My "Precision" Rifle

[Zach O]

Ok! Now I can see it! Thanks for dumbing it down fer me..

[TheBelly]

Doesn't do any good to bed the base if you torque all the screws down and squeeze all the bedding compound out

it shouldn't squeeze out all the compound, it should leave just what's needed to fill in the spaces, right?

[ray1970]

it shouldn't squeeze out all the compound, it should leave just what's needed to fill in the spaces, right?

Let me see if my explanation skills are working. I might exaggerate a bit to make the point.

With the front of the base secured there was no gap under the Front of the base but the rear of the base stuck up .005".

I could tighten the rear screws and it would pull the base down tight in the rear. But, in doing so, technically you are flexing or distorting the rail .005" to close that gap.

If the mount was tightened down it would squeeze nearly all of the compound out and would be bedded in with the five thousandths distortion.

By by leaving the rear of the base loose you have not induced the stress in the base. Once the "bedding compound" sets under that .005" gap you no longer have a gap. So, when you tighten it down, since their is no gap there is no distortion to the base.

[brutal]

Won't change a thing unless the base screw holes are reworked on a mill to the centerline of the bore . Thats why they oversize the screws not because there stronger .

Bedding the base is to take up the tolerance stacking between the base and the receiver and make sure it runs flat and both rings are on the same plane and not bending the scope tube .

I thought that's what lapping the rings did?

I'm also curious if the receiver and base were checked for trueness? Perhaps the base is wonky and just torquing it to the receiver makes it straight?

[TheBelly]

Let me see if my explanation skills are working. I might exaggerate a bit to make the point.

With the front of the base secured there was no gap under the Front of the base but the rear of the base stuck up .005".

I could tighten the rear screws and it would pull the base down tight in the rear. But, in doing so, technically you are flexing or distorting the rail .005" to close that gap.

If the mount was tightened down it would squeeze nearly all of the compound out and would be bedded in with the five thousandths distortion.

By by leaving the rear of the base loose you have not induced the stress in the base. Once the "bedding compound" sets under that .005" gap you no longer have a gap. So, when you tighten it down, since their is no gap there is no distortion to the base.

Understand completely, that's a good explanation. Has a torqued base been a problem for this rifle in the past? Have you had this problem with other rifles in the past?

also, once the compound is set, I assumed you're going to re-thread the holes to alleviate any issues with their perfectly-perpendicular-yet-true-to-the-bore that may or may not now be present......

I'm not doubting any of your skills, Ray. It's really not my intention. Bedding a scope base just seems, to me, like pole-vaulting over a mouse turd.

I've always tested to see if everything tightens up, and if it shoots, then problem solved. I'm pretty nerdy, and this thread only feeds that......my wife doesn't thank you, as now I feel compelled to watch you do this and then consider doing it on my LR bolt gun.

[C Ward]

You don't want to apply any torque to the base screws when you bed because then the tolerance stacking you are trying to correct for will be in the finished product once it sets up . On all rifles where the front and rear scope base mounting surfaces are on a different plane no 2 rifles are alike . Remington is especially bad about this because they finish the rear reliever bridge on a belt sander . This is why 2 piece bases have no place on a precision rifle .

Bedding the base also serves to give closer to if not 100% contact between the receiver and the base which makes things less likely to shift around and the mounting screws to shoot loose .

Lapping the rings can correct for very small problems with the scope mounting plane not being straight . In my book if you buy quality rings and bases and mount everything right its a waste of time . Also any of the aluminum rings , there are some very good aluminum rings on the market , you can not lap because it destroys the anodizing and ruins the rings . On all scope rings the dimension of the bore is what sets the clamping force on the scope tube , change that dimension and the clamping force isn't right and the scope moves .

Every one of my rifles without a built in scope rail has the scope base bedded to the receiver .

[ray1970]

I'm not doubting any of your skills, Ray. It's really not my intention.

Wouldn't bother me if you were.

I was only making this thread so anyone interested could follow along with my journey.

I totally understand not everyone is going to agree with my methods or my thought process.

I've always kind of marched to my own beat anyways.

The proof is in the pudding as they say. I guess we'll have to see how she shoots when I get it all done. I have high hopes for it but I suppose I could end up disappointed in the end.

[TheBelly]

Wouldn't bother me if you were.

I was only making this thread so anyone interested could follow along with my journey.

I totally understand not everyone is going to agree with my methods or my thought process.

I've always kind of marched to my own beat anyways.

The proof is in the pudding as they say. I guess we'll have to see how she shoots when I get it all done. I have high hopes for it but I suppose I could end up disappointed in the end.

Its a good a noble journey Ray. I like asking the questions and have the answers up here.

A guy on the old SnipersHide did it with his LMT MWS, and it was a great reference for everyone to call upon. Frankly, the real utility is that most folks don't have the stones to just tear something apart and use their own two hands to make something better.

I say, "Bravo, Ray"

[Planner]

Subscribed for reference as I begin building up my Savage 12 LRP in 6.5CM.

XLR Element chassis is what I plan to use as well.

[Delfuego]

C Ward knows a lot about long range shooting, he is a valuable resource.