Thread: Bedding tikka

Is it straight forward? should i do it? Where should i buy the bedding kit.

Cheers guys

If you bed the recoil lug into the stock it's relatively easy. Do you need to do it or just feel like it?

Originally Posted by horihunter

If you bed the recoil lug into the stock it's relatively easy. Do you need to do it or just feel like it?

Just feel like it haha. I always thought bedding the recoil lug would be wise as it doesnt really fit perfectly. You reckon i should do the action as well or not bother? I just want to see if i can get a fraction more accuracy really, will give me something to do on a rainy day

Devcon compound seems to be the go. Its not an easy job to get right the first time you try it. But if you think of contact and pressure points that effect accuracy, relieve those and fill with compound so as to return the action and barrel to the original fit your away.
Your trying to achieve a fit to the stock that is ridged and free of any action movement in the stock. Recoil lug and tang to avoid any bending of the action etc when screws are torqued. Only bearing surfaces need doing. recoil lugs should not have compound at the bottom of them like I see a lot done. Yet some are bedded so as the action can never be removed. Make sure you apply a parting agent to the metal on everything you think will get near the compound.

Have fun

MatchGrade Bedding Products - Terminal Ballistics Research try this bedding kit $33 full support from Nathan Malhunting has used it i will be getting some soon for my Magnum. packet is enough for one rifle. and yes bed the action, and if you have a heavy barrel bed to within 2-3mm before the taper starts. Nathan will explain it all anyway

When I bed a Tikka T3 I put several layers of electrical tape in the slot in the action where the recoil lug sits then glue the recoil lug to the action with nail varnish. Then bed the front part of the action and the rear. I put a couple of layers of tape along the side of the action so that it is not touching after the bedding job is done. When you pull the action out the lug will stay in place and after you have removed the tape from the recoil lug slot the lug will be relieved a bit like the bottom of a Rem 700 recoil lug. Hope that makes sense.

Yep i brought from TBR and done a Remmy 700.
All details are on paper with the kit and there is tutorials on the website to i think, It worked well for me and the rifle shot tight groups after done.
I had heaps left over from my kit so i want to work on a mates Sako to sort it out and use it up.

Float the barrel first, and see if it helps with your group sizes? T3's are sold as having a floated barrel but all the ones I've used only have the first 4-6'' of the barrel ''semi-floated'' and the rest of the barrel touches as you get closer to the action.

This is easy to do with either a dremel or use something round like a vivid marker pen wrapped in 150grit sandpaper. Be generous as if you use a bipod you want it so it never touches. I give the stock a series of very firm wacks from underneath and if the stock ''taps'' the barrel at all, I take some more off until it doesn't ''tap''... If you run a pen along the barrel leaving a line on the stock parallel with the barrel, it will give you a line to work to when removing material.


kj

Originally Posted by stug

When I bed a Tikka T3 I put several layers of electrical tape in the slot in the action where the recoil lug sits then glue the recoil lug to the action with nail varnish. Then bed the front part of the action and the rear. I put a couple of layers of tape along the side of the action so that it is not touching after the bedding job is done. When you pull the action out the lug will stay in place and after you have removed the tape from the recoil lug slot the lug will be relieved a bit like the bottom of a Rem 700 recoil lug. Hope that makes sense.

This sounds like a very good way to.bed a t3 I would be trying this if I were to do another one. I have used the stuff from terminal ballistics and was happy enough with it to use it again . If you take the stock off you will notice the t3s actually have pressure pads about a third of the way down the barrel channel. I remove these (just a slip of a sharp chisel) and open the barrel channel if necessary before load development

I have also stiffened the stocks with the ballistic studies product and carbon. Of the cheaper synthetic stocks I would rate the t3 as one of the better ones in terms of rigidity. That's not to say it is very rigid but enough to get very god accuracy without modification

Stug, would you put up some photos of that process?

Originally Posted by stug

When I bed a Tikka T3 I put several layers of electrical tape in the slot in the action where the recoil lug sits then glue the recoil lug to the action with nail varnish. Then bed the front part of the action and the rear. I put a couple of layers of tape along the side of the action so that it is not touching after the bedding job is done. When you pull the action out the lug will stay in place and after you have removed the tape from the recoil lug slot the lug will be relieved a bit like the bottom of a Rem 700 recoil lug. Hope that makes sense.

Right, im going to do it like this with terminal ballistics research compound. I can understand everything apart from the recoil lug part, i would of thought you would want the lug solid in there so put some compound in the stock slot where the recoil lug goes and push the lug in.
Can you explain the bit about electrical tape in the action slot? So do i put the tape in that slot, then glue the recoil lug to the tape?
Cheers mate

Sorry don't have a Tikka T3 at the moment to bed will have one or two in december to work on, will try and get some photos then.

PerazziSC3 yes put epoxy/bedding compound in the slot in the stock that the recoil lug sits in. Sit the action upside down on the bench. Put two - three layers of tape in slot in action then put nail polish on the tape and sides of the slot in the action. Then put the recoil lug in the slot so that it is hard up against the front (muzzle end) of the slot. Then walk away for half an hour until nail polish is set. Then put release agent on the action and recoil lug. Be careful on the recoil lug you don't want to break the nail polish.

Here are some photos of one did recently. One thing you need to do is relieve the back side of bedding around the slots where the action screws are, these act as a recoil lug if you don't. This was my first attempt at bedding, there are a few things id do different next time but i think its one of those things you will need to learn for yourself through trial and error, as there are so many different processes you can use.

ok cool, that all makes sense. One more question. What purpose does the tape serve? Once the tape is removed their will be a small gap between recoil lug and action? is this desirable?