I use JB weld for bedding with excellent results and have been bitten by the ultra light bug. Would there be any appreciable weight/density difference between the different bedding compounds? I have a 17 ounce stock on order from Wilcat Composties for a Rem M7 and would hate to give up the stock weight by putting a "heavy" compound back into it. I usually hog out the area behind the recoil lug and fill it with JB to form a solid pillar that runs from the back of the lug to the front of the magazine well. Would it be lighter to use aluminum pillars and minimal bedding compound and rely on the stocks basic integrity to provide the necessary stiffness? It is only a .308 and Im looking for a finished weight of 5 pounds without scope so every ounce counts.

Todd,

I got bit by it a few years back, but have been cured. I think the ultralite builders bed with a small amount of glass cloth to save weight but wouldn't swear to it. I know they do not use much compound.

What release agent have you found works best with J-B Weld?

Back when I messed with lightweight kevlar stocks, the lightest bedding I knew of was (original) Acra-Glas mixed with tiny, hollow glass spheres. This in effect added air bubbles to the epoxy. I didn't use it behind the recoil lug, though. Solid epoxy there. A synthetic stock manufacturer (whose name escapes me) sold the stuff as an accessory. I probably still have some of the stuff...somewhere.

Thanks guys I ordered the alum pillar bedding kit from Darrell Holland and plan on taking about a 1/4 inch from behind the recoil lug and a skim fit for the rest of the action.

K- I use Mcquires carnuba car wax as a release for all my stocks and it has never failed.

Holland turned my on to using JB and I love the stuff. I dont get as many bubbles in the mix as I did with Brownells steel bed and it has been a more consistent mix than marine tex for me. Also its a lot cheaper, I get the large "industrial size" tubes for about $11 at the local Kragens auto supply vs almost $30 for steel bed.

depends on yoru inletting skills and how much you use plumbers putty to dam off the flow.. seriously.

jeffe

Last time I weighed the Devcon Aluminum Putty to get the mix of the components just right. Bedding around both the front and the rear action screws of a Savage (a little over 1/16th thick), I used less than 250 grains of bedding material.

That is before trimming the excess, including the leftovers, etc, etc. HTH, Dutch.