Have you ever had bedding/floating worsen accuracy?

[2DaMtns]

Just as the title asks. Contemplating bedding and floating a rifle that already shoots pretty well, but am thinking "If it ain't broke..." Anyone ever had bedding and floating worsen accuracy?

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[Member 5605]

I've never floated a barrel and received worse accuracy.

 

[Boboclown]

Typically that will either improve accuracy, or just make no difference at all. Providing someone who does it does not mess up.

 

[MountainBear]

In can happen. Some guns respond better to pressure bedding. But they are few and far between.
The bigger problem, as alluded to above, would be a poorly done bedding job. While a good bedding job will at the very least do no harm, a poor bedding job could very well degrade your perceived accuracy.

 

[P7M13]

I've read information on guns where the barrel was touching the stock, like Vanguard (Series I) rifles, and that it affected accuracy to have the barrel unsupported. If you float a barrel, and it is done right, it will probably affect the barrel harmonics. Thus, if you load, your pet load may no longer be "the one."

 

[Boboclown]

I've read information on guns where the barrel was touching the stock, like Vanguard (Series I) rifles, and that it affected accuracy to have the barrel unsupported. If you float a barrel, and it is done right, it will probably affect the barrel harmonics. Thus, if you load, your pet load may no longer be "the one."

Anything you do to affect accuracy is going to need a new load. Floating the barrel enters the territory of consistency rather than an improvement in precision. Pillar bedding and glass bedding will be the precision territory.

 

[No_Regerts]

Ive had lightweigh rifles with pencil thin barrels that responded well to a pressure point in the foreend. I shot it as is out of the box (700 Mountain Rifle in 280). It was OK. Shimmed the action to replicate floating the barrel. Not much difference. Went ahead and bedded the action and opened up the barrel channel a little. It got real "meh" at that point. Built up a stack of business cards where the speedbump in the stock used to live, rifle shot great. I built up a pressure point with epoxy and it became a favorite rifle of mine.

 

[2DaMtns]

What is the explanation in that scenario? I thought the barrel contacting anything would lead to inconsistencies and reduced accuracy. How does creating the pressure point lead to more consistency? I've heard this before, always wondered, and never asked.

 

[Boboclown]

What is the explanation in that scenario? I thought the barrel contacting anything would lead to inconsistencies and reduced accuracy. How does creating the pressure point lead to more consistency? I've heard this before, always wondered, and never asked.

Barrel contacting stuff leads to the shooter (and what they do) lead to inconsistencies, but contact in of itself does not do that.

Some rifles will be better with some pressure, some don't.

 

[Medic!]

My Ruger 300 win mag went from a 1-1/2'' gun to a sub 1'' gun with bedding the action and putting a pressure point in the forward end of the stock.

I would do it again.

 

[Koda]

What is the explanation in that scenario? I thought the barrel contacting anything would lead to inconsistencies and reduced accuracy. How does creating the pressure point lead to more consistency? I've heard this before, always wondered, and never asked.

not all rifles shoot better with a floated barrel... it usually comes down to the barrel itself. Some barrels, usually thinner/lightweight ones, have too much harmonics left unsupported (fully floated) but generally speaking its easier to manufacture a contact point than fully float a barrel without bedding and expect it to be accurate "enough". Manufacturers when mass producing will put a contact point in the front of the forearm to help stabilize these, its a cheap way of mass producing rifles wile maintaining hunting level accuracy out of the box. Otherwise it would be too difficult to mass produce rifle stocks without bedding the barrel (another kind of accurizing). This doesn't mean the mass produces rifle is cheaply made, usually lightweight barrels are put on hunting rifles to lighten the rifle for carrying and the contact point lets them shoot well enough. Most mass produced rifles have a contact point if I recall.

 

[Boboclown]

Even if a rifle does better with pressure, floating the barrel will let you find the sweet spot for the pressure point. For example: Ruger Hawkeye stocks will have a random pressure point, but people who have Hawkeyes that do better with pressure found the sweet spot in a different location. Some also found it made no real difference. Even if its a lightweight barrel, it will still be different. The only guarantee with lightweight barrels is vertical stringing if they heat up too much.

 

[Koda]

Just as the title asks. Contemplating bedding and floating a rifle that already shoots pretty well, but am thinking "If it ain't broke..." Anyone ever had bedding and floating worsen accuracy?

it depends one what you want out of the rifle... generally if it shoots "pretty well" its accurate enough for hunting but not as precise as you want it.
In my experience bedding the action can only help but as mentioned above floating the barrel may or may make it worse. What I did was had the action bedded and barrel floated all at once, with the idea that if the precision worsened I would bed the contact point (put it back). In my case, I didnt need to... bedding and floating brought my group in under an inch from 2 or 3" prior.

I asked this same question a year ago here, the members of this forum are very knowledgeable...
to free float or not to free float

 

[bikemutt]

I don't know if it's possible to free-float a Ruger #1, yet some specimens shoot very well, even remarkably.

I had one rifle that wasn't free-floated which I dicked with trying to free-float it. The more I dicked with it the worse it got, I gave up. There was probably something else wrong with it which was above my pay grade.