Gentlemen,

We get all sorts of rifles brought in here for barrel replacements.

Some of them are extremely hard to remove the barrels of.

Any suggestions that work?

If you cut a relief cut on the Barrel right in front of the receiver you can usually turn the Barrel out by hand. So my Gunsmith tells me.

It seems that every one is different. Remington's need to be heated with a propane torch for me. Tikka and Howa barrels are impossible. I have had to make a slight parting line just in front of the receiver to get them loose. Winchesters need a sharp "snap" on the action werench.

On top of all this, you need to have a really stout barrel wrench with aluminum bushing iserts cut to match the barrel contour and a generous douse of rosin or powdered sugar between it and barrel.

The action wrench need to fit the out side profile of the action, not one of those chintzy rear entry ones; rear entry is for those who live on the dark side. My wrenches were made bv me a number of years ago, I have three; Remington type for them and the Howa, one for the Mauser 98 profile with an insert to cover the 96 and earlier ones. I also have one for the springfield and Enfields. Lastly, I use a padded 15" "Crescent" wrench on the Sako and others that may have flat parallel sides that won't fit anything else.

For Remington



Barrel vice

I use the Brownell's action wrench and the brownells barrel vise. With the proper bushings on the barrel vise I'll use rosin and sometimes a piece of drywall tape wrapped around an undersized barrel dusted in rosin. For the stubborn Howa's and one ackley barrel I remember that was really tight I put the action wrench with the handle at 12 O'Clock. Then, with a 3' bar of 1 1/4" brass square stock I'll hit the end of the handle like you're swinging for a home run... It's like a major league impact wrench, and it pops them loose EVERY time. I do remember one Howa action that required two swings, but everything else only took one. I did find a 2lb aluminum headed mallet that seems to work just as well as the brass barstock also, but you need the fast impact of the 'hammer' on the action wrench handle vs. a heavy hit. The brownell's action wrench is built stout enough to take any kind of that abuse also.

This.



It has never failed.

On the Remington round actions I use the Brownells action blocks and make sure to use the guard screw hole with an old screw, and DON'T over tighten the the blocks as it will crush the action onto the barrel. Rosin up the barrel wrench and whack the end of the wrench with your hammer of choice.
For the actions like the Sako with flats top and bottom, I turn the Remington action blocks upside down and use them that way, flat to flat.
It's surprising how easy it is to squeeze an action onto a barrel tenon making it a lot harder to unscrew.

Thats the exact reason that I prefer an INSIDE action wrench. Been doing it that way 37 years & counting.

Never heat them; isn't necessary. And it's VISE, not VICE; vice is the addiction you have to guns. Oh, removing barrels?; what they said above. Except no heat. I use rosin on oak blocks in a 20 ton press; they will come out except on 1917 Enfields; I always part off the barrel in front of the ring a bit; too much danger of cracking the receiver as they have a large bearing surface and are on with about 200 ft pounds of torque. Rem 700s; I have never had one that was overly tight and use an inside wrench like pictured above. I did have a Howa once that I had to cut off as well.

I use an external action wrench, rosin, hardwood blocks in the vise and when the company uses locktite or some other compound I will heat the barrel extension. I also use a big rubber mallet on the action wrench handle to simulate an impact wrench. If the barrel is not to be salvaged I will use a relief cut, especially on Enfields, Krags and any other stubborn barrels.

Saeed

What have you been using up to this time?

This method seems to work well, and fairly quickly. Barrel removal

I second the parting cut in the barrel as close as you can get to the receiver without touching the receiver. I've seen it work on a rifle that I thought would never come apart - unscrewed by hand after the parting cut! On any barrel that is going in the garbage and won't come off easy, in the lathe it goes!

Gntlemen,

Thank you for your answers.

We found a much easire way of doing it.

How to remove a barrel very fast

That's just wrong.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
Gntlemen,

Thank you for your answers.

We found a much easire way of doing it.

How to remove a barrel very fast

Well he did say how to remove the barrel fast. He didn't say a word about the condition of anything attached.
Hell in that case use a cutting torch.

A vise, a large pipe wrench, and a couple pieces of aluminum about 2" x 4" x 3/8" or anything in the close counts category. Use the two pieces of aluminum to keep from damaging the receiver in the vice. Then use 1 or two pipe wrenches on the barrel. This assumes it is for a barrel replacement as this will trash the barrel. If need be You can use another pipe as an extension on the handle of the wrench to really crank up the leverage.

quote:

Originally posted by D Humbarger:
Thats the exact reason that I prefer an INSIDE action wrench. Been doing it that way 37 years & counting.

Doug,

I presume you designed and built that wrench yourself? It's very interesting. Don't think I've ever heard of an inside action wrench for Mausers. Well done.

Glen thanks for the kind words. I don't use anything else. NEVER had to use heat. I do use lots of rosin on the barrel & aluminum barrel blocks (doesn't mar the barrel) to tighten the snot out of it though. The inside wrench puts no added tightness on the receiver / barrel threads by tightening down on both.

Oh after using the usual outside clamping wrench, I see the advantages. Just never occurred to me it could be done.