bedding rimfire action

[hotbrass]

Just curious, but does anyone bed the action of their rimfires?

Bed action and barrel?

Bolt action?

Semi-auto?

Thanks!

[dolomite_supafly]

I bed pretty much everything.

I have done bolt action as well as semi autos. I use Devcon Steel Putty over everything else. I have tried using JB Weld but it runs into areas that you don't want it easily. Another thing about JB Weld is that is becomes brittle and will start to fail while Devcon Steel Putty seems to be hard yet not brittle.

I have tried bedding the action only and the barrel only as well as a combination of both.

What I have noticed in what I have done is this. When bedding just the action and floating the barrel the rifle will work really well with a particular brand and all other brands are not as accurate. When bedding just the barrel the rifle is accurate with more different types of ammunition but not as accurate as a rifle with a bedded action. That is a bedded barrel seems to increase overall accuracy but as much as having a floated barrel.

Something else I do when I bed the action is I use some sort of pressure pad at the front of the stock under the barrel. Most times I use foam earplugs but I have used what they call "bughole" tuners. Most times they are about the same or at least what I have noticed.

These have been my observations
Dolomite

[hotbrass]

Thanks Dolomite.

One of the reasons I ask is because I have an older 10/22 Volquatzen aluminum stock that has an adjustable pressure pad on the front. I have not noticed any real different in the amount of pressure I put on it. I have set it up between 2 and 15 lbs on a .920 barrel and it doesnt seem to matter what the weight is, it still shoots good. And free floating the barrel shoots good too.

By my way of thinking, the .920 barrel is fairly stiff for such a small round, so it doesnt really matter which way I go.

I also have a couple of sporter bolt actions that I bedded and pillar bedded because it made them fit in the stock better and more consistent when tightening up the screws. And I just leave the barrel free floating.

[joemax72]

I have a 93r17 that I have modified. Before I changed anything the rifle, with prefered ammo, shot a little over 1 inch at 100 yards. After the mods the groups shrank to around .5 inch at 100 not counting the inevitable flyers that occur from time to time when shooting rimfire ammo. I fully floated the barrel up to the action, installed pillars of my own making to the stock, did away with the round factory recoil lug under the barrel and made the rear of the action (tang) a recoil lug. To do that I had to turn the firing pin bolt down slightly. (Not sure if that is what it is really called.) The last mod was to monkey around with the accutrigger to get it just under 1 pound. I am not sure which mod increased accuracy the most but if pressed I would have to say lightening the trigger was likley the biggest improvement to accuracy. As far as bedding the action to the stock all I did was to make sure the sides of the action were making equal contact with the stock. To do that I fully relieved the stock, very slightly, around the sides of the action and possibly in afew other places underneath the action and then rebedded it. That part was done after installing the pillars. If memory serves me correctly there isn't much underneath the action to bed it to. Anyway, hope this helps.