Bedding a stock. How does it help?

Smcx

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So assuming that the barrel is already free floated. I just don't understand how bedding helps? If scoped, the scope is mounted to the action. How does minute movement of the stock have any effect on accuracy? If movement of the stock did actually have an effect, i would think that it would be several orders of magnitude less than your hand or shoulder moving...

I've been unable to find any scientific tests done to show that bedding helps. All I can find is people saying it does (and I can't seem to understand HOW it helps). Can someone point me in the right direction?

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
If you think of a barreled action reacting like a tuning fork when fired... vibrating and changing... this is what happens as the bullet travels the barrel length... and for best accuracy you want the bullet to be leaving the barrel close to the same vibration point... all this vibration is affected on how the action is mated to the stock, the stiffness of the stock, how it is sitting on a rest, how it is gripped or not gripped by the shooter... etc.

Center Fire Benchrest rifles are capable of shooting as accurately as a laser at 100 yards.

You have so much to learn about accuracy it will be difficult to point to a starting place. Possibly visit 6mmBR. Add a .com to get there. Read all you can...
 
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Look at it this way. the barreled action has recoil when it is fired and that recoil starts as soon as the bullet is on its way. If there is play in the bedding it can move in there and cause different vibrations on the barrel. This is most readily apparent in the fit of the recoil lug to the stock. If this fit is not perfect i.e. a slight gap on one side the recoil will cause the action to twist slightly. It is extremely important.
 
it's about reducing the variables as much as possible. Bedding a stock is practically like gluing an action to the stock, reducing as much variation there as possible.
Every time a bullet is fired, the action sits in the stock slightly differently, or there are different harmonics working on the barrel if the action isn't mated precisely with the stock.

Bedding the action to the stock reduces the variation in this variable, making bullet impact that much more predictable.

Remember: they guys interested in doing this are looking for ever more predictability in accuracy than less than 1 inch at 100 yards.
 
Quite apart from stresses which poor bedding can induce, there are cases where uneven bedding will actually distort a receiver and affect locking lug contact. It is a rare case where proper bedding does not make a significant difference in accuracy and consistency.
There have been tests done which illustrate the effects of various bedding flaws but it's been so many years ago (50+) that I can't recall the source. Probably the American Rifleman in the early sixties. I know I was just a kid when I read it.
 
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