doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com Best way to bed forend?

I'm stocking a Low Wall and wanted some advice as to what is the best way to bed the forend. I have read that having a paper thin gap between the action and forend with full barrel contact tends to be the most accurate way to bed a forend. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I would not bed against the receiver; period. Bed to the barrel but not the receiver and that includes the lip that wraps around the outer edge of the forearm. There just isn't any reason for epoxy at the end of the forearm and you may want to scrape some of what's there already away.

Brent

Shawn, Sounds like you read something I wrote? That's the way I bed them.

I'm not sure what your building your rifle for or how you plan to shoot it. I will say that all my single-shot rifles, most are schuetzen style, have the forend touching the receiver. Even my long-range Borchardt forend is touching, this rifle I do shoot holding the forend all my other rifles which are shot off the bench are shot resting the barrel on the front bag and never off the forend.

I guess I should also say that none of these rifles have any bedding compound on the forend, just wood to metal.

Michael,
In that, you are definitely in the minority - At least among those that shoot primarily blackpowder. Most of us find definite improvements in accuracy by relieving forearm/receiver contact. The walls are particularly adaptable to this in that they have the overlapping flange that assuages the visual issues.

Brent

I’m in the minority on many things that have to do with single-shot rifles, nothing new there. I spent one summer doing nothing but playing with front rest and forearms and I went with what works for me. I’m not sure how many folks shoot off the barrel but when I see pictures of matches it looks like a lot shoot off the forearm. Although I’ve found the barrel rest to be best (for me) I still test any new rifle off the forend. Last word is always use what works for you. It may very well be that if I relieved the forearms and shot off them everything would be reversed.

The late Charlie Dell would sometimes get on me for using my old Beeswax –Alox lube, he keep trying to get me weaned off the stuff, I tried many others and keep coming back to it.

These are five-shot fifty-yard. New Green Mountain barrel on my Niedner false-barrel 44 1/2.

Of all calibers, a .22 rimfire would be least likely to show a benefit. Mine will shoot like that and it is relieved.

Steven,
I did first learn this method in one of your books. They have been a source of inspiration for many of my custom guns. I have an 1873 similar to the one in your book that is getting a new half round barrel and converted to a pistol grip.

Michael, I suspect the size, weight and wall thickness of the barrel has a lot to do with barrel rests shooting so well. How much have you played with sporter weight barrels and forearm bedding?
I have had very little success with barrel rest and sporter weight barrels, finding forestock rest, full contact bedding (either wood to metal or epoxy) and a slight gap between the forend and action to achieve the best groups. Matter of fact, I try to rest the forearm very much as I would for shooting offhand. I remember struggling with one particular High Wall .30-40 until I arrived at this combination.
I'll bet there is a slight gap between the forend and action of the 44 1/2, that is, if you can unscrew the barrel. I have very little experience with heavy barreled target rifles.

Shawn, If you are going to make the forend from a block, you are in for a challenge. Let me know, I can help. I'm flattered you enjoy the Winchester, as I'm sure Terry is, who concieved, initiated and commisioned the '73. Without a doubt, one of the most challenging and rewarding projects of my career. Terry was a dream client; Knowlegable researcher, rare parts locater, encouraging, faithful with my mortgage cycle and willing to support the artistic and well as the functional aspects of the project.
Thanks Terry!
(BTW, I helped Jerry Fisher a bit with tools and knowledge when he stocked the Swartley engraved M-73. Helped convince him he did not want a cheekpiece!)

Shawn, I found that the key, for me, is to bore the magazine tube hole first.

IMO the optimum forearm bedding method would depend greatly upon the heat generated by the load. In my experience, single shot rifles with sporter-weight barrels and high-intensity cartridges will not yield their best accuracy when bedded against both surfaces and fired at even a leisurely pace. Barrel heats up and the shots walk. However when fired quite slowly these same rifles would shoot extremely well! By the same token most Schuetzen rifles have heavy barrels and are chambered for relatively low-intensity cartridges and are usually fired at what I can only describe as an extremely leisurely pace (G), so I would expect the forearm bedding method to have a somewhat lesser effect. Same with the barrel-resting method with heavy barrels, logic tells us that the heavy barrels should show less effect. At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it 'cause it works for me. I bed single shots against the barrel only (with or without a bedding block) and free-float all bolt rifles.
Regards, Joe