stubborn factory barrel removal

[25WSM]

Most barrels pop right off. And I mean pop. I am a gunsmith so I have all the heavy-duty barrel clamps and action wrenches. And if you stand on the wrench with all you got some won't budge. But now I use a big rubber headed hammer. It only weighs 2 pounds and I put pressure on the wrench with my left hand and snack the end of the handle with the mallet. Usually one smack and it free. If you don't care about the barrel and don't own a lathe use a hacksaw and cut between the barrel and recoil lug junction about 3/16 all the way around and it will come off no problem. It's a throw away recoil lug anyway I have hundreds of them if you need one. New barrel should get a good 1/4 recoil lug with pins.
I did have one Remington 700 that I had to put in the lathe. Nothing would get that sucker off. You may have it's sister. Good luck. Shep

 

[J E Custom]

I don't want to take a chance that I will torque/twist the action with excessive force so I use a 4 lb rubber mallet normally, and one strike usually does it, but if it doesn't move after a couple of strikes I resort to use the parting off tool.

There was a mention of a Howa being hard to remove, and my experience with them have been the same. Also some of the old Mauser's that seat on the shoulder and the breach can be difficult at times .

There are many ways to remove a barrel from an action, I just choose to use a little finesse to avoid any chance of damage to the action. (I Have seen a few actions twisted from to much torque during removal or the use of an improper tool that cause the rails
to have a slight twist).

J E CUSTOM

 

[25WSM]

I never take factory barrels off with a rear entry wrench. That will damage the rails. But the rubber mallet works from the quick impact. They really do just pop off. If I tried to just push on the wrench now that's torque. Besides it's really hard to twist a tube. You can bend a tube easier than you can radially twist it far enough to stay. Next time you get a barrel that has more resistance than usual give it a smack and watch it come right off.
Shep

 

[Jerry M]

Normally if a barrel resist coming apart and I don't intend to keep it I chuck it up in the lathe holding the barrel and using a parting off tool I make a cut .008 to .010 just ahead of the recoil lug to relieve the compression. I cut down to the barrel tenon (It should be 1 1/6 " in diameter) And the barrel can be unscrewed by hand most of the time.

I prefer to just brake down a barrel and receiver, but sometimes they just jive you trouble and this works every time.

J E CUSTOM

Watched a gunsmith work on removing a barrel last week for about 40 minutes: heat, rosin, BIG action wrench. After a while i said "I told you that barrel was toast, right!? After ducking a large crescent wrench flying passed my head.... Over the the lathe it went. He still needed the big action wrench to break it loose but, it was interesting operation to watch.

Good luck

Jerry

 

[25WSM]

Yeah that one remmy I had trouble with had me ****ed. All is target shooters put barrels on so easy that they come off with very little effort. That's what rear entry wrenches are for. You can put a barrel on hand tight and shoot it 5 times and you better have that wrench ready. Don't try this with a left twist barrel. I have no clue why factory barrels are on so freaking tight. But in 30 yrs I've only had one I needed to cut. I have cursed at some others though just for good measure. Shep

 

[Michael Souther]

You need steel or aluminum jaws in the vice and cranked down, put the action wrench handle straight out to the left parallel to the floor, you have to strike it with a fast strike, I use a 2 Lb splitting axe, I've never had to cut a barrel of and a rem will usually spin. Long wrenches, putting huge torque will eventually work but a quick sharp strike will get you a lot more for less.

A sharp hit on the action wrench handle with a heavy hammer usually does it. Aluminum blocks in the vice..

 

[25WSM]

I think the rubber mallet works better. I used to use a hammer awhile ago but thought it might be too much of an impact. But pretty much anything that put a wallop on it would work. I wore out a piece of wooden bat. Let me tell you the wooden bat hit on both ends. It stung me good a few times
Shep

 

[J E Custom]

Yeah that one remmy I had trouble with had me *Rule 4 Violation*ed. All is target shooters put barrels on so easy that they come off with very little effort. That's what rear entry wrenches are for. You can put a barrel on hand tight and shoot it 5 times and you better have that wrench ready. Don't try this with a left twist barrel. I have no clue why factory barrels are on so freaking tight. But in 30 yrs I've only had one I needed to cut. I have cursed at some others though just for good measure. Shep

The reason that factory barrels are hard to get off is that they use a thread sealant to keep the bluing solution from getting in the threads during bluing . (The bluing solution's will corrode the threads unless they are removed) and once assembled, they don't want to take a chance that they will screw up the finish re assembling the barreled action. These sealants will set up very hard and act almost like loctite. allow actions are assembled with a thread compound to prevent galling and don't set up.

When assembling a barreled action, most Gunsmiths use some type of assembly lube that makes it possible to dissemble and aids in torquing. It also prevents rusting over time if the action is chrome molly.

J E CUSTOM

 

[J E Custom]

I think the rubber mallet works better. I used to use a hammer awhile ago but thought it might be too much of an impact. But pretty much anything that put a wallop on it would work. I wore out a piece of wooden bat. Let me tell you the wooden bat hit on both ends. It stung me good a few times
Shep

I like it because it works and doesn't ring your bell and also doesn't beat up the action wrench.

J E CUSTOM

 

[Wrenches]

I have never had to part a 700 barrel. I have a barrel vise that uses 2" long two piece split collets made from aluminum and coated with rosin. Over my 35 years in smithing business I have made tapered and split collets for almost all conceivable barrel tapers and straights. I use an action wrench that clamps around the front of the action and is bored to fit the action perfectly then split with rosin brushed on the inside. I do part all Mosin Nagant actions. I do this so I do not have to make an action wrench specifically for them. I have taken barrels off K98 Mausers that were badly rusted and was able to remove without parting them.

 

[25WSM]

Anybody know exactly what the crust is that comes out of remmy threads. Shep

 

[Wrenches]

Loctite pipe sealant. Keeps bluing salts from bleeding out.

 

[762x51]

Anybody know exactly what the crust is that comes out of remmy threads. Shep

thread locker applied by satan himself

the barrel on my 700P had the same issue as the OP. at first the barrel was spinning in the vise blocks. we applied rosin and that held the barrel but then the action was in there so tight, the front action screw bent. luckily it didnt mess up the action wrench. i had to drive 20 mins each way to a lowes to get a grade 5 screw. that did the trick though once we got the 4 foot cheater bar.

 

[MNbogboy]

I use a grade 8 screw in the action wrench.