Bedding
- Thread starter Ruger30-06
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The 3 B's of accuracy; bullet, barrel and bedding. On the other hand, if you are already getting 1/2" groups, I'd leave it as is. Though having the action bedded and the barrel floated helps to prevent the forearm of the stock from pushing on the barrel with changes in humidity or when the barrel heats up after a couple of shots. All of my bolt action rifles are bedded and floated.
Rugers are vulnerable to bedding issues, given the way they are bedded at the factory. If its not shooting properly with various bullet weights, with the stock screws properly tightened (important - see Ruger website), etc then its time to consider a bedding job.
Glass bedding the receiver(barrels don't get bedded) improves the wood to metal fit and keeps the action from moving in the stock. If, like MHUNT says, your rifle shoots well now, leave it alone. Falls under Rule #1. If it works, don't fix it.
Ruger rifles tend to prefer a pressure point in the forestock. However, the only way to find out if any rifle shoots better with a floated barrel is to try it. You sand the barrel channel to remove any factory pressure point and reseal it. If it doesn't shoot better or gets worse, putting a pressure point back in isn't a big deal. Just put a dab of bedding compound one to two inches from the end of the forestock and put the stock on. Don't forget the release agent.
Ruger rifles tend to prefer a pressure point in the forestock. However, the only way to find out if any rifle shoots better with a floated barrel is to try it. You sand the barrel channel to remove any factory pressure point and reseal it. If it doesn't shoot better or gets worse, putting a pressure point back in isn't a big deal. Just put a dab of bedding compound one to two inches from the end of the forestock and put the stock on. Don't forget the release agent.
Pressure
Sunray's account of bedding is dead on. A floating barrel is not always the most accurate. Something like fifty years ago, in what I like to call the glory days of shooting, the barrels were usually bedded with pressure. In fact, the figure of six pounds pressure to move the barrel away from the pressure point, for average sporting weight barrels, was an accepted figure of pressure.
James Sweet, in a book from the 1950s entitled, "Competitve Rifle Shooting," about the service target rifles, refers to the importance of proper pressure on the barrel, but doesn't give a figure in pounds. Part of any target shooters equipment was a spring scale, with the hook on the end. One would hold the rifle upright, put the hook over the barrel, then see what pressure was required to move the barrel from the pressure point on the stock.
Sunray's account of bedding is dead on. A floating barrel is not always the most accurate. Something like fifty years ago, in what I like to call the glory days of shooting, the barrels were usually bedded with pressure. In fact, the figure of six pounds pressure to move the barrel away from the pressure point, for average sporting weight barrels, was an accepted figure of pressure.
James Sweet, in a book from the 1950s entitled, "Competitve Rifle Shooting," about the service target rifles, refers to the importance of proper pressure on the barrel, but doesn't give a figure in pounds. Part of any target shooters equipment was a spring scale, with the hook on the end. One would hold the rifle upright, put the hook over the barrel, then see what pressure was required to move the barrel from the pressure point on the stock.
Problem is, on Ruger's, the only support forward of the recoil lug is the pressure point at the foreend tip. Removing the foreend pressure point is likely to make the performance worse. A proper bedding job would include some support immediately ahead of the lug.
My mid 90's vintage walnut stocked Ruger displayed signs of stock warping as the barrel was not centred in the forend. I think this was fairly common for that vintage of rifles. My first approach was to rebed the forend - that helped, but it wasnt what I wanted. Finally did a full bedding, now I have what I want.
My mid 90's vintage walnut stocked Ruger displayed signs of stock warping as the barrel was not centred in the forend. I think this was fairly common for that vintage of rifles. My first approach was to rebed the forend - that helped, but it wasnt what I wanted. Finally did a full bedding, now I have what I want.
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So far I've bedded 3 Stevens 200 (7mm-08, .223), 1 Savage mod. 16 (.270WSM) and a Win70 (7mmMag). Each one of those guns benefited from the bedding job, some a bit more than others. But like someone else mentioned, I wouldn't have done it if I didn't think that they could improve.
