Gunsmithing Switch barrel system

[sharac]

Hi,

i'm currently in the process of replacing barrel (my Tikka T3 tactical is on its final lap) and i'm going to re barrel in .260rem with LW 28" SS barrel. As i'm rather fond of .308 i'm thinking of keeping it as a second barrel (firstly to shorten 24" existing to 22/20" depends on how much will i be able to cut down due to contour). I've seen various systems for switch barrel and the simplest seems to be the one from Larry Racine (Savage Long Range-Rifles). Since obviously i will have to do it locally here is the plan:

-remove existing barrel (still shoots ok) cut wrench slots and hand tighten the same barrel back to whatever i can comfortably (30-60ft/lb) and see how it shoots
-if something goes wrong hand tighten to whatever i can physically and see how it shoots
-tighten back to 150 ft/lb and see how it shoots -> if OK only when at full torque then i guess tikka action is not viable platform for quick change barrel if not ok throw barrel into trash and re barrel fixed .260 and buy another tikka action for .308

- if it works with 30-60ft/lb or some torque i can handle manually then install .260rem barrel the same way do everything (headspace) with hand torque (~60ft/lb) in mind and enjoy two calibers


Am i missing something in this plan my idea is that try it first on a shot out barrel and worst case it goes to trash best case i get two for one?

 

[Blackbrush]

I think you're overthinking it. I have a number of rifles that I change barrels on regularly. I use an action wrench and a barrel vise. 150ft/lbs isn't necessary but doable if you must.

 

[sharac]

Maybe i wasn't clear i'd like to switch barrels while at the range with hand tools not barrel vice.

 

[Rifletuner]

Barrel vice suggestion is by far the best option. I use one to swap barrels at the range all the time. Very easy to use - a 6" long vice, a set of G claps and a wrench.

 

[sermonator]

Can you do a barrel nut for the Tikka? Several folks are making barrel nuts for Remingtons (just like the savage). You can take the old barrel to a smith have him take of the shoulder and cut the threads further down the barrel. Then it will mount pretty simply from then on. Just a thought.

 

[sharac]

I decided to try this system due to shooting f-class style matches and changing .308 to .260 (t/r -> open but for .308 i don't need long barrel as we shoot primarily to 300m due to range availability problems) with as little hassle as possible. Barrel nut (savage style) is a bit awkward for me because you either have to have slim barrel to get nut on or have nut so big it creates problems with stock - not to mention headspacing issues. I forgot to mention i use aluminum (Roedale + victor skins) stock which allows for 31mm (~1.25") max diameter barrel and LW .260 barrel will be 30.5mm . If we start talking about vices and hauling equipment around then i'll rather buy another action for .308 and make myself light F T/R/hunting style rifle with short varmint style barrel.

My main concerns are that torque obtainable by hand tools will not suffice for top accuracy as there are many different opinions on how much torque should be applied on barrel to action mate, most of the local gunsmiths (Ferlach Austria school) are 110% on the highest attainable torque (we're talking in excess of 150 ft/lb) but i read a lot of posts where people get excellent accuracy from either hand tight + few shots for bullets to torque the barrel some more (RH twist right thread) or somewhere in 60-100 ft/lb range which i think is still doable with regular ratchet without breaking something.

I know i'm a little over thinking but i'd rather waste some brain time and few posts than miss something obvious and have to look at the jackass in the mirror for a while.

 

[jbjh]

I'd say that rather than the maximum torque on the barrel, repeatable and consistent torque every time is what you're looking for. Build a system that's portable and allows you repeatability, and you'll be happy.

 

[Gray]

You can definitely do flats on the barrel and remove with a regular wrench, granted you have a buddy to help hol dit down. The SF guys are doing this now with their short action XM2010's so they do not have to take the barreled action out of the stock to change barrels. here is a pic, notice the flats right after the forearm.

 

[mcfred]

I decided to try this system due to shooting f-class style matches and changing

Hand tight should be fine for this, because you get sighters in case something does shift a bit. If you need it to bounce around in the back of a pickup for an hour and then have the first round go where it's supposed to, then I'd go with 80+ ft-lbs. I don't see the need for 150+; what does that achieve?

 

[Willys46]

I would say 150 is tight! Most the benchrest guys and my gunsmith suggested 50/60.

The T3 is pretty easy due yo no recoil lug to pin to the action. Action wrench and barrel clamp is prett simple to use and take up very little space. Heck I changed mine two days ago. Took 10 min.

 

[sharac]

Thanks guys, will report after i have it made. I was just double checking as looks i got from smiths when i mentioned this was the one which made me think about my sanity and whether i should go to local mental hospital for a checkup or just get myself committed.

As to the extra tight i think this is "old fart don't know anything else and don't care to try" or at best better safe than sorry thinking as 90%+ of all customers here are hunters whom can be very creative with their rifles (to put it mildly) and i guess torquing to 150+ will definitely hamper some of that creativity...

 

[varmint slayer]

If the barrel is torqued to the same spec every time, how is the return to zero repeatability? Can a guy just torque it down and expect his zero to be the same as before?

 

[sharac]

The Switch Barrel

This was the reason i decided to try it out to see for myself.

 

[sharac]

Had barrel removed and slot for 19 wrench cut right behind muzzle threads. Unfortunately my scope is pending repairs at IOR so i'm unable to test and report findings.

Had gunsmith mark the "zero" from the factory and now hand tight marks are 6mm apart with diameter being 28.7 (thread is 1"-16TPI) which means that barrel is roughly 0.1mm further from the bolt edge as it was when torqued to factory spec. Since this also translates to headspace i think i'm good to go as bullet fired will also add some torque to barrel and only decrease this amount.

 

[sharac]

Update: Got the LW stainless barrel 28" straight 30.5mm ready in .260 and time to start the season...

 

[Killswitch Engage]

I think you're overthinking it. I have a number of rifles that I change barrels on regularly. I use an action wrench and a barrel vise. 150ft/lbs isn't necessary but doable if you must.

^^^^this

 

[Wheres-Waldo]

I have been shooting a switch barrel for a few years, as long as headspace is checked at the torque you plan on running it at then you should be fine.

I use a barrel clamp and man hand it to maybe 40-50 ft lbs.

 

[sharac]

I just shot a match (didn't have time to test anything) with old .308 barrel and old load and using hand tight (estimated torque ~40ftlb) with a normal wrench everything is perfect (dunno about zero as i had no time to zero the scope but first shot was 2cm higher@100m as before and the rest in the same accuracy standard as before) rifle shoots well and thats that . After the shooting it went off with the same (estimated ) amount of torque so at least on Tikka receiver (no recoil lug on threads or in contact with barrel) this setup works great with "hand tight" torque. Also to note i unscrewed barrel between 100/300m relays and 300m dope was exactly the same as before (1.7mil) so to the best of my knowledge taking barrel off and screwing it back on with substantially less torque did absolutely nothing to either POI or accuracy.

The new barrel will have to wait for a new powder (RS70/RS60 - swiss reloader aka RL17 in US) though i'm itching to test it.

 

[Defuzer]

Thanks for the info. Thinking of doing something similar this summer in a t3 action

 

[TRAC]

Get a Sauer STR ........or do a build on Sauer 202 action ...just a shy suggest.
All the best

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

 

[tsweetsam]

Any tension recommend for Remington 700 SA?

 

[Killswitch Engage]

I have my 700 switchers torqued to 75ft lbs

 

[BradfromND]

My F T/R rifle is a switch barrel. One for mid range and 1 for long range. Takes me 15-20 to swap pipes on my eliseo chassis. I have never once used a head space gauge.....just torque it to 80 ft/lbs. My zero change is 1 minute different between the 2 pipes and within 2 clicks when I swap back. Both barrels are zeroed at 300.