Factory barrel + new chamnber= outstanding results

[Boyd Allen]

For those of us who shoot factory actioned varmint rifles, the results obtained by a friend may be of more than a passing interest.

A long time friend, who does his own barreling, and stock work, bought a stainless Remington Varmint Special takeoff. He cut off the Remington tenon, turned down the shank, threaded it for a Savage (with nut) and rechambered it with a tight no turn .223 reamer, that has an interchangeable pilot. (Of course he recrowned it.)It is shooting very well, and has broken in to clean without much copper fouling. This has me thinking that much of what is wrong with factory barrels may not be so much about the interior finish as the finish, alignment, and dimensions of the typical factory chamber. This was a new barrel, from a known source. In any case, he is a happy camper.

On a related matter, he really likes 40 gr. V-max bullets (in the .223 with the Rem. barrel), and has been looking around for a different powder, one that would give more velocity,and excellent accuracy. I suggested that he try Exterminator. With the bullets mollied, and touching the rifling, he got velocities from 3,830 to 3,839 (5 shot group) with excellent accuracy. He said that the bolt was a little sticky on a couple of shots, so next time he is going to try backing it off a half grain to see if he can hold the accuracy with slightly less pressure. I am guessing, but the barrel is probably around 25" long. He uses LC brass, and Winchester primers. (IMO this bullet does wonders for the .222 and .223.) If anyone else told me these results, I would be very dubious. In his case, the only reason that they might not be correct would be if his Chrony malfunctioned.

 

[lucky lizard]

Factory barrel

Those velocities are way there for any 223 barrel. I have had great success with all v-max bullets. I have also had good luck with set back factory barrels. Just like all rifles, some shoot better than others for different reasons. Another thing to is check/re-headspace a savage barrel. Setting those back will almost always improve them.

 

[Charles E]

For people who do their own barrel fitting, it could be worth a try. All you risk is your time. Sometimes problems in a factory barrel are just with the chamber/threads/shoulder, sometimes not. In any case, if you're just cutting off the old tenon, I'd indicate it in and use a boring bar to true up the "hole." No reason to assume it was true, either. But with just the tenon gone, there is probably enough hole left so the reamer will try to follow it.

If you have to pay for fitting a barrel -- what does it go for now, $200+? there is some risk of disappointment. A new Shieln blank from Lester Bruno is only $235 more.

Or, if you're a real cheapskate, a "worn out" benchrest barrel, refitted, is still pretty darn good.

FWIW

 

[abintx]

For those of us who shoot factory actioned varmint rifles, the results obtained by a friend may be of more than a passing interest.

A long time friend, who does his own barreling, and stock work, bought a stainless Remington Varmint Special takeoff. He cut off the Remington tenon, turned down the shank, threaded it for a Savage (with nut) and rechambered it with a tight no turn .223 reamer, that has an interchangeable pilot. (Of course he recrowned it.) It is shooting very well, and has broken in to clean without much copper fouling. This has me thinking that much of what is wrong with factory barrels may not be so much about the interior finish as the finish, alignment, and dimensions of the typical factory chamber. This was a new barrel, from a known source. In any case, he is a happy camper.

For those who don't possess the tools or talent of Boyd's friend, and even those that do, I believe Shilen has found the Savage solution that saves a lot of time and offers many chamber options in a drop-in barrel at a real good price.

If you can provide an FFL a healthy [20%] discount also sweetens the deal.

Here's some links to the appropriate pages:http://www.shilen.com/savageBarrels.html, http://www.shilen.com/chambers.html [note the three .223 chamber options].

If a Savage owner for example, purchased the Stainless Match Grade barrel, threaded and fully chambered ready to be installed into the action with no additional machining or modification needed, you're looking at $335 X .80% = $268! I think that's a good deal.

 

[GerryM]

Factory s are trying to catch up now , with better finish in and on the barrels better machine work and better quality all the way around. Some Savage barrels are really excellent but so ar some of the Remingtons. Especially on the higher end models.

 

[tenring]

Boyd - Just wondered whether he checked the bore prior to the rechamber and was it firecracked? My BR smith will not set back a chamber if the bore is firecracked.

 

[Don]

.

Anyone with a bore scope will tell you there is alot more wrong with factory barrels than just
their chambers...............Don

 

[Boyd Allen]

It was a new takeoff. Absolutely, there is a lot wrong with the interior finish of the typical factory barrel. I suppose that my point is that we tend to attribute differences in accuracy to what we can see with a borescope. I have another friend that has a factory Savage varmint model that does not look good when you scope it. It shoots very well. I hasten to add that I do not use the same standard for field varmint rifles as for competition rifles. Yes, this may only make sense if you do your own work. Yes, the Shilen drop in barrels are a great value.

 

[Charles E]

Didn't mean to be a nay-sayer Boyd.

If you can fit a barrel, or have a friend who works cheap, there isn't much to lose. But it is only that, the factories just can't afford to take the time to shorten up the x-axis of the bell-shaped curve signaling "just how accurate." Some, obviously, are toward the zero point and just as accurate as anything out there.

 

[Boyd Allen]

Charles,
I didn't take offense at any of the posts, including yours. I posted to get exactly what I got...other shooters' takes on the subject.Thanks guys.

 

[Wapiti]

Boyd,
You weren't supposed to tell the world, especially .223/50 gr.shooters, about how well molyed 40 grainers @ 3900 work on prairie rats. Please don't mention H-335 w/7 1/2s either.
VMax's seem to provide the best visuals.
Good shooting.

 

[Pete Wass]

A Friend recently told me

he has had some success with lapping "worn Out" barrels. He sets them back and laps them, giving new life to some oldies but still goodies. I intend to learn his lappng method this winter.

Regarding firecracking; I discovered this year that what sometimes appears to be firecracking is actually carbon baked on. JB the crap out of the barrel before you make the assessment and you or they might be surprised how good some of em look. Some barrels have been known to shot well with the throats burned out of them so a little firecracking may not be much of an issue. Crowns on the other hand, now that is an area that can "Smarten Up" barrels quite often.

Lots of harm is done to barrels by cleaning them if one does not take pains to make sure their jag does not touch their crown. Bore Guide makers should fit their guide inserts to the rods to be used in them, much more closely. A way to help prevent this is to use a much smaller rod than one would normally use with the appropriate sized insert for the size of the smaller rod. At any rate, it's an area that neds looked at, IMHO.