Screwing on the barrel nut - hand tight or 'factory' tight?

[19savages]

I've changed/re-barreled about 25 Savage rifles and use the same technique every time. You're on your own with setting/turning for HS/FB but once you found and locked your position, use (BLUE ONLY) loc-tight with 75 LBS of torque. Apply about 8 drops of loc-tight and torque the barrel ring using the CORRECT Savage barrel/ring tool. The barrel will NEVER come loose, it has proven to provide the best accuracy and it can be removed with less effort than a factory barrel!

[Rifleman51]

I've built many, many Savage bolt guns.

If you just give it a good snug, it will come loose sooner or later, and it does not matter if it's a stock gun or one that has had the face of the action and barrel nut trued or not.

Do tighten them up pretty good. I never measured torque. They don't need to be as tight as some of the factory barrel nuts that I have had to beat on with a BFH, but they should be fairly tight.

Mine were usually always faced as I did accuracy jobs, but either way, do make them more than snug for safety reasons.

Just think if the nut comes loose and you don't know it, all of a sudden you have way excessive headspace because the barrel has unscrewed a little and a possible blow up of the rifle. It's just not worth it to not get them pretty darn tight.

I retired from the gunsmithing business about 5 years ago, but the barrel nuts have not changed since then except for the smooth one's.
For those, figure where the bottom of the nut will be and drill a hole, almost but not all the way through and use a spanner wrench to loosen and tighten the nut.
John K

[Rifleman51]

100 foot pounds is not a whole lot of torque, actually. I've recently begun using a tool that makes unscrewing a Savage barrel nut --child's play-- I used to soak them in Kroil over night and then grunt and hammer and etc.. but with the new tool--piece of cake-- as a bonus, this tool also can be used to anneal brass with a precision you never imagined-- and it anneals the brass all the way through--No I do not own stock in the company --Induction Innovations-- but I wish I did.

Using a new portable induction heater (mini ductor II) that I bought from tooltopia.com for less than I paid for my complete Ken Light annealing machine, I can now heat up the barrel nut with a directly applied flameless heat, which frees up the nut and makes disassembling a Savage barrel easy as pie. Of course I never have any trouble with barrels I installed because I use anti freeze compound, but that's a different thread.............


Anti Freeze compound ? Is that Prestone or store brand???

Sorry, I couldn't resist your typing error (I never make typing errrrrors) :o




I think you meant Anti Sieze compound

My Best, John K

[Blue Avenger]

this tool also can be used to anneal brass with a precision you never imagined-- and it anneals the brass all the way through-
explain "all the way through".

not for the budget minded ::), the poster is looking for a cheap way to do the job.
http://www.cornwelltools.com/webcat/products.php?product=IIIMD700-%252d-Mini%252dDuctor-II-Kit

[Rifleman51]

In the end, tighten them pretty darn tight, but I see no reason to tighten them as tight as the facory does except perhaps liability.
I've had to beat the living snot out of some factory tightned barrel nuts, no reason for that, but they should for sure be more than hand tight.
I think this is the part where good common sence comes in, as un common as it may be anymore.

John K

[Tozguy]

Could it be that the torque required to break a factory tightened nut is greater than the torque Savage used to tighten it?
The word 'stiction' comes to mind. Some of the bolts and nuts I have tightened in various applications took more effort to break loose than the effort put into tightening them. Not rusted or galled. Makes a little snap or crack sound before starting to turn. For me, putting the nut back to factory tightness does not mean using as much muscle as it took to remove it. The 70 to 100 ft-lb range sounds good for tightening but it might take more to remove it again especially if it has had time to 'set'.

[SwineSniper]

I put mine on hand tight with a good whackwith a steel hammer. She is a shooter

[DGD6MM]

I let my wife tighten up my last one. ;D

[aztec223]

I have a Midway wrench and the instructions say that you should use 30-40 ftlbs, and that is what I used on my first (40ftlbs) and it shoots .25 moa to 500yds. So that is what I am using on my next two I am currently building. It seems to be more than enough torque but not so much that I would have trouble getting it back off.


Just to satisfy myself, (having a bit of difficulty taking one loose) it is righty tighty correct? Not a left hand thread, just checkin. ???

[drybean]

yep,you got it
drybean

[aztec223]

yep,you got it
drybean

Thanks for the reply, Santa Maria she's berry tite Senor!

[aztec223]

Thanks for the help, by golly I got it and she is ready to rock and roll! Man I can't wait!

[Rifleman51]

If you build enough of them and use the lightly torqued method, you will get some calls of barrels that have come loose, especially if using a quality recoil lug that does not gaul like the stock one's do. 40 ft lbs minimum. You also want the barrel and action tight to act as one unit, there is more flex at the barrel/action joint then you might think when you fire the rifle.
Barrel threads are a whole other story as most hold the majority of the torque on the first threads with the rear threads along for the ride.
Don't go crazy, but don't leave en too loose. A hard hit with the hammer on the wrench should do, two hits are better.
Read the book "Rifle Accuracy Facts". The amount of flex at the barrel action joint is considerable and kills accuracy. You don't want to go overboard, but do tighten the nut fairly tight.

John K

[Hammer]

.

As to barrels coming loose...

Those of you who like variable power scopes should like variable headspace.

.

[Sundo]

The E.R. Shaw barrel kit instructions suggest 90-100 ft-lbs of torque. Brownell's video series on AR-15 assembly suggest 30 ft-lbs in AR-15s for best accuracy.

[hotbrass]

Not sure how the barrel nut tightness would affect accuracy as long as there is no metal displacment and the headspace is correct.

I tighten the Savage nut to 60 ft/lbs and the AR until I can get the gas tube through, but never very tight, and if necessary I will back it off if I cant muscle it around with a DPMS AR multi-tool. My guns are as accurate as the any.

[fdennis]

About the reply above that mentioned that the recoil lug is less than flat: Is that something that should be fixed by bedding in a new, precisely ground recoil lug, or is that a waste of time?