I'm familiar with and have used the Brownell's acraglass gel, Marine Tex and Plastic Steel for bedding bolt guns with plastic stocks. What material works good for tightening up the wooden stocks? I'm thinking about the receiver legs, hand guards, etc. I'm familiar with some of the peculiarities of the plastic stocks, but which bedding material is best for wood (Birch). I would think it needs to "wet" into the grain to adhere.

Thanks

I'm thinking I should also buy a good book...

I've only used Acraglass, and only once.  I spilled some on the chip board floor in the shed.  I had to beat it off with a hammer, then a chisel and still it took some wood with it.

I believe the military used a different epoxy for the M1 and M14 match rifles but I don't remember what it was called.  It was gray, if I remember correctly.

Oh, acraglass is an epoxy.

Are you thinking of Devcon steel bedding?  Never used it with wood stocks but I used it on my McMillian A2 stock and it worked great.  Stable like glass bedding but more durable.

Yes, I meant the Devcon Plastic Steel, just couldn't remember the name. I've heard Brownells Acraglass would compress slowly over time, but my naive experience was positive.

I think the Devcon would work better where the receiver legs drag inside the stock. Time to experiment.

Marine-Tex is the typical stuff for the M1/M14.  I've used the Devcon Plastic Steel on an M1 and it worked well (the putty stuff that comes in a can, not in the small syringe which is runnier).  The Plastic Steel in the syringe is good for skimming/repairs.
 







Adhesion won't be an issue.  The biggest worry is having it run where you don't want it which may end with you having to destroy the stock to get it apart.  The Kuhnhausen manual is great; but skips past a lot of the finer details that will keep disaster at bay. It covers the general stuff and shows some of the configurations that are popular out there.  Study any bedding posts by Gus Fisher very carefully.  There are also several pictorial threads floating around the net that help.  Art Lupino also made a DVD several years back if you can find it.
 





Most of the guys doing it at home and a lot of armorers use a coat hanger instead of a bedding collar to get the tension you want at the stock ferrule.





 







I ended up bedding in three stages; pillars first behind the receiver legs, then the receiver, then the trigger group.





 

Most/all bedding materials are epoxy based.  They tend to differ mostly in the filler material type and quantity of filler.  I'm not aware of any that are not epoxy-based.

Epoxy bonds extremely well to wood.  That just isn't an issue.  If you are having epoxy-to-wood bond failures, you are dealing with contamination.

The epoxy molds itself to the receiver, providing the best possible fit.  Over time, the underlying wood will continue to compress, especially if it has been saturated with oils, grease and solvents.  When the underlying wood recedes, due to compressive stresses, the epoxy will also move and it will be time to touch up the bedding, ... and again ,... and again.

This is an expert response right here. The only thing I can add is to consider estimated "shrinkage" on the epoxy when comparing.

I've only ever used Brownells Accraglass gel, and it always did the job. Marine-Tex was the "go-to" stuff for M14 NM guys in the 80's/90's, but I read it has more shrinkage than some modern offerings. I cannot advise which.



http://www.epotek.com/site/files/brochures/pdfs/Cure_Matters_Final.pdf

http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/753943.pdf (DARPA-level info) lol



 

Devcon 10110 is the only correct response. The trick is correct routing/milling of the stock to provide the compound areas to "key" into. Rougher is better as it provides more surface area for a mechanical bond.
I will take an Xacto knife or similar after routing and score/gouge the surface where the bedding compound will be. Drilling small holes (1/8") down into the stock provides small pillars to further mate the compound with the stock.
Kuehnhausens 30 caliber service rifle book lays it out in good detail.
When you are applying the compound take the time to really work it down into the recesses and holes you drilled.