Since the sporter contour barrel was much smaller than the new Clark tube,
some bedding adjustments were necessary.  Accurizing articles I've read in
Shooting Times and other gun rags indicated that, unlike centerfire rifles,
the lightly constructed Ruger action could not handle the weight of a
free-floated heavy barrel with out bending and distorting.  The procedure
then was to bed the barrel for its full length, and let the receiver float
in the stock.  As it turns out, this is pretty easy to achieve in the 10/22
just by removing material from the barrel channel and applying your choice
of bedding compound.  The fit of the action into the wood is loose enough
that there was no contact except at the bottom of the action, just behind
the barrel V-block.  The barrel channel was widened using a combination of
rasps in the Dremmel tool and sandpaper wrapped around appropriately sized
files and dowels.  I worked carefully, checking the fit frequently with
inletting black.
For bedding I chose to use Brownells Glasbed.  It comes in pre-measured
portions that mix into a buttery paste that stays put when applied, yet
flows evenly into every crevice for a smooth, bubble-free fit.  The Glasbed
kit comes complete with mixing paddle and mold release, and most
importantly, detailed instructions.  My only moment of concern came about
two hours after applying the bedding compound when I found it was not
hardening.  The instructions indicated that hardening would be delayed by
lower temperatures, but I was reluctant to bring the stinky epoxy into the
house to warm up from the fifty degree garage.  After a couple of hours,
though, the smell had dissipated and I placed the gun under a couple of
heat lamps in the workshop.  After an hour of this treatment the Glasbed
was noticeably harder, and after curing 24 hours it was hard as nails.
When it came time to remove the action from the stock, two smart raps on
the partially withdrawn action screw broke the compound's grip and the
action popped right out.  The resulting epoxy bed was smooth and even, and
conformed precisely to the contours of the barrel.  After a little
clean-up, I applied some True-Oil to the stock areas that had been reworked
to accommodate the barrel.  True-Oil was a perfect match for the factory
finish, and allowed the epoxy between the stock and the barrel to be
finished off perfectly even with the top of the fore end.  A thin black
line is the only hint of the Glasbed underneath.
Having finished the work, it was time for the fun:  Accuracy testing at the
local range.  Unfortunately, El Nino had turned California's normally
drizzly winters into an almost continuous deluge, and it was almost 2 weeks
before free time and decent weather coincided.  A short break in the storm
action found me at Livermore Rod and Gun Club, under the protection of the
covered firing points on the 25/100 yard range.  My plan was to get the
rifle on the paper at 25 yards, then check accuracy at 100 yards.
Conditions at the range were much less than ideal:  the sky was overcast
with threatening clouds, and the wind had the flag standing stiffly out
from the mast, estimated at 20 mph, with gusts up to 30 mph.  Fortunately,
the wind was at my back, with only occasional cross range blasts.
I tried three kinds of ammunition:  Remington Target, CCI Green Tag, and
CCI Standard Velocity.  The Remington Target was first, and I lined up on
the numeral "5" on the 25 yard slow fire target, just to see where the
rifle would print.  Much to my surprise, the first round landed 1/4" to the
left of the "5", and the next four grouped within 1/4" of that.  Not bad
out of a clean barrel after such radical surgery.  After the 5 fouling
shots, I moved onto the targets, and fired the following 10 shot groups:
Remington Target--0.535", with one called flyer, 0.260" for remaining 9
shots; CCI Green Tag--0.410"; CCI Standard Velocity--0.515".  All
measurements are center-to-center.  The one group shot with CCI MiniMag was
about .75", but wasn't measured.  The shooting got increasingly difficult
as the wind increased and my eyes continued to water from the breeze.  But
I was still very happy with the groups, which had shrunk from 1.25" to
somewhere around .5", and this with only practice grade ammo.  I can't wait
to try some Federal Gold Medal!  After the promising results at 25 yards, I
was looking forward to shooting at 100 yards.  By this time the wind was
absolutely howling, and I could see rain coming upwind.  I did fire three
10 shot groups, the best of which measured about an inch top to bottom, but
that spread laterally about 4".  As a check I had brought along a Mauser
201 bolt gun that had previously grouped into about 1" at 100 yards, and
its groups were no better.  It is interesting to note that with a 25 yard
zero, drop at 100 yards was about 12".  There were no mis-fires or
chambering problems with the three ammunition types shot for record, but
two of the MiniMags failed to chamber the first time.  When they were
ejected, I noticed dents in the side of the cases, most likely due to the
Butler Creek Hot Lips loader I was using to charge the magazines.  The
accuracy improvement was a success, but what about trigger feel and
convenience?
David 
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