Prefit install fail

[Billiam1211]

Yesterday I decide to remove the current barrel I have on my Tikka T3. Since my local PRS season is over and I have 2,800 rounds on it I figured it would be a good opportunity to swap barrels and do some load development for next season.

My T3 action currently has a Rock Creek prefit on it and I was planning on installing a Benchmark. So I start trying to take of the Rock Creek and it’s being unbelievably stubborn. I had the barreled action in a Viper vise with some drywall tape around the barrel. Gave the wrench a few taps with a mallet, nothing. Tried tightening and going back to loosening, nothing. Dropped some penetrating oil to go in the threads and then later decided to hit it with the heat gun. As I was heating it up and applying torque, after 3 or 4 attempts the action finally came loose.

As the action came free I heard something fly across the room and it was my trigger shoe. It broke clean off. Never came into contact with anything, the action didn’t spin out of control, it just snapped off. My guess is the inertia. I reached out to Timney to see if they can help but I’m baffled.

Anyone have ideas as to what I did wrong here?

 

[celltech]

You likely hit it at some point and never realized it. There is no way the inertia of the action spinning blew it off. Just replace it and move on...

 

[Billiam1211]

You likely hit it at some point and never realized it. There is no way the inertia of the action spinning blew it off. Just replace it and move on...

You’re probably right. Only other thing I can think of is somehow the heat weakened the trigger shoe. Regardless, I’m sure Timney will throw me a bone

 

[FisherT&C]

If you used a rear entry type wrench it looks like it put downward pressure on the trigger sear and it broke.

 

[Billiam1211]

If you used a rear entry type wrench it looks like it put downward pressure on the trigger sear and it broke.

Ah, this is most likely the cause then. I used the T3 action wrench from Bugholes, which is a rear entry. Definitely will keep this in mind for next barrel. Thanks for the insight - I think you nailed it.

I put the Benchmark on at 85 ft/lbs as per the the barrel maker's recommendation. I'm guessing the last smith that installed the barrel that I removed really torqued it on because it was a real pain in the ass to remove.

 

[rustyinbend]

I've heard several times now that Tikka barrels are notoriously hard to remove ... was thinking about a barrel swap on my T3x TAC A1 ... but the more I hear about this, the more I think I'll wait until the barrel is "toast", instead of any proactive replacement. That way I can make some relief cuts and remove it more easily (as always, there's a YouTube on this).

 

[Billiam1211]

I've heard several times now that Tikka barrels are notoriously hard to remove ... was thinking about a barrel swap on my T3x TAC A1 ... but the more I hear about this, the more I think I'll wait until the barrel is "toast", instead of any proactive replacement. That way I can make some relief cuts and remove it more easily (as always, there's a YouTube on this).

The smith that removed my factory barrel used a relief cut. He strongly suggested that because it was a difference in 30m of work vs hours of work. Same guy installed a the prefit for me, I’m guessing he really torqued it on there

 

[rustyinbend]

The smith that removed my factory barrel used a relief cut. He strongly suggested that because it was a difference in 30m of work vs hours of work. Same guy installed a the prefit for me, I’m guessing he really torqued it on there

Do you need a lathe or some other heavy cutting equipment for a relief cut? Just never done that before. Does a qualified gunsmith have to do that, or can a junior apprentice assistant associate amateur gunsmith (like me) do that with "garage tools?

 

[Cascade Hemi]

Do you need a lathe or some other heavy cutting equipment for a relief cut? Just never done that before. Does a qualified gunsmith have to do that, or can a junior apprentice assistant associate amateur gunsmith (like me) do that with "garage tools?

Theoretically you could do it by hand but their is plenty of opportunity to damagethe action. Typically the barrel is put in a lathe and the barrel is parted .010" from the shoulder.

 

[spife7980]

Do you need a lathe or some other heavy cutting equipment for a relief cut? Just never done that before. Does a qualified gunsmith have to do that, or can a junior apprentice assistant associate amateur gunsmith (like me) do that with "garage tools?

You can do it with a hacksaw, youll just get tired if youre a lazy lump like me. You can do it with a reciprocating, youll just have to be very careful. Id probably start with a hack to make a starting channel and then recip. You dont want to go so deep that you cut through to the bore though and fall into empty space.

 

[NewsShooter]

Or just use an external action wrench, between my buddy and myself we've removed 6 Tikka barrels. Last one was the hardest, took a few moderate whacks with a rubber mallet to break it loose.

 

[Chickentoast]

Since the action has those nice angles on it... not sure why they didn't just machine them like this - crescent wrench easy

 

[ormandj]

Just make sure to use some antisieze installing the new one. I’ve never had major issues removing barrels I’ve installed at 80lb/ft using aeroshell ms33/64. Some of those factory barrels seem like they are installed with far higher torque and are a real pain.

Also, a bit late, but better safe than sorry, I’d pull the trigger in the future if using an action wrench that can damage it. I have my barrel vise elevated so the action and trigger sits way above anything it can bump, but I’ve caught myself getting near the trigger even still. It’s worth the few minutes to drift the pins out and play it safe.

 

[Billiam1211]

Well I talked to Timney and they're going to send me over a new shoe that I can install. Apparently it's a punch a couple pins and swap shoes install. Crisis averted

 

[Chickentoast]

^Cool, TT won't do that