Full-length bedding does work, as does a forend screw like that on the pre-'64 Model 70. But PRECISE full-length bedding is really impossible on mass-produced rifles with walnut stocks, both due to machining problems and the fact that most factory walnut isn't cured long enough to be really stable. The last problem has been solved somewhat by modern stock finishes, which are much more water-resistant than the oil-based finishes on older factory rifles, but it's still there.
This is why the pre-'64 used a forend screw, and many factory rifles (especially those that originated decades ago, like the 700) still employ forend pressure points. It's a way to stabilize the barrel and still have the relatively close barrel inletting that used to be an indicator of quality, especially to older gun writers.
The big problem with such inletting, however, is variation in stock wood. A forend tip-hump will vary in how much upward pressure it produces, because each walnut blank varies in strength. It will probably also warp somewhat eventually, even the warping is only "relaxing" slightly, changing the dynamics of the forend pressure. I have even seen factory synthetic stocks with tip-humps that lose their spring after some shooting.
These days more and more factories are free-floating barrels, both in walnut and synthetic stocks. Quite often those rifles are getting the reputation of being very accurate right out of the box. Savage, Sako, Browning A-Bolts and X-Bolts--all come from the factory with free-floated barrels. So does the T/C Icon, a more recent rifle that's getting the reputation of find OTB accuracy.
