Bonding a picatinny rail to an action

[Formidilosus]

I get that. I’ve used rubberised CYA adhesive for installing inserts in my arrows for years. It’s much better than standard CYA at absorbing impacts. I just don’t see it being hard enough to withstand much compression. Seems to me that epoxy would still be a better fit to create the liquid shim, and then you could apply the CYA afterwards for better adhesion?

For “bedding” a rail to correct for straightness, Loctite 380 probably isn’t the choice. To bond a rail to a receiver that is still relatively simple to remove- Loctite 380 is working exceptionally well- have shot a rifle bonded with 380 and no rail screws. Just bonded an action to a chassis this morning with it.

 

[SDHNTR]

For “bedding” a rail to correct for straightness, Loctite 380 probably isn’t the choice. To bond a rail to a receiver that is still relatively simple to remove- Loctite 380 is working exceptionally well- have shot a rifle bonded with 380 and no rail screws. Just bonded an action to a chassis this morning with it.

Roger. That makes more sense. There is a difference between bedding and bonding. If bonding alone, I can see the use of Loctite. If bedding is also necessary seems epoxy is the better choice.

 

[Castle Rock]

You certainly don’t need to bed a rail to a tikka action, they are dead flat

 

[WyoWild]

If for whatever reason a rail that has been bonded with Loctite 380 needs removed how easy is it to clean any residual Loctite residue off the top of the receiver?

 

[Marbles]

If for whatever reason a rail that has been bonded with Loctite 380 needs removed how easy is it to clean any residual Loctite residue off the top of the receiver?

Acetone should do it quite well.

I have used JB Weld quick curing and it cleaned off pretty easily with heat and scraping.

 

[Bowfinn]

If for whatever reason a rail that has been bonded with Loctite 380 needs removed how easy is it to clean any residual Loctite residue off the top of the receiver?

Last week I used steel wool. It cleaned both the action and rail without any scratches.

 

[Castle Rock]

Just bought a new Sauer, in the instructions it clearly states any bases should be bonded to the action with 2 part epoxy
This is despite all the other nonsense like calling the bolt a “chamber”

 

[Jrkotz]

I’m guessing they still won’t come far enough back for me. I’ve got my front ring over the ejection port. Part of my situation is the short tube on the NXS 2.5-10.

Example:
View attachment 578089

@Antares who Smithed that barrel? I like flared shoulder for the threads

 

[Antares]

@Antares who Smithed that barrel? I like flared shoulder for the threads

Kampfeld

 

[justpassingthru]

I've read through this thread but what about an Origin which is a pinned rail? I've never taken one apart but would think they come rock solid from Zermatt as is?

Just trying to understand all this. Is the school of thought that there could be a circumstance (extreme?) where a pic rail such as the one on the Origin could shift?

 

[Shortschaf]

I've read through this thread but what about an Origin which is a pinned rail? I've never taken one apart but would think they come rock solid from Zermatt as is?

Just trying to understand all this. Is the school of thought that there could be a circumstance (extreme?) where a pic rail such as the one on the Origin could shift?

I bedded mine and rely on the pins for shear. In that configuration it definitely is NOT the weak point in the zero retention

But I will still probably glue it too at the next opportunity. Mostly because I'm never going to change the rail

I do recommend taking it apart and degreasing/loctiting regardless. I don't remember how mine came from Zermatt, but generally speaking, screws come oiled

 

[justpassingthru]

I bedded mine and rely on the pins for shear. In that configuration it definitely is NOT the weak point in the zero retention

But I will still probably glue it too at the next opportunity. Mostly because I'm never going to change the rail

I do recommend taking it apart and degreasing/loctiting anyway. I don't remember how it came from Zermatt, but generally speaking, screws come oiled

Thanks for the reply. I'm wondering how necessary this is. Is this extreme case risk management or is shifting of pinned rails like the Origin more common than one would think? Was the Origin rail hard to remove?

 

[Shortschaf]

Thanks for the reply. I'm wondering how necessary this is. Is this extreme case risk management or is shifting of pinned rails like the Origin more common than one would think? Was the Origin rail hard to remove?

Extreme case risk management.

I have no reason to believe the rail would move with those pins, and have never heard of it personally. It's a tight fit. Bedding/gluing is just cheap insurance IMHO

For removal, it definitely takes the right angle and force because of how tight the fit is. With some light tapping with a hammer to jar it loose, I've never had issue though

 

[SloppyJ]

The origins are very tightly fit together. I use the locktite retaining compound on the whole thing and crank it down to the action with locktite on the rail screws too. Never had an issue.

 

[H80Hunter]

Can someone help me understand one thing about this, loctite 380 shows a fixture time of 90 seconds. Does that mean this “tighten the screws, remove the screws and tighten the screws” routine has to happen very fast?

 

[H80Hunter]

Any help on this? Maybe I’m ovethinking, wouldn’t be the first time, but just don’t want to go too slow and have issues with the loctite hardening before I get all the screws and holes cleaned. But I also don’t want to rush and screw up if it’s not necessary. Trying to avoid a gluey mess on a nice new gun.

 

[Formidilosus]

Can someone help me understand one thing about this, loctite 380 shows a fixture time of 90 seconds. Does that mean this “tighten the screws, remove the screws and tighten the screws” routine has to happen very fast?

Yes. You kind of need to do it quickly. Put the 380 on the bottom of the rail, keep it away from the screw holes, set it straight down on top of the action with the holes lined up. Put the base screws in quickly and tighten to slightly snug. Then remove one screw at a time and wipe off with alcohol and then put it back. Do this quickly. Once you’ve got all the screws pulled and wiped off once, go back and one by one pull the screws, wipe them down with alcohol, and use a q-tip with alcohol to wipe out the screw holes. Then thread lock and torque correctly.

 

[rbutcher1234]

first time I did this, I was not expecting the viscosity of the 380. So I got it down 3/4 screw holes and into the action acetone cleans it all right up.

 

[H80Hunter]

Yes. You kind of need to do it quickly. Put the 380 on the bottom of the rail, keep it away from the screw holes, set it straight down on top of the action with the holes lined up. Put the base screws in quickly and tighten to slightly snug. Then remove one screw at a time and wipe off with alcohol and then put it back. Do this quickly. Once you’ve got all the screws pulled and wiped off once, go back and one by one pull the screws, wipe them down with alcohol, and use a q-tip with alcohol to wipe out the screw holes. Then thread lock and torque correctly.

What if you were doing an X-bolt base with 8 screws? That’s going to take like twice as long of wiping and threading and torquing?

 

[H80Hunter]

Or are you saying that once you snug it down in place and remove the screws one by one to clean it’s basically positioned and the thread locker and torquing can take a little longer?