Bedding my howa 1500. Original bedding was soft and tacky

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Bedding my howa 1500. Original bedding was soft and tacky

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 26 Nov 2018, 6:12 am

I purchased a bell and Carlson stock for my howa 308, on the weekend I attached it to the action and while doing that I noticed the compound used around the front screw is kind of soft and tacky. Is that normal?

Also, the barrel is not perfectly in the center of the stock. Still plenty of clearance both sides, but thats the kind of thing I'm going to look at every time I pick up the rifle. Would rebedding be the only way to correct this?
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Last edited by Kelsey Cooter on 12 Dec 2018, 6:18 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Chronos » 26 Nov 2018, 6:18 am

Looks like the same stuff used in Weatherby vanguards. Comes out of a kind of hot glue gun and the action is bedded into it. If the action isn’t held straight it will set off Center

No, it should t be soft or tacky, is it new? If it’s used maybe it’s had some solvent on it that’s attacked the material

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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 26 Nov 2018, 6:26 am

Chronos wrote:
No, it should t be soft or tacky, is it new? If it’s used maybe it’s had some solvent on it that’s attacked the material

Chronos


Yeah I was wondering if maybe something had attacked it. I bought it from a store down nsw that had a weatherby action in it, so while it is new, it has been played with
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 26 Nov 2018, 6:38 am

I pretty much always rub down all my metal with G96, so there would of been some residue on the action when i screwed it down, would this cause the problem?
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by bigrich » 26 Nov 2018, 7:58 am

I try to avoid G96, I like timber stocks and over time it eats it. Balistol is the stuff, developed by the Germans around the time of the First World War, it’s good for timber, leather and is a good antiseptic. Wouldn’t surprise me if G96 would be upsetting the new “hot glue “ method of bedding they are starting to use these days. Profit margins over quality these days
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Member-Deleted » 26 Nov 2018, 9:04 am

G'day Kelsey Cooter mate if it was me I would dig it out and do if again with Devcon or any of the other harder epoxies
Then you could possibly move the barrel to the center
Hope you get it sorted
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by pomemax » 26 Nov 2018, 10:47 am

Do you have a hot air blower like this https://www.bunnings.com.au/xu1-2000w-c ... n_p6290580
If its a hot glue you may be able to soften it up and when doing this any solvent will evaporated off ,work outs the center of the barrel in stock and reset it in center Find out how much gap you have and used brass shims to center it or bits of playing card
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Mitch » 26 Nov 2018, 12:04 pm

Ive had a couple of these stocks, two on howa, and none have that crap? Definitely not like that from factory
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 26 Nov 2018, 8:43 pm

I'm keen on rebedding, but haven't bedded an action before so got some learning to do, talked to a mate today who said he uses devcon also, is that what you blokes prefer? And what do you prefer to use as a release agent on the action?
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Member-Deleted » 26 Nov 2018, 9:49 pm

G'day cooter mate there are plenty of things you could use most of the shooters have a special liking to all different ones
I bought one from Brownells but didn't like it then a gunsmith put me onto good old- ''Johnson KIWI ,DUBBIN neutral white/clear boot polish
works splendid have done my last 3 rifles over two years and it performed well
Just wipe it on with a soft piece of rag be careful as it is clear and not easy to see where you've done so make sure you get it covered well
Be liberal with it don't wipe too thin or off , its the best I've found although there is plenty of very good stuff that I haven't tried
With the bedding prep listen to peoples advice or watch it on the net but take it slow do what is said and don't take corners also have everything on hand before
starting keep it clean and grease free mate we all started some where if you get a little bewildered then i'm sure people on here would be too happy to help you along
Best part about it is if you bugga it up get a dermal dig it out and try again
Happy bedding and good luck
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 26 Nov 2018, 10:14 pm

:drinks: Cheers granddadbushy
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Member-Deleted » 26 Nov 2018, 10:47 pm

No worries hope it helps mate
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Chronos » 27 Nov 2018, 8:01 am

Mitch wrote:Ive had a couple of these stocks, two on howa, and none have that crap? Definitely not like that from factory


That's probably because Weatherby advertise their stocks are all individually bedded and Howa don't

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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 27 Nov 2018, 9:40 pm

Tonight I had another look at the bedding compound, poked the screw driver into it, and it felt just like poking something sharp into glue out of a hot glue gun, so now I'm doubting that it has been affected by something since that is how you blokes have been describing it, seems like its intended to be soft?
Either way seems like its going to be easy to remove being so soft.

Would you bed the back of the action as well on this stock while I'm at it, or no need?
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Member-Deleted » 28 Nov 2018, 3:55 am

I would mate just take a little out from around the inside edgejust to the end of the silver bit under the back tang and put some epoxy in and
set then it will be nice and snug just like the front will be when finished
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 28 Nov 2018, 8:27 am

Do I want the horizontal surface of the action behind the recoil lug to be pulled down hard against the alloy behind the recoil lug? I had a measure this morning, and the recoil lug is .350 lower then the action.

I measured the hogue stock that the rifle came with and it was spot on .350

So i measured down to the bedding compound on the B&C stock and it was actually .355
Once the soft bedding compound is removed the distance is .400

So when i bed that recoil lug will I just pull the action down onto the alloy behind the recoil lug or would i need to support the barrel so the action only pulls down onto the bedding compound when finished?

I hope that makes sense
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Do i want the horizontal surface behind the recoil lug hard against the stock
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Member-Deleted » 28 Nov 2018, 12:26 pm

Yeah mate get it ready to epoxy then put in the epoxy after taping up so epoxy can't get on everything stock and all
place barrel into the stock put rear and front screws and just tighten lightly make sure the barrel is central
It will settle in place and firmly on the aluminium bases give 8 to 12 hrs or overnight then remove the barrel and clean it of any residue
I let the epoxy set for 1-2 days just to be certain all is good then put the barrel into place and set the screws to the tension required
then check the float in the barrel then alls good hopefully
Hope I've explained it enough for you
Remember put plenty of release product on anything you don't want to stick together or to
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by bigrich » 29 Nov 2018, 5:05 am

I’ve used brownells “acraglass “ and it works a treat. Do a search on YouTube and watch a few videos before you have a go. Pay special attention to removing any burs to the action in the area your bedding, and application and type of release agents. I did everything right on my model 70 Winchester and it was still a pain to get the action out of the stock after it had set. The best thing for getting gun oil of the action was humble old metho. The supplied release agent in the kit wouldn’t go on properly before that, and I used all sorts of grease remover. Carnuba wax is a good release agent as well. Hope some of this helps, cheers
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by marksman » 29 Nov 2018, 9:01 am

no bedding compound is not meant to be soft and tacky
in the past I have re-bedded rifles that the bedding went like a chewing gum, some of the materials were commercial name brand bedding compounds

pay special attention to the flat sides of your action as they need to be relived with tape to stop pinching that will cause inconsistent return to battery
your recoil lug needs to be tapped on the front/bottom and the sides leaving the rear clean
where there is a right angle/ 90 degree in the action you need to round off the inside corner with a small layer of play doe so that when you pull the job apart the edge is clean and not broken, it also stops broken material from stopping the action from seating properly if you scrape some when fitting
tape a thickness of tape on the barrel at the fore end to give the right height for the action to fit the stock
just take your time and think about the job as you go, dont use a quick drying compound, epoxy is best and dont use clamps to pull the job down
tape all the edges that compound may come out of onto the stock and clean with qtips, if you use devcon qtips dipped in water
it's not that scary after the first one I promise :allegedly: :drinks:
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 29 Nov 2018, 9:17 pm

marksman wrote:no bedding compound is not meant to be soft and tacky
in the past I have re-bedded rifles that the bedding went like a chewing gum, some of the materials were commercial name brand bedding compounds

pay special attention to the flat sides of your action as they need to be relived with tape to stop pinching that will cause inconsistent return to battery
your recoil lug needs to be tapped on the front/bottom and the sides leaving the rear clean
where there is a right angle/ 90 degree in the action you need to round off the inside corner with a small layer of play doe so that when you pull the job apart the edge is clean and not broken, it also stops broken material from stopping the action from seating properly if you scrape some when fitting
tape a thickness of tape on the barrel at the fore end to give the right height for the action to fit the stock
just take your time and think about the job as you go, dont use a quick drying compound, epoxy is best and dont use clamps to pull the job down
tape all the edges that compound may come out of onto the stock and clean with qtips, if you use devcon qtips dipped in water
it's not that scary after the first one I promise :allegedly: :drinks:



Cheers marksman, why do you tape the front, sides and bottom of the recoil lug? With the front of the lug on that angle wouldn't it still come away from the bedded stock easily?
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by bigrich » 30 Nov 2018, 4:42 am

I don’t tape around the recoil lug areas myself, creating a bit of clearance with the bedding compound after you remove the tape sorta defeats the point of bedding. Ask ten tradesmen how to do something, you’ll get ten slightly different answers. Use google and YouTube to research bedding, and after you’ve read a lot of information on the subject, decide what’s right for you. Cheers
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by bigrich » 30 Nov 2018, 4:48 am

Actually, what I did do after my bedding job was get out the four inch grinder with a sanding disc and round the edges slightly on the recoil lug. Makes it a little easier to get everything to go back together without creating any slop or clearance. Each to their own. Cheers
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by sungazer » 30 Nov 2018, 8:54 am

you need clearance on the bottom so the action can pull down. Also you dont want the recoil lug bouncing of the bottom or anywhere really. For a lot of actions pillars are enough. As there can often not be much other surface area on the bottom of the action when you take into account the trigger group and big whole for the mag. I like to pull down the action firmly once in the bedding compound. It can take a lot to force it out of the way and up and out of the gaps you have left. You dont want the action sitting really high.
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by bigrich » 30 Nov 2018, 11:15 am

I took a couple of mm of timber out of the stock where I was bedding as well, just so the bedding compound wasn’t too thin
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by marksman » 30 Nov 2018, 1:07 pm

Kelsey Cooter wrote:Cheers marksman, why do you tape the front, sides and bottom of the recoil lug? With the front of the lug on that angle wouldn't it still come away from the bedded stock easily?


you do it to stop pinching within the action and stock when the rifle recoils so the action returns to battery the same every time
the rear of the recoil lug and the flat bottom of the action is the only thing that should be tight onto the bedding

some people believe its a waste of time as the action and stock are put together very tight and wont move
but have a look under actions that are set up on v-block bedding eg.. aluminium bedding blocks and the actions will have two lines running down the bottom of the action from movement, that is also why you relive the side's of the action if they are flat, fill in depressions with play doe and as already said smooth out burrs ect so that the action moves straight back and forwards while recoiling without being stuck

the only time IMHO that you don't relive the flat areas on the sides of actions or the recoil lug is if you are gluing the action into the stock :thumbsup:
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by bigrich » 30 Nov 2018, 1:50 pm

I should have been more specific in my case for this discussion, I’ve only bedded around the front recoil lug and up the sides of the action just in that front area, and around the back tang. I Haven’t fully bedded my actions, I understand where you’re coming from with relieving the sides now MM. in both my model 70 Winchester’s just bedding the front and rear has been all that was needed to have very accurate hunting rifles
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by tom604 » 30 Nov 2018, 4:53 pm

bedding soft and tacky ???? too much gun porn ????? ;) ;) :silent: :thumbsup:
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by marksman » 01 Dec 2018, 11:26 am

bigrich wrote:I should have been more specific in my case for this discussion, I’ve only bedded around the front recoil lug and up the sides of the action just in that front area, and around the back tang. I Haven’t fully bedded my actions, I understand where you’re coming from with relieving the sides now MM. in both my model 70 Winchester’s just bedding the front and rear has been all that was needed to have very accurate hunting rifles


you are supposed to relieve the rear of the tang as well bigrich so the action is guaranteed to be on the rear of the recoil lug :drinks:
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by Kelsey Cooter » 10 Dec 2018, 7:05 am

How much material to you blokes remove when getting the stock ready for the devcon? A mate told me I want the devcon to be at least 2mm thick. And should I leave a strip of original material behind the the recoil lug for staying the same height?
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Re: Is this bedding compound ment to be soft and tacky?

Post by marksman » 10 Dec 2018, 7:33 am

good advise :drinks:
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