barrel removal trouble...

[theOutlaw]

this is my first post on this site, and i am doing it as a last resort, because my M12 .223 barrel WONT BUDGE!! >:(
now, im a pretty decent guy when it comes to handiwork, and this has me stumped. ive tried wooden blocks (both with v-shaped and circular notches) with the barrel nut wrench, ive tried the same process with a heat gun, and it wont move. i read on a different forum to use wooden blocks with a bit of rosin in them, and im willing to try it if is recomended. do any of you pros have any advice for me? i have limited time and resources, and cant afford more tools, only what i can make or already have.
any help would be nice.
thanks,
Josh

[fatrack]

I put a pipe wrench on mine and still had to stomp the pisss out of it to get it off. The cost to get it off correctly would have cost more than the barrel was worth.

[Uncle Jack]

Is the barrel turning in the vise blocks? If it's not turning and the barrel nut will not move then either you're not applying enough muscle to the wrench or some moron put it on with locktite.

Just so we are on the same page, looking at it from the front, the nut comes off CCW. I use a 3# dead blow hammer to rap the barrel nut wrench with (smartly, as they say)....never had one that would not come off. If locktite has been used and it's aged, a considerable amount of heat may be needed. Heat it up and give it a good shot with a hammer. If that doesn't work, take 2 aspirin and call me in the morning.

uj

[trappst]

The blued barrels can be a booger to get off. Nothing an action wrench and nut wrench couldn't handle for me though.

Where are you? There might be someone close by that could lend a hand........

[Southernfryedyankee]

Throw a blowtorch on that barrel nut, heat it up EVENLY for about 20 seconds then remove your barrel nut and barrel. OH and use a rubber mallet to hit the barrel nut wrench. Lefty loosy, righty tighty if you are looking at the barreled action head on

[BrentWin]

Clamp it the best you can in the wood blocks, slide the nut wrench on and place it so it is sticking horizontally out from the left side of the action when looking at it from the barrel end. Like this ---0.

Now take a STEEL hammer and give it a good smack. 2-3 times will loosen any barrel that I have ever dealt with. The steel hammer is the trick, it is a sharper blow that tends to turn the nut rather than the action/barrel. Its kind of like an impact wrench.

If you are going to switch barrels regularly, get an action wrench. It makes life much simpler.

[DGD6MM]

I bought myself an action wrench for just in case I ran across one that would not come off with blocks and a nutwrench, so far I have not needed it. I have swapped maybe 10 barrels that have come from the factory and have not damaged anything thus far. I found that a little Kroil Oil soaking into the threads for a day or two helps on the more stubborn ones, usually these are the blued ones because of the blueing salt that makes them that way, at least that's what I've read on this site. I've taken old t-shirt material and wrapped the barrel and put the blocks over it and it grips well and holds tight. Hope this helps, let us know how you make out.

[Southernfryedyankee]

Clamp it the best you can in the wood blocks, slide the nut wrench on and place it so it is sticking horizontally out from the left side of the action when looking at it from the barrel end. Like this ---0.

Now take a STEEL hammer and give it a good smack. 2-3 times will loosen any barrel that I have ever dealt with. The steel hammer is the trick, it is a sharper blow that tends to turn the nut rather than the action/barrel. Its kind of like an impact wrench.

If you are going to switch barrels regularly, get an action wrench. It makes life much simpler.


I find that when you use a steel hammer it tends to mar up the barrel nut wrench. I have used the rubber mallet for all of my barrel swaps without failure

[Blue Avenger]

and I vote for the 3# dead blow. no marring of my wrench and more energy transfer.

[Southernfryedyankee]

I am pretty well rounded in alot of things but what is the difference between a dead blow hammer and a regular hammer?

[82boy]

A few tips;
1. Use a bit of powdered sugar, it works just like rosin. Sprinkle some on both barrel blocks, and the barrel where they contact.

2. make sure that the blocks are evenly positioned in your vise, If they are not then it will only place force on one side of the bocks. The blocks should have even space between them. If the bottom has a wider gap than the top then they are not evenly spaced in the vise. With the blocks evenly spaced, take a hammer and give the tighten handle of the vise a couple of whacks, and make sure they are good and tight on the barrel.

3. leverage is your friend. If you can find something that will slip over the barrel nut wrench like a piece of pipe. It don't have to be strong, I have used a long copper pipe in the past. You could also place something through the hole in the top of the wrench, and hang your body weight from it.

Many have found that the blued guns are harder to remove the nut from, and it is because the bluing salts kind of act like loctite. You may feel that king Kong installed your nut, but actually most of the assembly is done by women at the factory. Remember lefty loosey righty tighty.

[bsekf]

Go to an auto parts store and get the best penetrating oil they have. There is one in an aerosol can (I can't remember the name), apply for 2 -3 days. Use a 3# steel hammer, tighten the vise with the hammer and then smack the wrench. Keep the blocks as close to the action as possible, I build my own blocks out of oak, 5 inches long, and make them fit 2-3 inches ahead of the action. Heat is an option. Last resort, a sharp cold chisel and cut the nut off. Write to me and I'll tell you how. ;D

[BillPa]

A few more tips or "work smart, not hard"......http://savageshooters.com/SavageForum/index.php/topic,31643.0.html

Bill

[Blue Avenger]

I am pretty well rounded in alot of things but what is the difference between a dead blow hammer and a regular hammer?


over simple: there is sand inside the hollow head the causes a second hit to keep the hammer from bouncing a lot less when there is equal and opposite reactions

[Nor Cal Mikie]

Rather than using a "cheater" on a nut wrench to apply more "pull" power, use a large enough steel hammer to smack the wrench. That "smack" (shock) will transfer through the wrench to the nut better than all the torque you can apply with the cheater. It's the "shock" that brakes the nut loose.

[yorketransport]

When all of the above advice fails (I'm not saying that it will ;)) just get an action wrench. I had a barrel that just wouldn't come off even after trying everything that's been suggestest here. With an action wrench, it came off with almost no effort. Best $50 I ever spent.

Andrew

[mprtech]

When all of the above advice fails (I'm not saying that it will ) just get an action wrench. I had a barrel that just wouldn't come off even after trying everything that's been suggestest here. With an action wrench, it came off with almost no effort. Best $50 I ever spent.

Andrew



Thats because you loosened it using the methods show here first. :P

[bcp]

This works on my hard ones. No expensive barrel or action wrenches needed. Nothing has been damaged.

http://savageshooters.com/SavageForum/index.php/topic,29973.msg215048.html#msg215048

Bruce

[DGD6MM]

I have been meaning to build one of those riggs that Bill PA built. I like it ALOT.

[theOutlaw]

well boys, i hate to admit my consistant failure to remove this barrel. i even ended up bondo-ing it into the blocks in a vain effort to immobilize it, but no matter what i do, the barrel rotates. is there something im missing here? a joke that everyone else knows the answer to? ??? ???
im becoming irrational about the whole thing and am considering making a pair of aluminum blocks to squeeze this little effer in...