Free float M77 or frond end pressure?

[Kudu m77]

I am just curious what guys believe works best on 77s? Mine have front end pressure and it works good. But I do think that the as the barrel heats up the amount of pressure might change and can then affect my accuracy.

Pieter

 

[pisgah]

I am a firm believer that free-floating a barrel improves accuracy in all cases -- except when it doesn't! Seriously, I have never been convinced of anything except that rifles are individuals -- what works like a charm on one will be exacly the worst thing to do on the next.

 

[3DTESTIFY]

Pisgah is correct. Each rifle is individual & what works on one, may not work on another. I've found my ultralight barrel prefers the tip pressure and my heavy varmint barrel likes free floating.

 

[B.Roberts]

Free floating the barrel on mine made a definite improvement.

 

[pisgah]

The good thing is, freefloating is easy to do; and if it doesn't get you where you want to go, adding back pressure near the tip, or anywhere else along the barrel channel, is easy. It takes a bit of experimentation, but if there is a "sweet spot", you can find it.

 

[hvacmedic]

My Savage had tip pressure and point of impact changed dramatically with even minor heating of the barrel. After relieving the pressure then it became a real tack driver.

 

[RJ556]

The thing that I like about a rifle with a free-floated barrel, especially with a traditional wood stock, is that minute warping of the fore end is not going to effect point of impact, month to month, year to year. I have found that free-floated barrels allow "most" rifles to shoot well, most exceptions being rifles having thin profiled barrels.

 

[Major T]

And not always on even thin barrels. I have a matched pair of pencil barrel Browning Safaris on the small ring Mauser action. The .308 was floated when I got it. The .243 is still bedded as the factory shipped it. Both are outstanding in the accuracy department. Back when this operator could still perform said task, both were well under an inch for three shots every time. Hand loads in the .243 (70s and 100 Nosler Partitions) and Federal (cheap 150s) for the .308. As said by others, each rifle is an individual. jack

 

[Lloyd Smale]

When i float them i also bed them and when doing both in my experience accuracy usually improves and very rarely gets and worse. About the worse i expect is to stay the same.

 

[Boxhead]

Every rifle I have save those that are collectible and remain untouched is fully glass bedded from the tang to just back from where the barrel starts to taper and then free floated to the muzzle. All shoot very, very well.

 

[suckersrus]

Back in the 70s I moved to Alaska and acquired a M77 in 338mag. I hunted with it for over 30 years.

For a year, it shot 2-3" groups in the factory wood stock and POI moved 1/2" depending on the season. There was a ridge in the wood under the barrel an inch or so back from the tip of the fore end.

I bedded the action in one of the old Brown's fiberglass stocks and free-floated the barrel.
The accuracy improved slightly and the POI quit moving around.

I slid a sliver of an old credit card between the barrel and fore end.
I shot three rounds then slid the strip back 1/4", fired 3 and slid, fired 3 and slid, etc.

All shots clustered together when the credit card strip was about 1 inch from the tip of the fore end!

When I went past that point the groups began to open up again.
I glued that strip of credit card in place and it is still there.

I still remember the day I checked it at 300 yards. I about fainted when I walked up to the target and saw a 1 3/4" group.

The only time that gun did not hit dead-on was the day I fell on it, hard, in some rocks. I missed 2 bears.
The scope was bowed in the rings and when I loosened the rings it made a "sproing" sound.

It is my opinion the strip allows you to tune the barrel to the load.