What is or should be done differently when bedding a Mannlicher-stocked rifle?

Should I bed the barrel all the way to the muzzle? Free float it? Bed the action only and leave the barrel channel alone?

Any clues appreciated.

Lots of different options, depending on the variables. I have found that the most important thing is that pressure on the barrel is equal.

Mauser, Mannlicher-Schoenauer and Brno used toothpick stocks that were meticulously hand-fitted. The wood is kept firmly against the barrel by having the sling stirrup go thru tightly fitted stock ferrules as well as a barrel ring.

Remington uses a heavy laminated stock and beds only the recoil lug and the first 2 inches under the chamber.

Ruger uses pencil barrels, factory inletted wood, and no bedding. The sling stirrup uses stock ferrules, but does not secure to the barrel thru a ring. The general consensus is that they are not as accurate as they could be.

CZ uses a sturdy top-quality barrel and sturdy nicely-inletted wood. No bedding. I have seen exceptional accuracy with these carbines.

I have had 3 custom stocks that were lightly bedded from stem to stern, with barrel lengths of 20, 22 and 24 inches. These shot extremely well, and were strong enough to mount a bayonet on.

I had a full stock Zoli (Husqvarna) from Italy in 9.3x62 that used a free-floated barrel, with a synthetic bushing where the sling swivel attached to the barrel ring, thru the stock. It shot nicely, but I would not go thru the effort of trying to duplicate the system on a custom rifle.

Lots of choices, depending on your action and barrel. Remember, you can always bed later on.

Thanks Kurt.

The rifle in question is a modern CZ 550. The inletting is very good fore and aft (no slop whatsoever), but there is a little bit of sideways play when the action is set loose in the stock.

The stockmaker who stocks and beds my target rifles is most likely not familiar with Mannlicher stocks, so I would like to know what to ask of him if I ever do decide to send him the CZ for bedding.

I did notice a dramatic (~3 to 4 MOA) POI shift between shooting the rifle from sandbags to shooting it from a sling-supported prone position. I was surprised about it until I thought about the construction of a Mannlicher style stock vs something like this:

Master Class Stocks

I have always bedded my manlicher stocks tight as the barrel and forend wood support each other as the wood is very thin in that area, but its also not prone to move metal like a standard stock might do IMO....At any rate the shoot well and hav not given anyone problems...I do think one needs to pick his wood with more expertise and have proper grain flow, properly cured wood, and wood that is dryed properly, again more so than with a standard stock pattern....

I also have my pattern rough cut, set up for 3 to 6 months then finish cut on the stylist to be sure everything is settled in the wood an no movement took place in the gap time...This is why I seldom make a manlicher stock, its just too damn much trouble done right.

Ray, I'm working with what CZ gave me here....

Any suggestions for that? Do I understand you that you prefer to bed full length?