Load development prior to bedding?

[Oldschool280]

Hello, i have a pair of rifles, one i just assembled and another i just purchased, neither are bedded.one a 7 mag, another a 300 win mag. The 300 is a custom eddystone sporter, the other a savage 110 action in a regular savage stock. In your opinion, would i be wasting time and money developing loads for them? If i get them to shoot decent prior to bedding, in your experience will i have to start over again after bedding? I have plenty of powder and bullets on hand, but bedding material will not be in till monday. I'm off this weekend and have a hankering to shoot.

 

[lefty222]

l just did my CZ 455 varmint with a Boyd stock, pillar and beded the action with JB weld found little change other than when l removed action form stock it was shooting the same point of aim as before, that is a plus just in itself.

 

[Dosh]

If you plan to bed them wait till they're bedded. If bedded properly it should help accuracy. I stress "properly". Never hurts to shoot before bedding and then after with the same load to gauge the difference. Plastic stocks don't bed well, only wood and carbon fiber.

 

[johnnyk]

I say shoot 'em. What's it gonna hurt? You may find that you can delay the bedding process. I bought a used .300WinMag, Savage 112 BVSS in Aug 2008 and had all intention to bed it, until I shot it. The first day of load development turned out an impressive group of .4's - .5's 3-shot groups at 100yds. When I first shot it at 300dys (all I had at that time) with 180gn NBT's the 3 shot group was around an inch and a half. I was pleased and decided to shoot it for a while before I bedded it.
Well that was 11 yrs ago, the first 6" of the barrel past the chamber now feels like an "alligators back" and I just bedded it to that original stock between 12-25-18 and 01-01-19. I have ordered a 28" Pac Nor, .300WinMag, SS, Super-Match, 9t, varmint contour to screw on. Should be here in June

 

[L.Sherm]

You could get started breaking in the barrel, I just got done forming brass (6.5x06AI) and breaking barrel in at same time.
I dont like to do final load development untill about 100 rounds anyway.

 

[cohunt]

If you plan to bed them wait till they're bedded. If bedded properly it should help accuracy. I stress "properly". Never hurts to shoot before bedding and then after with the same load to gauge the difference. Plastic stocks don't bed well, only wood and carbon fiber.

Plastic stocks bed just fine-- you just have to create mechanical "locks" for the bedding compound -- just more work to do plastic stocks

 

[Jeffrey Van Zandt]

not worth the time to try to find a load before bedding to just plink fine

 

[Flatbow]

There's guys on hear that know more about this that I do but seems to me that bedding doesn't change the action or barrel or any of that so will not affect the load development as far as pressure, or if the barrel likes it or not. Possibly change point of impact after bedding but dont see any reason you couldnt work up a load to check pressure and all...

 

[Jeffrey Van Zandt]

this is a good way to bed a action and what to use when doing it. https://www.accurateshooter.com/technical-articles/stress-free-pillar-bedding/

 

[Dean2]

I have bedded a great many rifles over the last 50 years. Many shot better after bedding, some the same, none shot worse. In all that time I do not recall EVER having to change a good shooting load after bedding a rifle. Do some load development and barrel break in while you have the time free.

Only way to really know if your bedding has helped is to shoot them before and after anyways. That way you can talk from personal experience rather than relying on Interweb legends and info passed on by people who haven't actually tried it themselves, just pass on what they think or read somewhere else..

Let us know how they shoot not bedded and then followup and let us know how they shoot after bedding and what kind of bedding you did. By the way, plastic stocks bed just fine, drill some 1/8" shallow holes for the bedding to grab on to. Also, clean them well with alcohol to ensure there is no oil residue on them, which is most often the cause of bedding not adhering properly. Should do this with fibre and wood stocks too. I would be hugely surprised, nay even shocked, to hear a good shooting load doesn't shoot good after bedding.

 

[Jeffrey Van Zandt]

I have bedded a great many rifles over the last 50 years. Many shot better after bedding, some the same, none shot worse. In all that time I do not recall EVER having to change a good shooting load after bedding a rifle. Do some load development and barrel break in while you have the time free.

Only way to really know if your bedding has helped is to shoot them before and after anyways. That way you can talk from personal experience rather than relying on Interweb legends and info passed on by people who haven't actually tried it themselves, just pass on what they think or read somewhere else..

Let us know how they shoot not bedded and then followup and let us know how they shoot after bedding and what kind of bedding you did. By the way, plastic stocks bed just fine, drill some 1/8" shallow holes for the bedding to grab on to. Also, clean them well with alcohol to ensure there is no oil residue on them, which is most often the cause of bedding not adhering properly. Should do this with fibre and wood stocks too. I would be hugely surprised, nay even shocked, to hear a good shooting load doesn't shoot good after bedding.

moat times if you have found a node high or low rhe load will shot go even after a new barrel is put on

 

[Oldschool280]

I have bedded a great many rifles over the last 50 years. Many shot better after bedding, some the same, none shot worse. In all that time I do not recall EVER having to change a good shooting load after bedding a rifle. Do some load development and barrel break in while you have the time free.

Only way to really know if your bedding has helped is to shoot them before and after anyways. That way you can talk from personal experience rather than relying on Interweb legends and info passed on by people who haven't actually tried it themselves, just pass on what they think or read somewhere else..

Let us know how they shoot not bedded and then followup and let us know how they shoot after bedding and what kind of bedding you did. By the way, plastic stocks bed just fine, drill some 1/8" shallow holes for the bedding to grab on to. Also, clean them well with alcohol to ensure there is no oil residue on them, which is most often the cause of bedding not adhering properly. Should do this with fibre and wood stocks too. I would be hugely surprised, nay even shocked, to hear a good shooting load doesn't shoot good after bedding.

The 300 shot one inch groups with 190 federal factory matchkings, one inch with just about every powder combo i had tried with 180 sst's except for one charge that yielded 3/4 at 100 yards, i tried 168 matchkings and they shrunk to a half inch. The 7 mag i used only 162 eld-x's and found a half inch and 3/8 inch load with imr 4831 and rl 25 respectively, both loads right around 3025 fps.( book) not chrono, although my barrel is two inches longer than what is listed. This range does not allowed a regular chronograph, I need to get a magneto speed. Overall I'm pretty happy although the winmag leaves a little to be desired, I'm going to try 200 grainers next, I don't really see a point in having a 300 WinMag that only shoots 168 grainers, my 30-06 shoots 168's tighter and with alot less fanfare.

 

[EMoore]

I'd shoot em first...ya never know. I've gotten pretty lucky on more than a couple and had them shoot great without being bedded.

 

[Oldschool280]

I'd shoot em first...ya never know. I've gotten pretty lucky on more than a couple and had them shoot great without being bedded.

I did go out and was able to get the 7 to shoot, the 300 doesnt like the heavier bullets