Accustock/alloy chassis owners, tell me about your wear marks. Aluminum bedding block question.

New owner of an accustock. My action and stock are showing fretting(rub marks, aluminum dust) at the rear action screw and along the sides, front to back. Nothing at the front action screw. The gun has only been fired 25 shots. Is this normal? Hows your action rubbing?

I made the assumption it was pivoting off the recoil lug, its not. It's floating off the edge pressure, running parallel with the action.

I'm tempted to bed the front half. I believe it needs more surface area to clamp on and hold still.

Let me know what you have seen. This could easily pertain to all the alloy chassis guys.

I'd wipe out the dust, tighten the action screws evenly, and shoot it again just to be sure it's not something left over from machining.
If it's still creating aluminum dust it would have to be from friction which would seem to indicate somethings not tight enough or is being tightened unevenly.
Good luck and I hope you figure it out.

I think I would start off like BHJ by cleaning and putting the barrelled action back in the stock and torque. Slowly back off the rear and see if it has a spring feel like the action is being released from a bind. Tighten the screw back up and do the front. If there is any spring, bed it.

Thanks for the replies. I torqued it to 40inlb before I shot it. Next time I will torque it again after a couple shots, see if anything changes. Would have been good to check before a I took it apart this time. It wasn't loose, but I don't have a number of what it settled to.

Anyone else with an accustock/alloy chassis, feel free to chime in.

PM sent

I bedded the front half. Now the front torques to spec a lot faster than the rear. This is from the rear section spreading as the action lowers to the floor... not what I consider a good turnout.

Definitely bedding. Torqing screws is the wrong thinking (and those who have the mind to torque screws, if it moves {which it will}, MORE torqing). Thinking that the chassis screws will eliminate or do anything about the MASSIVE explosion and shockwave and resulting recoil that takes place in that reciever is the problem. The only thing those screws are designed to do is to hold the gun together. That's it. They're very weak in shear strength. They're not even designed to take shear. They're designed for torque, but too much and the threads will fail, either in the bolt or more likely the receiver. And that won't even solve the problem.

Alot of folks mispercieve what the aluminum block in the rifle stock is for too. All it's designed to do is to help stop the rifle stock from twisting under that massive exposion and shockwave and resulting recoil. Gun makers get ambarrased when their rifle stocks twist and flex, so they build a cheap, flimsy stock and put a block in there. It does NOT take the place of bedding. The truth is, nothing will stop that massive explosion, the shockwave and resulting recoil. All we can do is what we can to go with it and "ride it out" and hope everything stays the same on the other side. So, the best way to do that is to make that rifle, and everything attached to it, a single unit, by bedding. YMMV

Good info, thanks!

How much should you torque? Sounds as if you can torque too much and just spread the chassis. Or are you saying to forget the chassis and bed the whole action? I got the chassis to avoid bedding.

Bill

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Originally Posted by cchgn

Definitely bedding. Torqing screws is the wrong thinking (and those who have the mind to torque screws, if it moves {which it will}, MORE torqing). Thinking that the chassis screws will eliminate or do anything about the MASSIVE explosion and shockwave and resulting recoil that takes place in that reciever is the problem. The only thing those screws are designed to do is to hold the gun together. That's it. They're very weak in shear strength. They're not even designed to take shear. They're designed for torque, but too much and the threads will fail, either in the bolt or more likely the receiver. And that won't even solve the problem.

Alot of folks mispercieve what the aluminum block in the rifle stock is for too. All it's designed to do is to help stop the rifle stock from twisting under that massive exposion and shockwave and resulting recoil. Gun makers get ambarrased when their rifle stocks twist and flex, so they build a cheap, flimsy stock and put a block in there. It does NOT take the place of bedding. The truth is, nothing will stop that massive explosion, the shockwave and resulting recoil. All we can do is what we can to go with it and "ride it out" and hope everything stays the same on the other side. So, the best way to do that is to make that rifle, and everything attached to it, a single unit, by bedding. YMMV

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The aluminum block in the accustock (and others) in addition to removing some of the unwanted stock flex actually is the bedding, and most aluminum bedding blocks are designed to flex open a little under proper torque. The idea is to provide even mating surfaces and apply stress evenly, just as pillars even with their minimal contact surfaces are bedding and help apply stress evenly, even if it's only to two small points around the action screws, or a full bedding job that casts an impression of the action into the material as an integral part of the stock. Absorbing recoil, shock, vibration is what the recoil lug is for and there should be very little to no recoil or shock on the action screws. They should simply hold the action snugly to the stock , The alternating torque application sequences recommended by the manufacturers helps prevent catywampus alignment and binding of the action and the recoil lug by applying pressure puling the recoil lug down as vertically as possible during install. If the action is properly torqued into the aluminum block and the lug is seated then everything is doing its job. All mine have "wear" marks/shiny spots, but I don't believe I've ever seen (sure haven't noticed) dust or shavings from them.
If you're still noticing "dust" and everything is indeed tight it there could be the possibility that the recoil lug may not be making full contact allowing friction under recoil.
Good luck with it.

I found a reply on action torque, from Savage Arms, that said 40inlbs. With my bedding job, the recoil lug is definitely in contact with the aluminum chassis, it is still visible through the epoxy.

Beskf, the problems Im reporting are on a 338lm. Highly qualified smiths ship out actions bolted in aluminum, without epoxy bedding, with full confidence it is a good system. I just dont trust what I've seen on my one factory stock. The lack of similar reports might prove it a fluke or unwarranted worry.