Bedding compounds

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davem

Moderator
I used to use Micro Sight's Micro-Bedding compound. It was an epoxy putty in a walnut color and worked well on small jobs. It was very handy in building a muzzle loader if the inlet for a ramrod pipe was a little loose, etc- you don't want enough material to bed a barrel- just a dab.

In any event- does anyone still sell Micro Bed?

If not- can some of the other epoxy putty products like pc 7, etc be used on small jobs?

Thanks
 
I use quik steel from Wal Mart,$4.00.Comes in a tube ,putty like and you knead it with your hand.Auto section.Great stuff,same as Brownells but much,much cheaper,
 
I assume you have to wax the metal or use some sort of release agent. What color is the steel putty? How well has it held up? Thanks:cool:
 
Bisonite is another brand that is walnut and was commonly used to bed M14/M1A, and Garand match rifles. I believe it's still available. I've had good luck with Brownells Steel Bed, but it is the color of stainless steel and you won't like it if you want brown. You could probably add brown Acraglass die to about any epoxy. PC-7 makes a white version for marine applications. Might be called PC-11, but I don't recall for sure.

The thing with the steel-filled compounds is they are tough and their linear temperature coefficient of expansion is closer to that of the steel that a plain epoxy. That makes them last longer. The black Devcon steel-filled epoxy putty product is popular for that reason (MSC sells it), though it isn't the color you want. But any epoxy is better than none. One that adheres well to wood is the T-88 sold by WoodCraft. They also sell a brown epoxy pigment that would give you the color you want. Mix in the die and some steel powder to come up with your own recipe if you like?
 
You might check and see if Brownells still carries Acra-Bed. It seems to be the same stuff that Micro-Bed was (I used it for years - still have about a third of a tube for both the resin and hardener). The stock number for Brownells is 081-042-104AA. Good luck
Joe
 
Bedding.

Just the name kinda reminds me of a cozy pile of linen begging to be snuggled up in.

Bedding is cool, sexy, and shooters can be a bit evangelical about it.

It's a casting of the receiver that is inert to weather. That's it. As long as the resin system used has minimal shrinkage, good resistance to chemicals, sufficient hardness and high shear/compressive strength, it will work. The hype about one particular brand over another doesn't make the bedding any better or worse, it's what is easiest/most affordable/available for the gunsmith to use.

I've bedded guns with $5.00 tubes of epoxy and I've used stuff that's over $100 bucks a pint. The rifle didn't notice the difference.

As I've preached and preached before. A properly done bedding job makes a great rifle exceptional and it makes a good gun great. It will NOT however polish a ****.
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:D:D


With experience you learn its more about the process than the material.

beddingII.jpg
 
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I usually use AcraGlas from Brownells, but that's just what I'm used to using. I have used several different fiberglass resins over the years, and I keep coming back to it because it is easy to use and has no odor. I recently tried some Bedrock Bedding from Midway that a friend gave me to use for his rifle, and I was pleasantly surprised by the quality and quantity of the components in the kit, and I was pleased with the results.

Something I can tell you does not work is Bondo, auto body filler of any sort, plaster (with or without cotton gauze for reinforcement), cheap polyester fiberglass resin, white glue mixed with wood dust, 2-minute epoxy mixed with steel wool, and any one of several other monstrosities I have had to cut out of rifles over the past many years. You need a good, strong epoxy compound that can take the shock of recoil without cracking or splitting. Generally, the slower it cures, the stronger it is when cured. It's not magical, it's just gotta be strong.
 
Scorch: what's your opinion on JB Weld? Some guys have said they use it and it works great and a few others said it was too brittle and would eventually chip/crack from recoil. I'm wondering about that since guys have used the stuff to repair farm equipment, engine blocks, etc. My project is a learning experience, not an expensive gun, so I can probably go with less expensive material. Actually, what I am doing is making a stock for an inexpensive ($69) muzzle loader that came with a lightweight plastic stock.
I skills at inletting aren't that great and the tang area is not as tight as I want. I can get Marine Tex Gray or JB Weld. Both are gray and that's a concern if any of the material shows however I am wondering if a brown magic marker can be used to dye the dried material.
In any event all comments welcomed.
 
Scorch: what's your opinion on JB Weld?
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Although JB Weld is very strong, I have never used JB Weld for bedding a rifle, my experience with fast-cure epoxies as bedding material in general is not good. If that is what you want to use, go for it.
 
Marine-tex also comes in white. I have not tried, but I assume it could be dyed to a brown. Brownell's (not just for suckers) has dye for their acra series of bedding products. I see no reason why someone couldn't use some of their dye in the white marine-tex.
By the way, Marine-tex is a great product. Easy to work with, and is a nice consistency. Not too runny. You put it in place and it stays pretty well.
 
I checked out Marine-Tex and it can be mixed with some of the company's resin coloring agents. Some place I saw that Marine-Tex is what the U.S. Marine Corp uses on it's sniper rifles. My only negative is that the 1-5 mixing ratio is okay for the whole job but if you want to do small areas- more of a bother. The Devcon 10110 (I think that's the right number) seems to be the hands down favorite of most professional gunsmiths. It has a 1/1 mix ratio.
AND BTW - Longrifles- that is an outstanding job- how did you get the lines so crisp?
 
Just some quick 'general' input on epoxies; 1:1 tend to be softer (absorb recoil without cracking) than higher ratios. Thixogens (additives) can change this dramatically.

Attention really needs to be paid to thermals when bedding actions, some cheap epoxies will begin to degrade @ 150*F.

!!!!Wear latex or vinyl gloves when working with epoxies! You can become 'sensitized' over time, if you're 'light skinned, blond, redhead, it could be on the first exposure. Clean uncured epoxy off your person immediately with denatured alcohol or vinegar.

Cleaning up the excess is a PITA. I prefer vinegar but it's an acid and you have to clean and immediately oil the metal. Denatured alcohol is better unless you have a water-based poly finish (becoming more popular on newer guns), it will ruin the finish.
 
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