Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing J-B weld bedding a ruger hawkeye synthetic stock (pictures)

Varget shot patterns in mine. RL15 is doing great in my M70 308 also.

Just got finished setting up my MKII 30/06 in a Hawkeye stock and attempted a bedding job. Hopefully I didn't weld anything together.

Hopefully you used some good release agent Just so you guys know, the JB is holding up very well on the ol hawkeye.

I used One Shot for release agent. I have bedded a couple Savages but they don't have the font angled screw. I went out this morning and everything came apart easily. I had a couple of spots that didn't take real well so I went back over it with a light coat of bedding. I am using Devcon Plastic Weld.

First of all, looks good.

Some thoughts:

No need to use the front screw when bedding, matter of fact I never do. Don't want the action to twist at all in the stock or have any kind of "stress" on it. It takes very little torque to apply unwanted stress.

Plug the the front trigger guard hole with with modeling clay, you can get it at WalMart.

When you set the barreled action into the stock take the trigger guard and the rear screw, place it into the stock while it is still in your vise and make sure it is positioned properly. Run the screw into the action, you can then remove it if you like. This will prevent any problems with fitting two piece bottom metal. I do it on one piece also. A biotch to have to redo one. Ask me how I know.

To ensure the bedding compound is level with the stock all you have to do is "shave" it off. Wait until the bedding compound starts to set up. You can test readiness by placing your index finger onto the left over amount (not on the stock), if it is sticky, wait another 30 minutes. Next time you test the compound will be "stiffer" but pliable. At this point take a "chopstick" or some such and and make a flat edge at the tip, kind of like you were whittling the end off. It should be sharp and square. Dip the end of it in some gun oil, place the stick at the edge of the bedding and "shave" it off going from the rearmost portion of the exposed bedding, sliding the stick against the metal. It will come off in a small ribbon. Nice and smooth and you don't have to worry about doing it later. BTW, if there is any left on the wood or plastic, "re-wet" with oil and shave if off the stock.

If there is any bedding "residue" left on the barreled action don't panic, you can leave it there and pick it off with the stick once it hardens or use a fingernail (that the reason for the One Shot as well-spray it all over, including your armpits). I've utilized this method for at least 15 years, don't need to use tape on anything.

Full length bedded the 9.3x62 with Acraglas. Bedding is level with stock, no need for a file. Saves a huge amount of time. One last thing, if you have over runs into the magazine mortise you can also shave that off. More time saved and no files needed.



Here's a pic after the shave. No tape used. There is a very small seam between the wood and metal. Some of it is a little shiny.

I have a couple of questions concerning the Ruger 77 bedding process.

1) Do you weigh down the receiver when setting it into the stock without the front screw? Do you tape it together? Or just leave it set there on its own?

2) Do you line up the rear trigger guard simply so that the action is in the correct fore/aft position while drying?

Today was not the best weather, steady 10-12mph winds with gusts around 25 so I tried to shoot between gusts. I loaded up some rounds with Ingwe's magic dust in 3x fired brass and headed over the hill. I set the target up at 25yds as I had just mounted my old range standby, VariX-II 4-12x40. The barrel was cleaned to the bone prior to shooting. 2 rounds had me in good postion on the paper so I took the target out to 100yds. I got comfortable on the bags and fired 3 rounds with no cool down between rounds, I really wasn't expecting much. Prior to bedding this gun was just over MOA with 1 load, Federal Blue Box 180's, everything else was 2"-3" reliably.

Action screws were torqued front @ 65in/lbs, rear @ 50in/lbs, middle just barely in the action.

Imagine my surprise with my 1st 3 shot group postbedding!




Thanks for taking the time to make this thread, without it I would not have bedded this rifle and it would have sat in the safe unused.

I'll wind up bedding every rifle I own! So far I have done two, both 30/06's, and the difference in unreal in how they group.

Looks like the best news of the day . Very glad to see the positive results. Looks like it all came together very well for you. Now don't touch the bedding or barrel channel again and enjoy it. I love it when guys post pics of great shooting Ruger M77's. Great work there bearcat.

Yeah, I plan on leaving the channel and action screws alone. I don't have a need to disassemble/reassemble on a regular basis.

I hope it's consistent and I can leave it be.

1a. Set the barreled action in the stock, make sure it is level at the rear tang, receiver and forend. It would probably be a good idea (which I do) to add electrical tape right at the end of the forend tip to balance the stock fore and aft. The tape is approximately .005 in thickness, double that it's .010, 4x is .020. In the case of the 9.3x62 I checked before adding Acraglas and is was level as needed. The idea is to set is straight and completely stress free. When you tighten screws down you won't get any twisting from side to side or fore and aft. I can't tell you how many times I've used this method, then taken a rifle apart to clean, reassemble and have it shoot to the same place (within an 1" or so). I bedded Oulufinn's 7mm Rem Mag in a older McMillan and it shot great. The he bought a McS,wirley, I bedded the rifle using the same procedure. When we went to the range and shot it, his first question was how could it be that I screwed the bedding up so much. I peered downrange and his first shot was 2" high and at 11:30. It had been sighted in 2" high @ 12 o'clock, so I was off by about 3/8th's of an inch. Don't believe me send him a PM and see what he says.

2a. Basically, yes. The guard should be in the rearmost position. If it is far enough forward, you can jam the floorplate against it's recess and make it near impossible to remove. So before complete assembly just use the front and rear screw and make sure it latches correctly, then add the middle screw. It should be seated just enough so the floorplate will close properly. I use red loctite on the middle screw so it doesn't back out.

It all may sound complicated but it's really not. What you might want to consider is bedding it in stages. In other words add bedding only in the recoil lug mortise and about 1/2" behind the lug. Let it set up. If something is amiss after it hardens you can remove that small amount rather than grinding out 1/2 lb of Acraglas and wood. If it is straight and true, you can add bedding around the original work, then you can use the front screw. Just don't overtighten it, just snug for now, you don't have enough support under the action or barrel to do otherwise. To make sure the "new" Acraglas is even with the previous, warm it with a blow dryer, it will become softer and a wee bit "runnier" and fill voids and be level with the receiver, barrel channel, etc. Don't use that method very often but it can come in handy if your not sure about the process.

BTW, do yourself a favor and use Hornady One shot resizing juice in the red can. It is far better than anything I've ever used, easy to spray on, you won't stick anything and if for some reason some bedding is left on the metal, you can pick it right off with a wooden stick or even a fingernail. Another way to remove stuck Acraglas is to put a small amount of Citistrip on the affected area with a Q-tip. Let it work for 15 minutes or so and clean off.

Even, straight, stress free. Then you can have meaningful load development rather than chasing your tail trying to figure out flyers, etc. If you want to talk on the phone shoot me a PM, be happy to help.

Carlos

Here's another for you. This target was shot at 200 yards with my .280 Hawkeye AW that I bedded and floated...

Great shooting Jordan. One of these days I'm going to get a .280. They just have that allure to them. Thanks for posting the pic.

I agree on both points, great shooting and for some reason I really want a .280.

Thanks Carlos. I may PM you in the future sometime, as I plan to bed a couple of rifles this summer.

Likewise to you, sir

The .280 is great. I hear it works pretty good on critters...

Or, just fill the hole with clay and spray release agent over it. If doing bottom metal also, I'd rather do that in a separate step.