Man...I am bummed (lost a good stock)

[DougH9]

I bedded my new rifle today (a mid 70's 40x in 30-338), and it stuck. I used Brownells steel bed, with the watery release agent supplied (two coats applied with a fine brush). the reciever was well clayed...the bedding stuck to ALL surfaces. I am going to have to soak the barreled action in paint stripper to remove the bedding and shards of adhearing wood (yea...it stuck THAT good). I don't know what went wrong. I recently bedded a Model 70 with the same kit, using the same release agent, and it came out fine.

What makes it worse, is that I had just spent MANY hours reshaping the blocky fore end to perfection. I was very happy with how the stock came out. Now it's fire wood.

I don't think I can ever use that release agent again.

 

[B Jordan]

try putting it in the freezer for a few hours

 

[Buffalobob]

You have my sympathy and empathy. All I did was get goo in the threads of the action screw and have to grind off the head of the screw and replace it.

 

[Shawn Carlock]

Doug,

I never have like most release products that come with bedding compounds. I have used Johnsons paste floor wax and never stuck a stock using several bedding compounds. I also never use the action screws. I use line up dowels and clamp the action in place. I remove the action dowels before trying to remove the barreled action from the stock. If you have prepped the action correctly you can usually pop it loose with your hand. I feel your pain on you current project but keep your chin up and try to salvage victory from the jaws of defeat.

 

[DougH9]

Thank you guys. The stock is already toast. I have bedded MANY rifles (wait...that doesn't sound right?), and never had this problem. I put long studs on the action, lower it into the bedding, pull out the studs, then install the action screws (into clean holes). This has always worked well.

The problem here was not any mechanical lock. The entire reciever bonded. Is was as if I scrubbed it in Prep-Sol before dropping into the goop. I just don't understand how the release failed.

One thing comes to mind: I usually snug the screws, then back off a little to not stress the action. I did this this time, but when the bedding was nearly set, I snugged them up a little more (I don't know why). I am theorizing that the granular nature of Steel Bed might have penetrated the release at this point.

It was such a beautiful stock to. I could not wait to start applying finish to it.

I have found a .22 rimfire 40x stock for sale; does anybody know if it is the same as a ceterfire stock?

 

[malcarjeb]

The first time i tried bedding myself i was scared to death that I would also weld my action and stock together. I read some where about using Pam with olive oil so i got some and tried it. I do all my bedding with devcon plastic steel. This combination has worked great on the 20+ stocks i have done. I usually spray 2 coats of pam on the action and let the excess drip off and i also spray the action screws. From what i understand the pam has to have the OLIVE OIL I feel your pain and maybe this will help.

 

[Desert Fox]

Man, I feel your pain. I cracked the forward section on my 40X stock forward of the bolt recess when I bedded it using the same release agent supplied by Brownell on their bedding kit. I'm not sure what I did wrong. Luckily that was the only secion that adhered and I was able to salvaged the stock. I now use shoe polish on all my bedding job and I haven't had any prolem ever since.

 

[Jon A]

I'm really sorry to hear that. I never had complete faith in that release agent that comes with the kit. I've always used it, putting on a full coat with a Q-tip, then after a minute or two I spray the whole thing down with a can of Brownell's "T.F.E Dry Lube and Mold Release" I bought separately. I haven't had a problem yet--though the last time doing the action and barrel channel all in one shot I was worried for a little bit, it took a while to get them separated.

 

[Utah Shotgunner]

Most likely a few hours in the freezer would have made it easy to separate them and leave the bedding in good shape.

I helped build a few rifles in the early '90's where we purposely glued the action into the stocks. (NO release agent.)

A few years later a night in the freezer and they popped apart without a problem.

 

[RDM416]

Doug,

Sorry about your stock /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif Along with the suggestions everyone else has made, I will add mine. I have used Remmington Dry Lube with great success on several rifles. I like to use JB Weld for the bedding compound. Hornady One Shot spray on case lube has worked well for me too. I like a spray on release since it gets into all the cracks. The paste floor wax sounds like a good option to me as well. I did use bowstring wax once. It worked well but was very time consuming to work into all the tight places.

Never thought about it, but the suggestion of putting a stuck one in the freezer should work as well. The expansion coefficient of the receiver and the bedding compound will be very different and should cause the joint to losen up a little. I'll have to try that trick if I ever get one that is hard to get lose.

 

[keithcandler]

There are several release agents that really work and will never fail. Before applying release agent, spray the entire action with brake clean. Then I use Brownell's Accra
Release and give the action two coats, one coat will stick to the bedding and the other will stick to the action. Be sure to spray the release agent down in the chamber, etc. When I remove the action to the stock, I use the brake cleaner to wash off the release from the action...easy. I have bedded many, many rifles using this technique and have not stuck a single rifle.

It is also advisable to spray the screws with brake clean then release agent also. Accra Release will never fail you, and I use the type in the spray can...easy...easy...easy! I have used Marine Tex, Devcon, and Bisonite with the Accra Release.

If I did not have Accra Release, I would use paste wax, but what a pain to use compared to the spray Accra Release!

I did stick a 7 Mag with Pam and the forearm broke off when I tried to get it out. I did not use two coats and I did not degrease with brake cleaner before I used the Pam(first rifle I bedded).

This ain't rocket science...good luck!

 

[Ridge Runner]

I used to work in a fiberglass fabrication plant, the release agent that never failed to release the product from the molds was polyviynlalcahol, it dries to a film and is water soluable. even the three piece truck body molds broke loose easily.
RR

 

[DougH9]

I appreciate all of the tips and feedback. I wish now I had tried the freezer. A full day of soaking the action in stripper, and I got all of the bedding removed. It stuck so hard, that it pulled the bluing off the bottom! The bottom of the reciever is now a mottleing of polish-blue/matte-blue.

The release was the Acra Release, but in the liquid bottle. I applied two coats with a super fine bristled brush. I did not degrease the reciever before though (could that be the problem?)

In the past I avoided the blue release that Brownells sells because I thought that it was too think, and you would not get a tight as fit as with the watery stuff.

I may do a little experimenting with the little bit that is left over in this kit, (clean vs a little oily)and see if I can duplicate what happened.