TargetTalk

Opinions on best bedding compound for precision rifle:

JB Weld Marine #8272
MarineTex
Devcon 10110
Devcon 10760 (titanium)

Case Facts: I'm ambitiously improving my 1939 Tula Mosin Nagant into (1) Timney trigger, (2) Aluminum pillar beds, (3) Hand lapping the shot-out barrel, (4) Next I'm going to "glass-bed" the action and recoil lug.

What is TT's best preference on bedding compound of the above?

Hoping that after $2,000 of custom time, I can upgrade my Mosin from a $79 rifle, to an $89 rifle.

Also, the new Barrett Fieldcraft hunting rifle, DOES NOT free-float the barrel. Any opinion on barrel bedding vs. free-float?

Side Note: Barrett Firearms: Official Rifle of the State of Tennessee!

I know that the North-South Skirmish Association tends toward Brownell Acraglas.

Mike M. wrote:(...) Brownell Acraglas.

+1

Couple yards of concrete would seem appropriate to me.

Okay, so two-votes for Acraglass from the "North-South" vote - but is that bedding for a musket?

I'm talking modern High-Tech here: a 1939 Tula Mosin-Nagant! I just spent money on the JB-Weld for the aluminum pillar beds. I dropped $42 on the Dev-con #10110 Steel bedding.

For research sake, I'm tempted to spend $124 on Devcon #10760 - TITANIUM BEDDING - on a $79 dollar rifle!

The Devcon will be good for the steel pillars. Most gunsmith use Acraglas for bedding the rifle metal contacting the wooden areas of the stock.

Devcon Plastic steel
Acraglass

atomicgale wrote:I'm talking modern High-Tech here: a 1939 Tula Mosin-Nagant!

Mine is a second vote for a couple of yards of concrete.

Original, it has some minor collector value, not very accurate but interesting (a bit). Once you destroy it trying to "accurize" it, it will then just as inaccurate but no longer historically interesting. Bore diameter is a major deciding factor in Russian Nagant accuracy, most are seriously oversize. Check that first because without a good bore you are proably pushing sh*t uphilll with a pointy stick.

j-team wrote: pushing sh*t uphilll with a pointy stick.

Best sentence I've heard today!!!!

Late to the party, but I can offer some insights. In my chosen sport (highpower rifle), we don't have these discussions much anymore since the M14 has given way to the AR, and the bolt guns mostly wear chassis stocks (TUBB, MAK and Eliseo). But when bedding is still done, MarineTex, SteelBed, and the metal filled Devcons seem to come up most often. They have high compressive strength and very low shrinkage. I personally like MarineTex because its readily available and give me longevity in bedding. If you want easy to use, get AcraGlass.

Still working on the Mosin as of Feb 24th. Yes, a post regarding an old Soviet battle rifle on a forum for "high precision" shooters has seemed to be Anathema to some here. However . . . .

The Goal is to create a 1.5-MOA Stalingrad-worthy iron-sight wood&steel field rifle to slog thru "the Mud & the Blood & the Beer" as Johnny Cash would croon.

So far:
The aluminum pillars are glued in with J-B Weld MarineWeld #8272
Next, action-bed with DevCon Steel #10110. Note, I'll bed BOTH the action AND first 5-inches into the barrel.

Next topic: BARREL HARMONICS!

After bedding: I plan to BED THE BARREL. Yes anathema to not have a floated barrel. But physical-barrel-harmonics on a pencil-thin Mosin barrel are "Asymmetrical" at best, i.e. shifting node-points on every shot.

So . . . dampen the Barrel Harmonics by either:
1. Find a specific node-point & make barrel contact from the stock there, or . . .
2. Bed the ENTIRE LENGTH of the barrel.

Material Choices:
1. More Devcon, or . . .
2. J-B Weld Wood Epoxy-Putty #8257, or . . .
3. J-B Weld Wood Epoxy-Adhesive #8251 . . .

There you go! Input on physical dynamics of barrel vibration requested!

If you want to dissect the analytical portion, start with Al Harral (aka Varmint Al). I just like his graphics.. if you’re looking for the practical, you might start with Fulton’s “regulated” Enfields for an idea on how it was done with barrel bedding (not entirely applicable.with the Enfields rear lockup bolt).

Chris F wrote:If you want to dissect the analytical portion, start with Al Harral (aka Varmint Al). I just like his graphics.. if you’re looking for the practical, you might start with Fulton’s “regulated” Enfields for an idea on how it was done with barrel bedding (not entirely applicable.with the Enfields rear lockup bolt).

Wasn't the Swiss K31 pressure bedded at the muzzle too, and that's a front locking bolt?

Have ALWAYS used Brownell's AcraGlass. Dozens of hunting rifles and lots of match rifles.

Back when I used to shoot bench rest, the hot idea was aluminum devcom. Forget the steel because of rust.

For my hunting rifles I'm not that fussy.

Continuing Epic of DevCon Steel Bedding your $79.95 Mosin-Nagant:

No where did I read in the classic Best-Seller: "$6,000 of custom work on a $79 rifle": Make sure NOT to get the DevCon steel putty smeared into the engraved importation serial numbers on your Mosin . . . .

Anyway, the DevCon is in. Vassily and I had a fairly uneventful clean-up, I'm currently waiting for it to partially set. For the record, I used KIWI Neutral shoe polish, combined with a generous splash of Hornady's ONE SHOT case lube as my release agent. Kudos to the One-Shot spray, which saved the serial#'s AND probably saved Vassily's ass from being deported back to the Soviet Union with only the original Cyrillic factory stamps on his $79 rifle, and the bottle of Vodka I had planned to send to Rover.

Stay tuned . . . .