just the action and free float the barrel or you could bed action and about 2" of the barrel and the rest free floated.

 

[WhiteKnight]

I am going to try this "experiment" with a factory synthetic black Remington stock that is going to be replaced with an aftermarket one anyway.

It mentions "roughing up" the inside of the stock or "removing 1/16 of material in order to allow the bedding compound some room" but since the factory stock is synthetic (plastic) I don't see how this is possible.

 

[dakotasin]

i've bedded all my rifles, my family's rifles, and my friends' rifles. it isn't hard to do.

the best thing to use to rough up the area is a dremel... and you must do this w/ the factory synthetic stocks. they don't hold the compound very well (in synthetic stocks, i cut deep gouges to give the bedding something to stick to).

i remove material w/ a dremel until the receiver is free floating, then cut gouges, then make sure i was very generous w/ the release agent on the steel, and that i have all my dams in place (mag well, trigger area, where i want the bedding to stop on the stock, etc), then i pour it in.

it is good practice to make sure the action screws are centered in their holes in the stock (it is the job of the recoil lug, not the screws, to stop rear-ward travel), and that there is 1-2 layers of tape on the bottom of the recoil lug, and the front of the recoil lug.

good luck!

 

[WhiteKnight]

Okay I included Brownell's Acraglass Gel kit with my Midway order last night.

I don't own a Dremel. Is there anything else I could use to rough up the stock?

 

[Desert Dog]

A couple of pieces of advice regarding the release agent:

1. You cannot use too much release agent on the metal pieces. Several coats work best.

2. Saran Wrap and electrical tape make wonderful substitutes for release agent...

 

[dakotasin]

you can use anything you'd like... sandpaper that comes in the kit will rough up the surface pretty well, but on those factory synthetic stocks, you really need to cut deep gouges in addition to roughing the surface up so the bedding doesn't pop out in one big piece. a drill could work pretty well.

if you want to pm me your e-mail address, i have a file w/ pictures on it of a glass bedding job i did years ago... might help walk you thru the job... i tried to post the pictures here, but i just don't know how to post pics, so it didn't work.

 

[444]

One more point on reading the directions:
On the first stock I ever bedded, I figured close was good enough on the proportions of exopy to hardener. The bedding compound never got hard. This of course turns the job into a nighmare. This is one of those: "measure twice, cut once" type of things. It isn't hard, but take your time and make sure you are doing it right before you jump in. Do it exactly like they tell you, don't get in a hurry, don't take shortcuts........................... you won't have a problem.

 

[Jaywalker]

Here's a link to a lessons-learned I posted about bedding my Ruger.

Jaywalker

 

[DMK]

2. Saran Wrap and electrical tape make wonderful substitutes for release agent...

As does "Pam" type non-stick cooking spray.

 

[WhiteKnight]

Is it possible to use release agent (or Pam) ON TOP OF electrical tape? I just want to be absolutely sure my action isn't glued forever into the stock.

 

[dakotasin]

i don't like using tape anywhere except the recoil lug (front, bottom) and the areas that i don't want the compound in (gas ports, trigger, mag well, etc). reason is, it beds a gap into the gun and could possible be source of stress. the whole reason to bed is to get an extremely tight fit between action and stock.

i've never tried pam, but have read of numerous accounts of it working quite well.

don't worry about gluing the gun to the stock. use release agent generously... after a couple days of cure time, it will peel out ok. it might take some effort, but it will come out. if it doesn't, there are options, as long as you avoid mechanical locks. sticking the whole works in a deep freezer, or a heater for car engines that goes in the dipstick hole are a couple of options... but don't worry about that - you have a ways to go before you get there, and probably won't need to worry anyway.

 

[WhiteKnight]

Would a common file work for roughing up the inside of the stock? I'm not sure how exactly I could get a drill bit in there...

 

[Jaywalker]

WhiteKnight:

Would a common file work for roughing up the inside of the stock? I'm not sure how exactly I could get a drill bit in there...

Yes, or a craft knife, or a chisel. I think they would actually work better than some of the other options. The purpose is to give the hardening epoxy something to grab onto, and crevices would work better than something only slightly rough.

Jaywalker

 

[Red_SC]

Iron Brigade Armory used to have an excellent article on bedding on their web site, but I can't find it now. Does anyone have it saved? I think I do at home, I'll try to post it later if no one else knows how to find it. You should definitely read it first. If you follow their directions exactly, your bedding will be bombproof. In any event, it will give you some good pointers.

 

[Mornard]

Just a few observations...

You can't use too much release agent. Make sure it dries between coats.

(I've never heard of using Saran Wrap, but instantly grasp the benefits. I've got to glassbed a couple this week and will try it.)

DON'T FORGET TO PUT RELEASE AGENT ON YOUR BEDDING SCREWS...

p.s. DON'T FORGET TO PUT RELEASE AGENT ON YOUR BEDDING SCREWS...

SPRAY IT LIBERALLY AND LET DRY BETWEEN COATS. I use a minimum of three coats.

Don't fully bed your bbl. Save that as a last resort in case free floating the bbl doesn't work.

Good luck. and RElax. p.s. ACRAGLAS gel is the easiest to use.

 

[Jaywalker]

I'd add one more tip for the bedding newbie: start small. Bed the fore-end tip only. It's easy to get to, there's no metal anywhere around to cause problems, there's no hard overhangs to cause a mechanical lock, and it's relatively easy to get it back out if you muck it up (voice of experience).

Writer John Barsness in the November 2003 issue of Rifle magazine had the following advice, which I'll pass on in the first person, since I now agree with him. (The "start small" is mine, however.) The Brownells' instructions specify bedding the tang - I'd pass on that permanently as something not really worth the effort. For the receiver, any non-Ruger action can be improved by putting a little dab on the rear surface of the recoil lug inlet, but not the whole lug inlet. First, if you're starting small, you won't be doing the lug inlet yet. Second, you don't want to do the entire recoil lug inlet, as re-seating the lug after disassembly will be difficult if any foreign matter at all gets into it. Also, you don't need the front of the inlet glassed, since you only really care how it nestles in against recoil stresses, which is at the rear. (Ruger angled bolts geometry already takes care of this nestling, so the M77 doesn't really need epoxy on the action.)

Barsness also recognized that the first step is "scary," and it is. Don't do an heirloom first, or something you care a bunch about, since you will definitely be learning. Take a look at my "Lessons Learned" thread, particularly about the electrical tape and release agent: don't put release agent under the tape.

Think about screw tension before you start. If you start small on the fore-end, I'd say standard screw tension for curing would be fine. For the action, it's not, which is the other reason I wouldn't do all of the bedding at the same time. For bedding the action, including the rear of the recoil lug inlet, recall that you want a surface that matches the lug itself so that it will "nestle." You can't get that if the screws are too tight during curing. So, I'd say start the curing process with the screws almost tight, then back them out after 15 minutes or so, or when what's left of your epoxy in the cup or on a piece of cardboard shows definite hardening.

A really good idea would be to buy the Rifle magazine with Barsness article on "Bedding 101."

Good luck.

Jaywalker

 

[bogie]

I like the brownells release agent, but they don't include enough in the kits.

I also like their "steel bed" kit. Don't like the acraglass or the gel - I don't think it sets "stiff" enough.

Use too much release agent. Then add a little. Use modeling clay to fill in anything that could get stuck. Don't bed in front of your recoil lug.

 

[Sisco]

I found this guide handy when I did my first one

http://riflestocks.tripod.com/bedding.html

 

[WhiteKnight]

Barsness also recognized that the first step is "scary," and it is. Don't do an heirloom first, or something you care a bunch about, since you will definitely be learning. Take a look at my "Lessons Learned" thread, particularly about the electrical tape and release agent: don't put release agent under the tape.

Agreed. The stock I plan to use is for sale on the classifieds right now anyway, and if it doesn't sell then I'm using it for this project because I planned to buy a B&C/McMillan anyhow.

Don't bed in front of your recoil lug.

Why is this?

 

[WhiteKnight]

Okay I got the kit in the mail today.

Among others, I've been reading over this link that gives directions on glass bedding a rifle.

In the link it mentions 8" elastic bands. Where exactly do you buy these?

 

[Sunray]

"...it sets "stiff" enough..." It's epoxy. It only sets so hard. Bondo will do in a pinch if you can get some finely ground fibreglas. I agree with the modling clay though. Plasticine(sp) was put on and around my trigger group when I did mine. Play Dough. Works like stink. It is oil based after all.