Bedding a rifle - The misconceptions might surprise you.

The tang - the most overlooked contact point in the bedding process!

We spend a lot of time building custom rifles.  Using only the very best of every component, you would think it's as easy as bolt it all together and let's go shoot.   It's not.  The marketing department of every stock maker will tell you, use our quality after market stock or chassis and your rifle is guaranteed to shoot better.   When the aftermarket stock and chassis builders are asked "do I need to bed it?"   They will always say "no."   Like a get out of jail free card to you the customer.   Whew - wipe that brow because you just dogged a bullet.   Or did you?

I'm not going to spoil this yet.  Let's keep going down the rabbit hole.  Like "what is bedding and what does it do in the first place?"  Where should I start?  Well, let's start with the fact that bedding older rifles was not about accuracy or alignment as we would think of today, but to act as pillars in those old wooden stocks to keep you from crushing the wood or composite material inside.  And in worst case scenarios, protect the changes that can happen from either the elements or from over or under tightening your action screws.

Years ago, when bedding a factory rifle, wooden or stocks with soft-fill material was common and, most often, without aluminum pillars to support the receiver and to keep the guy with the wrench from over-tightening the action screws and compressing the material it sets on.  The whole point of bedding was to have repeatable accuracy by putting a very strong and stable material between your steel receiver and the softer material underneath it.    Think of it like this,  bedding early rifles was like putting a full length pillar type support under your receiver.  That way, it protects from the compression that naturally happens when you tighten your action screws along with giving you consistent stress free lock up so you will have no POI shifts taking the barreled action in and out.  You can repeatably and reliably count on that rifle to perform at its best in all climates and conditions with that new hard material fully supporting the receiver.


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More than words with a modern rifle chassis.

Now wait, we are not talking about 1970s built rifles here.   We are talking about modern CNC made chassis.   OK, so first I would like you to watch the above video.   Then, I want to talk with you about what is really going to make the difference here when you are seriously looking  to get the very best out of your rifle.

Modern chassis have the support, but lack the surface contact.  In the age of modern manufacturing, we are now able to machine and use better and more stable materials for your rifle stock giving it the rigid support underneath,   But, I always say there is a Ying and Yang effect to anything you do when trying to improve something on the rifle.  The ying is easy...a firm material under the action that does not require pillars for support.   The yang is sometimes harder to find and can cause issues more series than the one you are trying to solve.   In the case of the "drop fit chassis," it is the lack of contact surface.   Most R700 clone actions are 1.350" round and some, if not most, can warp in heat treat.  Some, can have a slight taper machined in by accident from front to back, some can be 1.349999" or more off while others could could be oversized at 1.351".  Might not sound like much, but the chassis can all have the same problem.   Might not sound like a big deal until you realize that two circles cannot mate perfectly unless they are the same exact size.  If one is slightly off of the other, than you can only have one contact point on the bottom (action smaller than chassis inlet) or two contact points on the side (action is bigger than chassis inlet).   This is why it was common place to lap scope rings to exact dimensions in line with each other.

So how did they fix this yang?  Mostly by having a high spots or ridges along both sides of the inlet of the chassis for your action to ride on the high spots.  Basically, riding on what looks like two rails running along the chassis.   Watch the video above.  The other yang that is not talked about it the fact that most do this at the expense of having no support under the very bottom of the receiver where your action screws are.  This is usually a relief cut or hollowed out void.   Makes sense if you want to make the action ride on the rails you have placed above.  But, what if I told you by doing so and then tightening you action screws to 65 inch pounds or more (and sometimes less) you can pull your action out of round on the bottom and start pulling the metal egg shaped in the direction of the action screws, permanently deforming your action so it is guaranteed out of round.  Who would have thought that was a good idea?  One problem solved with you now unknowingly exposed to damaging your rifle.

The secret is in the tang.   Now the good news.   Bedding done properly solves all of the issues and protects your investment in the rifle and guarantees you will get every last bit of accuracy out of the rifle that is it capable of.  Bruce at Bat Machine said it best..."if you want a .25 MOA rife it has to be bedded. "  That is coming from the man whose actions hold more world records than all others combined.   

The anchor point at the tang is the secret to getting the most from your rifle.  Besides supporting the receiver under the front action screw and a flat contact surface for the recoil lug to set, the most important part of a bed job, in my opinion, is the rear tang.   This "U" shaped anchor point is like locking the steering wheel of your car.  Once bedded and supported properly, it keeps your rifle from shifting laterally under all the flex and vibration of the shot.  That unsung tiny little area is the last stand for this protection.  It is the furtherest point away from the muzzle and if given any ability to shift or flex under recoil can and will change your impact point and hurt your accuracy.  More importantly, it protects your ability to take the barreled action in and out as many times as you like, lock it back in at 45-65 inch pounds and hit the same spot reliable over and over again.  Bottom line - bed the rifle whenever possible using a professional that knows how to do it right!  A bad bed job looks great, but does nothing to increase accuracy and, in most cases, takes more of it away and you would have been better off to not do it all.  A perfect stress free bed job is your best bet to achieve the very best accuracy with your rifle!
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Customer Submitted Photo Shooting His Bedded Rifle