I've never used anything other than Acraglass Gel for bedding a rifle, but it's fairly expensive and I was wanting to use "bondo" on my next project. However, I don't know anything about body filler- are all of them basically the same or there are different types?

Can someone tell me what to look for, or even a proven brand-name of body filler for use in bedding a rifle?

very interesting post, I have never used it, but for std rifles I bet it would work and under the impression that some use for that. It will be interesting to see the responses.

I don't think that bondo is suitable for bedding at all.
I may be wrong, but my impression is that it would crumble away during the rifle's recoil. An inexpensive epoxy like JB Weld would be much better. Use release agent...

belaw,

I suppose there are some that have used it, but in my opinion, this is "false economy".

Bondo, regardless of fiberfilled or not, has different compressional and adhesive characteristics than Acraglass. In other words, it may only take a few times of removal and reinstallation of the action for the bondo to crack and fall out.

Bedding of a barrel/action is an important step in building accurate rifles. Important enough to use the right stuff.

Later, pdhntr

Autobody filler is not suitable for bedding. Rancher is correct. It will crumble from the recoil. JB Weld is an alternative and better yet is Devcon Steel, a product similar to JB Weld. Bondo is affected by moister and oils and crumbles when exposed to it.



Daryl

I agree that body filler is not a good bedding compound, it is brittle. Devcon or JB Weld is no better than any of the epoxies, just more expensive.

belaw, the 4oz Acragel kit retails for $20.20 and is advertised to be enough for 2 guns, That's $10.10 each gun. Buy the 4oz Gel only, for $12.81, $6.41/gun. I buy it in the 16oz quantity, without measuring cups, sticks, etc, for $35.63/retail. That works out to 8 guns @ $4.46/each, less if you pay wholesale. I don't know if it actually does 8 guns, it might be more or less. Cheap enough, considering the cost of the rifle being bedded and the time and effort involved. It's amazing what other things Acragel can be used for when you have it around.

Where I am a cheapskate is with the cups & sticks not supplied with the bulk material. My wife bought me a gross of the medicine cups from the hospital where she works. I think they cost $2. She paid for them, bless her heart. (Brownell's sells the same thing for $5.46/25.) Old margarine tubs work when I'm needing a bigger container. My mixing sticks still have the color of the popsicle flavor that they once held. (Honey, eat up. I need some more mixing sticks.) I don't use them for bedding but empty aluminum cigar tubes are wonderful to have around and great fun to empty.

Bottom line. I'd stick to the Acragel, you know it works, and cheapen up on the part you throw out.

Bondo is not good. like the others said. It will hold and absorb moister, oil etc, and crack ,peel and fall out and wont take recoil. I use to do alot of body work and bondo is crab. You dont want bondo on wood. The green clear fiberglass bondo for corvette bodys might work. We used it for wood boats.

There is some stuff called "PC Woody" that works good too. Usually see it in hardware stores, its very consistant with no air bubbles and is like peanut butter to use and it is hard!!

Ditto most of the above concerning Bondo for rifle bedding. One other reason, not mentioned yet, is that I doubt that body filler hardens with little or no shrinkage. If it shrinks, it is useless regardless of whether it is hard enough. I have used thin coats on the outside of unfinished fiberglass stocks, but it was many years ago.

Bondo is a polyester resin filled with microballoons of glass. Polyester does not bond well with wood, and the hollow glass spheres aren't the structuraly filler you want for a bedding compound.

I do agree that Acraglass is overpriced, but are you going to do enough actions to justify buying a larger quantity of a good epoxy and appropriate fillers?

Go to your local marina and get some Marine-Tex. It comes in white of dark grey. Costs about 8.00 - 10.00 for small kit that will do 2-3 guns. Its all i use. H.H.

I was waiting for someone to mention shrinkage.
I once bedded a Garand with "economy" eopxy from Ace Hardware and had to do it again when the shrinkage left me without a tight fit.
I'll use acraglas or it's equivalent. I use tongue depressors instead of popsicle sticks-my only concession to economy.

I've seen bondo bedding on a couple of stocks, it lasted about as long as a fart in a typhoon. When I asked the guys what they used and why, the answer was always something like "car bondo cause I thought it would work and it was cheap and I already had some". Yeah, it's cheap and yeah, it ain't worth a shit for rifle bedding. I've always used Acra Glass Gel with excellent results. I have found Micro Bed to be very good also.

Thanks for the replies. I think maybe I was having a premature senior moment- after I started reading the responses I remembered that the reference to body filler was to fit a stock for use as a pattern, not for bedding.

I use Bondo on a pattern stock then knock it out of the pattern stock to prepare pattern stock for the next stock to be turned.....

It is totally unsuitable for a bedding compound...Recoil alone would route it out..It is about the consistency of plaster...

you could always primer and paint

There are a couple of automotive/industrial epoxies that can be used for bedding but they are more expensive than acraglass. Bondo is totally unsuitable. Some industrial supply houses carry brand of epoxy that are comparable to Devcon Plastic steel for about 1/2 the price. A little shopping around can save you a little money but unless you think your time is worth nothing don't skimp on critical components. It costs too much to have to do things over again!........DJ

during my knife makeing days, I tried lots of different expoxys, I found that Devcon is hard to beat. Some of the industrial stuff is expensive and not necessary.

I'll stick with acraglass gel and devcon, I know it works.

It works as temporary bedding, but all the previous problems mentioned would start to haunt you if you used it for permanent bedding. I have a bench rest stock I use for accuracy testing with problem rifles I can bed an action in about 30 minutes and test, where you need to wait until the next day with most good bedding agents- also all you need to remove it is a wood chisel and a couple of minutes.
COST should never be a consideration when bedding a rifle, even with the most expensive bedding compounds the dollars invested will return many times over- even $300 match grade barrels will not shoot up to "snuff" with poor bedding.

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