Bedding an H-S precision stock

[favload]

I know there must be lots of info on this subject if someone can point the way. I have noticed that some days my rifle (Savage LRPV, shilen barrel, 6BR) will string shots diagonaly. I have suspected that skim bedding may help. On inspection i noticed that the action (repeater) does not contact the bottom of the aluminum blocks but rather only the top edges sort of giving it a V-block effect. In addition, the rear block on the bolt side only has a 1/8" contact area, not very much at all. Would bedding improve the situation or just get me in trouble? Because its a repeater with a DBM I don't have much room for bedding material, and it could get hairy compared to a single shot 3 bolt action. I will attempt it with guidance.
Jer

 

[tome]

i have 3 h-s stocks..2 savage LRPV ( single shot ) & a lh Remington 700..i am satisfied how they shoot.. shot 4 club varmint gun shoots..took a 2nd..a 1st ..and did not place in two..50% batting avg works for me. i called H-S and asked about skim bedding & bolt torque..h-s said the army sniper stocks that they supply are not skim bedded & to torque to 65" lbs...on the savage thats the front & rear screws ..not the middle.i know a lot of people say the tang screw should be just snug . i only know what works.A lot of people BS about these rifles & dodn't own em. you didn't say how big you groups are.it's a pia to bed a repeater..lot of modeling clay

 

[Steve Blair]

Savageaccuracy.com has a good article by Stan Pate about Savage tuning.

http://savageaccuracy.com/2010/02/01/how-i-tune-a-savage-receiver/

I believe the same approach might work with the H-S stock. I have a PST-025 for Remington short actions that works very well without bedding. I torque to 65 lb-inch in the following sequence.

1. front screw - 40 lb-inch
2. rear screw - 40 lb-inch
3. front screw - 50 lb-inch
4. rear screw - 50 lb-inch
5. front screw - 60 lb-inch
6. rear screw - 60 lb-inch
7. front screw - 65 lb-inch
8. rear screw - 65 lb-inch

This just follows the same philosophy used when tightening head bolts. Instead of starting in the middle and torquing outward, start at the front and torque back.

My two 12F rifles are bedded by SSS because Savage does not actually pillar bed the rifle. The pillars are installed but do not touch the action.

 

[blawton]

Not a bad idea. But why dont you try to shoot them at all those different torque settings? I almost never work the torque up like rather i break the screws loose and re torque them to a different setting and see if it affects the way it shoots.

 

[Steve Blair]

Notaguru - That is where it shoots best. As I approached the factory recommended setting, groups tightened until 60 lb-inch. There was no discernible difference between 60 and 65 lb-inch but no degradation, either. So, I went with the vendor's recommendation. I generally follow manufacturer's recommendations unless I have a compelling reason to do otherwise. They often know their products.

 

[tome]

3 screws in a savage LRPV action...what torque on the middle action screw...mine are hand tight..15 - 20 inlbs..the remington..you are saying the same thing as i am...i make sure to bang the butt when i am hand tight to make sure it's seated ..then finish torqueing

 

[Nomo4me]

LRPV with DBM only has two action screws. I did skim bed my mine, a 6br, including behind the recoil lug. Because that rear contact area is so small I felt it very important to provide additional support by bedding along the middle of the action along the sides. All surfaces were roughed up with a carbide burr for proper adhesion. Scotch tape on the front, bottom and sides of the recoil lug.
On these prepainted stocks I bed to preserve the visible gaps at the top of the stock that were already there. You will drive yourself nuts trying to dress the bedding material flush with the top of the stock and have it look right.

I also laid down a 2" long bbl support block extending forward from just in front of the bbl nut. This only contacts the bottom 1/3 of the bbl radius.

My gun is shooting a good bit less than 1/2 moa and it's a varmint gun so I'll not bother with torque settings.

 

[favload]

Thanks for the feedback so far. The gun is curently around 1/2 MOA at 600. I am very happy with its accuracy. I am just looking to make things more consistant without spending too much.