Rifle Bedding Methodologies: Advice Needed!

[barnbwt]

So, I've been (slowly) carving a new stock to replace the factory tupperware on my 700 SPS Tactical, and I've got the thing "rough-inletted" to the point that everything goes together. Now, I just need to see about finishing the inletting job and getting a good, solid connection betwixt metal and stock.

I've seen a couple schools of thought, I wanted to hear ya'lls' opinons. Bear in mind this is something a rank amatuer (although a handly one) would have to perform largely with handtools on a back patio...

-Simple inletting: spend a billion hours painstakingly shaping the wood contour to match the reciever (floated barrel on my stock) using carbon black as a contact indicator. This is pretty much what I've been doing to get where I am.

-Glass bedding: oversize the bedding area slightly, then dump epoxy resin mixed with glass microbeads into the hole, mount the properly release-agent-ed action, and allow to cure.

-Pillar bedding: counterbore mounting holes and glue metal or fiberglass pillars/sleeves that conform to the reciever diameter. Is dissimilar metal corrosion a factor with the aluminum bedding setups?

-Block bedding: same as pillar bedding, but with a larger machined piece. I'm looking closely at Whidden's Bedding V-block, but again, I'm worried about corrosion. Would this work well as the rifle heats up? (aluminum expands much faster than steel when heated) http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=27054/Product/REMINGTON-700-BEDDING-V-BLOCK (this also allows me to upgrade my hinged floor-plate to a detachable mag, if a good option ever arises)

So, what should the budding stock-maker choose? These all seem fairly involved, either from carefull fitting/jigging, or from shear material removal (I use exclusively hand tools). Anyone have experience installing these? Are any preferred over the others for consistency/durability/accuracy?

Thanks for the help, Google has done nothing but complicate this question so far...

TCB

 

[LoonWulf]

I like pillar and glass bedding. With drill and a dremel its pretty quick and easy.

I set the pillars first then glass the action in. I normaly use marine tex gray for bedding work, even on wood stocks, but other materials are easier to use the first time.

Ive never seen an issue with corrosion at my pillars...and stuff rust out here.

 

[BADUNAME37]

I have glass-bedded before, but not pillar bedded.
The 22-250 I have which I glass bedded nearly 25 years ago now, has a free-floating barrel and with the loads I ended up with (what the gun really liked), I can shoot dime-size groups off a sturdy bench on a calm day at 200 yards.

I have shot many woodchucks with that gun. It has a Harris Bipod and most of my shooting I enjoy doing prone, so the gun is the most steady for those long shots.

When I glass bedded, I allowed the bedding to come down around the main screw opening, so it is a column of bedding under the receiver and down to the bottom screw contact. I think I used a drinking straw to keep it off the screw.

For a first-time bedding job, I think I did pretty well, considering I had never done it before and how well the gun shoots. I have removed the barrel and action from the stock on several occasions to lube up the underside to prevent rusting, and the gun still shot well, keeping the same POI.

 

[Skyshot]

Glass bed 1st. And test, you may not want to go any further.

 

[barnbwt]

Thanks for the responses, all,
I was gonna try glass bedding first, since it has the least work involved. Since this is a from-scratch stock, I thought the machined block might take some of the guess work and potential screw-ups out of the equation. I believe it would replace the need for precision drilling or an expensive drill guide (really, 250$ Midway?) while probably being more closely fitted to the rifle (without epoxy).

I suppose that if the glue-bedding doesn't work, I can always fall back to the other options, as its easier to remove material than to add it...

I'll throw up some pics when i get the stock to where it looks like the final product (hint: it's currently a 7.5lb mass of Cocobolo and Jatoba

TCB

 

[wdyasq]

TCB,

Rather than glass micro-beads .... I'd use chopped glass strands. PVA the action and screws before assembly and letting cure.

The proper glass/epoxy (note the order of mix) will be MANY times the strength of any wood one may use. A larger 'bedding cavity' is better than a tight one. you can 'pre-coat' the inside of the stock with epoxy and let partially cure before applying the thick glass/epoxy paste to bed the action.

I like System3 and MAS epoxy. But, I use them in larger quantities than necessary for gun work.

Ron