Bedding a 200 stock- have a few questions.

[mattri]

Going to bed a 200 stock, mostly for practice before moving on to something nicer. I've read a couple posts here and over at 6mmbr.com but have a couple of questions. Most of these have probably been covered and I just missed them, sorry.

Recoil lug- I tape around the circumference of the recoil lug, so that when the action sits in the stock the bottom of the lug is floating, correct? What about on the front or back of the lug?

Barrel nut- Fill in the recesses and wrap with tape? How far forward of the barrel nut does the bedding go?

Magazine- I want to use the blind mag, can I just wrap it in tape and bed around it, leaving enough gap to ensure it doesn't contact?

Pillars- The 200 stock already has pillars in it, and you can see that they are contacting the action. I was going to relieve a little material from around the tops of the pillars to get good contact with the bedding. Planning to use longer, headless bolts to locate the stock on the action, once it's set I just use the regular action bolts to snug the stock up against the action correct?

Tang- How far past the rear pillar should I go?

Thanks for any help, Matt.

[peterf225]

Don't bed the tang. Make sure the tang is free floated. I usually bed right over the top of the rear pillar and thats it. Drill some 1/8" shallow holes where you are bedding to give the compound somewhere to form a mechanical lock with the stock. As far as the lug goes I tape the edges and that's it. I personally don't bed any part under the barrel. With the nut I used plumbers putty to fill in the notches. If you can remove the mag box if it's a SF and it makes for an easier job.

[mattri]

Thanks for the reply. So you trim the bedding compound to stop at the front of the barrel nut, and the compound is tight up to front and back of the lug correct?

Also, was planning to use Devcon, how much should I get?

Thanks again, Matt.

[stangfish]

You can remove the magazine and trim the access away after it hardens.Rough up the plastic at any surface the bedding compound will adhere to. Good luck. I've done it with good reults.

[peterf225]

Thanks for the reply. So you trim the bedding compound to stop at the front of the barrel nut, and the compound is tight up to front and back of the lug correct?

Also, was planning to use Devcon, how much should I get?

Thanks again, Matt.

Yes I bed tight against the front and back of the lug and stop at the barrel nut. I use plumbers putty to form a dam so the JB weld doesn't flow past the barrel nut. I use the original JB weld to bed so I can't help with the Devcon.

[mattri]

stangfish- you mean take the mag off, dam up the well with clay etc, and then once everything is set remove however much you need to so that the mag fits back in?

[devildogandboy]

mattri, here's alittle extra reading for you.
http://www.longrangehunting.com/articles/bedding-rifle-1.php

[stangfish]

stangfish- you mean take the mag off, dam up the well with clay etc, and then once everything is set remove however much you need to so that the mag fits back in?
I have never damed the mag well. (you might have combined two seperate posts)If you are using devcon it will just push out into the well. Use a dremel to trim it. Devcon is thick and JB flows. Careful with the devcon as it will spread the stock if you arfe too liberal. Always wear respirator and glasses when using grinding tools please. There are several ways to skin this cat. Watch and read the web tutorials.

[smax]

If you do use JB Weld I would recomend using 1 and half packages. You can get it done with 1 but a little extra won't hurt to have on hand. Especially if this is your first bedding job.

[thomae]

Also, if you let the JB weld sit for a while (perhaps an hour?) it gets thicker and runs a bit less. Keep an eye on it. You don't want to go out shopping and then come back to a solid chunk.

I put release agent on the wood in the mag well on the last bedding job I did, and the drips of bedding compound into the magwell did not adhere to the wood, I simply snapped them off and then smoothed the edges with the dremel.

Good suggestion about respirator and eye protection. Hearing protection is a good idea too.

[mattri]

Thanks for all the good tips. Is there an advantage to using the jb weld over Devcon?

[smax]

It's cheaper and easier to find.

[mattri]

True enough- does it hold up as well?

[smax]

The rifles I've done with JB Weld are all holding up just fine.

[Mike Vegas]

Since your question is already answered, here's some advice. It's a messy project so tape up the outside part of the stock where you don't want the bedding compound to accidentally sticks. I learned the hard way... Use heavy duty gloves which fits really snug, it makes work a lot easier. Buy some large stirring sticks like the ones they use for the popsicle, it makes mixing and transferring of the bedding compound a lot easier. Goodluck and show us some finish product pix...

[mattri]

Thanks for all the great responses, I'm going to give this a shot this wknd, will post results.

[mattri]

Well first attempt at bedding was semi- successful. The main point of bedding this stock was to practice before trying it on something nicer and in hindsight that was a really good idea. The hardest part was getting enough compound in around the pillars without filling the mag well. A thicker compound may have helped, but then it wouldn't have flowed into the smaller recesses as well. On a wood stock, without the webbing of the 200s cheap plastic stock this wouldn't be an issue. The JB weld did well enough, the pillars and the area where the action contacts the stock are filled, there are a few little gaps near the top edge of the stock, I''ll probably just leave them until I get to test the rifle again.

Thanks again for all the great tips, when I eventually get a nicer stock this will have been an invaluable training session.

[mattri]

Ok so attempt 1 was semi successful. Found another stock and things went a little better, pics here:

http://www.savageshooters.com/showthread.php?20254-Ultimate-%28budget%29-Hunter-pics-and-range-report