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Old January 9, 2014, 01:17 AM   #1
5RWill
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Truing an action with a factory barrel, not worth it?

Currently my setup is my 700 5R bedded in a MCM A5, with APA RTG, and bolt knob. With my handloads it really is a great shooter. That said this is my main rifle and i want to rebarrel to 6.5 CM. I also want a shorty .308, as a semi truck gun and dedicated medium range hunting rig. So i picked up a 700 action and figured i'd use the 5R take off with the new action. Have it cut to 18" put it in a manners EH1 w/ minichassis, surefire 7.62 brake, etc. etc.

From what i'm reading truing an action with a factory barrel pretty much covers the cost of a new barrel. So is it a waste of time? It's hard to want to get rid of the barrel when it shoots like this. The other side of it is how would you sell a factory barrel?
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Old January 9, 2014, 02:05 AM   #2
FrankenMauser
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Once you true the action, you won't need to do it again (unless you're crazy and compulsive). If you want to try it, go for it.
But if the rifle shoots, I wouldn't bother.


As for selling a factory barrel...
It's easy. Advertise what it is in the classifieds here, local classifieds, and anywhere else you feel appropriate.

Last year (or maybe 2012), I sold a well-used, but well-cared-for and like-new appearance, Ruger 77VT take-off barrel in .220 Swift for ~$115. ...and the buyer was ecstatic to get a factory barrel that would drop right into his factory stock without additional gunsmithing costs or rebluing (rebarreling his own 77 VT .220 Swift that was shot out).

Just last week, I finally obtained a factory Marlin 444 ballard-rifled barrel that I'd been searching for. Because of the complexity of the machining on those barrels, it often costs 2-4 times as much to machine the barrel for the action, as it does to buy a barrel blank. So, if you can get a good factory barrel for less than half the cost of a blank, and 1/6th the cost of what the blank will cost you before it even touches the action.... YOU DO IT!


Sometimes, a factory barrel is exactly what people want.
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Old January 9, 2014, 03:09 AM   #3
5RWill
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Here is my dilemma though. I have a 5R bedded in a MCM A5. I want to rebarrel with a bartlien to 6.5 Creedmoor. I picked up a factory new 700 action from brownells this winter. I would like to use the 5R take off from the rebarrel and put it on the new action. Have it trued in the process. Though from what i understand if i run into headspacing issues and the barrel needs to be set back and rechambered, it isn't worth the cost.

A member at the hide suggested i take the barreled action out cut it and put it in the manners EH1. Then put the new action in the McM A5 have it trued in the process. In which the action will probably have to be rebedded into the McM A5, so about a 900$ operation to get the main rig going. Pretty much the same as what i wanted to do. Just didn't want to switch actions though i don't guess it really matters.

That said if i could sell the 5R barrel for 150$/200$ i would do so to fund another bartlien. costing probably another 500$ over what it would initially switching actions. But both would be trued 700 properly chambered with great barrels.
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Last edited by 5RWill; January 9, 2014 at 03:15 AM.
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Old January 9, 2014, 06:03 AM   #4
HiBC
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I have never worked with a Rem 700 action,so I may not know what I am talking about.
It never stopped me before.

It is true that if you cut steel of the face of the receiver the barrel indexing and headspace change...however,the Rem 700 clamps a recoil lug between the barrel and receiver.I believe oversize recoil lugs are available.

So,it would seem if you face .005 off your receiver,if you had an oversize recoil lug,you would just surface grind it to be .005 thicker than your original lug.

However,nothing says the threads on the new receiver are clocked and cut exactly the same as the old one.

Measure and figure,headspace gages,etc,but likely varying the recoil lug thickness will give you the flexibility to not cut new threads.

If you are going to the trouble,squaring the bolt face is not a bad idea.It should be parallel to to the face of the receiver ring.

I have heard the Rem 700,like about any action,can distort a bit in heat treat

If you are setting up with an expanding mandrel on the receiver bolt bore,I read about surface grinding two flats the length of the receiver.Not much,just some.These would be so the receiver would bed as into a vee block..matter of fact,I think a vee block aluminum bedding block was set in the stock.Kind of a hybrid pillar bed/vee block bed.

But,like I said,I don't know Remingtons.
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Old January 9, 2014, 08:12 AM   #5
Bart B.
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Several folks have squared up their receiver faces with the barrel tenon thread axis. Best thing that happens is shot impact no longer walks in one direction as the barrel heats up; providing the barrel's properly stress relieved to start with.

If one takes off .005" facing the receiver, put a .005" thick shim between the barrel and recoil lug then torque the barrel back to where it's clocked in. Headspace should not change. Any 'smith worth his phone number can make one out of shim stock. Put the shim between the receiver and recoil lug. Be sure the recoil lug's clocked in correctly, too. Some 'smiths put a witness mark on the shim and a reference mark on the receiver so the lug's clocked in to the same place.
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Old January 9, 2014, 11:20 AM   #6
natman
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Personally when I find a rifle that shoots like that I leave it alone and find one that isn't nearly as accurate as the basis for my project guns. There is an abundant supply.
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