Skim Bedding

Skim bedding is a light application of epoxy bedding compound, a thin skim coat, laid into a stock or chassis that has already been roughed in or was previously bedded. Rather than removing material and pouring a full bed, the smith applies a shallow layer and presses the action in to take a fresh, exact impression. The thin coat fills tiny voids and corrects small inconsistencies left by an earlier job or by a factory inlet.

This refinement is most useful when an action has been moved, a recoil lug reshaped, or a stock changed and the existing fit needs perfecting rather than rebuilding. Skim bedding often follows pillar bedding, the pillars setting the depth and the skim coat sealing the action into intimate contact, which is a quiet but real step toward any effort to accurize a rifle.