barrel floating ?

vmax_blaster

vmax_blaster

Active member
I just bought a rifle with a laminate stock and the stock is touching the barrel all the way down one side. I asked the dealer how much to float the barrel and he said not to, that the laminate stock will not swell so there is no need to float it. Is this true, and should I float it anyway? Thanks
 
I think it is more that the barrel will be heating and creeping than it is the stock 'swelling'. I would shoot the gun for a bit, and then start fine tuning later. My .02
 
Laminate, synthetic, or other wise, I would not let any stock touch my barrel. Like Cross said, with the barrel heating, you are bound to get some kind of creep or movement. Just to save yourslef a headache, I would just float the barrel anyways. Usually I just float it enough to where I can slide two peices of paper between the barrel and the stock.
 
I was always told the purpose of floating, was to make the harmonics of the barrel more consistant from shot to shot. I would think that the barrel being touched evenly on both sides would be better than just one. I would float the barrel if it was my rifle. And I would float it if it touched at all.
 
I float the barrel on all my rifles. Floating is the easiest way to remove one of the intangibles in consitent accuracy. Just find a deep well socket the same size as the barrel channel and wrap it with sand paper.
 
Float the barrel and let the harmonica play a tune for someone else....my $0.02.

ps...CJ is right......isn't an issue about the stock swelling, it's about the barrel expanding as it gets hot....
 
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Your going to be a rich man with all these $0.02 coming your way.
I think I'd float it but I don't believe floating works for all rifle & barrels, especially sporter barrels. If you find it doesn't settle down after you float it, then you can always add a pressure point under the barrel out near the tip of the stock.
 
I don't know about everyone elses sporter barrels, but on my sporter barrels, the float job did the trick. In fact, the ONLY barrel I ever floated that it made no difference on was a Heavy barrel M77 Ruger Varmint model I had for a brief time.... I never could get it to even come close to shooting the kind of groups I was getting with my sporter barreled (floated) 25-06 hunting rifle.
 
I have never had anything but sporter weight barrels. After floating the barrels on a 10/22 and an M-77 in .243 something like 25 years ago and seeing my groups shrink to about 1/2 their original size..... I free-float a new rifle barrel even before I take it to the range the first time. I think all my bolt action, centerfire rifles* have had that raised pressure point at the tip of the stock; it goes out the door. I also glass bed the action and about the first 2" of the barrel next to the action.



* I've had M-77's, Winchester 70 Lightweights and a Remington Model Seven.
 
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