Savage Action Wrench ???

Well my experience is you need 3 nut wrenches, one barrel vise and one action wrench. There are 3 different nuts, two sizes of the original style nut (available as a double ended wrench) and a new nut that is round and smooth, requiring a clamp style wrench that fits it very closely. What an absolute pain in the ass design for gunsmithing.
 
But Dennis, everyone loves the "savage" system because it makes barrel swaps so easy! Are these people simply mistaken? Surely this system was not devised simply to save money in manufacture.
 
Recently a customer whom I had previously fitted up several barrels for on various actions asked me for a quote on installing his after market barrel on a Savage rifle. So I gave him my shop rate and said it should be fairly simple and not to sweat the details. Well Murphy's law visited the shop that day and when the job came in, backwards we went. The rifle had the new slick barrel nut and required a new bushing to be manufactured for removal, which is tolerable as new jigs and gadgets are part of the trade when running into factory change up's. Then wouldn't you know it the pre-threaded barrel supplied would only just start to thread into the receiver, so that was set up in the lathe and the threads were chased so it would install into the mating part. I decided to bypass the opportunity to use the slick barrel nut that came with the rifle and fortunately had a splined stainless replacement on hand. All of the morning and the best part of the afternoon were gone by the time it was head-spaced and tested with a proof load. Of course none of this was the fault of the customer who had seen it done on You Tube in mere moments I'm sure. That's Ok tomorrow's another day, and from what I'm told the next one is going to you Dennis and I am to supply the 300 Savage reamer for the job. Enjoy, David.
 
Please don't poo poo this procedure and take if for what it's worth. Proceed to your own comfort level. I wasn't able to get a Savage action wrench so I decided to see if I could come up with a solution other than using a pipe wrench. This was used to remove the barrel on a Savage 10 ML11 Smokeless muzzleloader which is a standard (small) shank.

I got to use an improvised barrel wrench , a 1 1/4 " boxed end wrench that fits nicely over the barrel nut. The points in the wrench lined up with 4 of the splines in the nut .I squared of segments of a few roofing nails to fit in the splines and then I crazy glued them in place before a final wrap of masking tape. The wrench fit like a glove on the barrel nut and splines.
I also made a make shift barrel vice out of some scrape maple hardwood pieces, lined up two 1"X2" pieces clamped them together and drilled a 1 in. hole with a forsner bit through the seam. I lined the hole with a piece of masking tape to help with slippage. I clamped the main portion of the wood jaws in a bench vice and C clamped the other side, a stiff whack with a 2X4 and mission accomplished nut loosened the barrel easily screwed off of the receiver.

Some say Necessity is the mother of invention, and I needed a wrench.

here's a few pics of the set up.





 
When you get the $%%#%^ barrel nut off, rub the receiver side of it on some fine emery paper. The rough finish on it beds into the receiver and that is why it is so hard to get off. I visited the factory and specifically went to the station where it is installed, to see how long an extension bar was being used to install the damned things.

It was a little girl doing it with a 12" wrench, not all that tight.
 
Ganderite said:
When you get the $%%#%^ barrel nut off, rub the receiver side of it on some fine emery paper. The rough finish on it beds into the receiver and that is why it is so hard to get off. I visited the factory and specifically went to the station where it is installed, to see how long an extension bar was being used to install the damned things.

It was a little girl doing it with a 12" wrench, not all that tight.
Click to expand...

But she had powerful arms & was on steroids.;)
 
A tour of the factory ! you lucky guy, Savage sent me a video of their rifle production process when I did warranty work for them it was really interesting. A few years back I went through the museum in Cody, Wyoming and much to my delight there were a couple of ancient screw making machines that were from the Savage plant and had been set up for display purposes. Fascinating iron. D.H.
 
smokeeter said:
Please don't poo poo this procedure and take if for what it's worth. Proceed to your own comfort level. I wasn't able to get a Savage action wrench so I decided to see if I could come up with a solution other than using a pipe wrench. This was used to remove the barrel on a Savage 10 ML11 Smokeless muzzleloader which is a standard (small) shank.

I got to use an improvised barrel wrench , a 1 1/4 " boxed end wrench that fits nicely over the barrel nut. The points in the wrench lined up with 4 of the splines in the nut .I squared of segments of a few roofing nails to fit in the splines and then I crazy glued them in place before a final wrap of masking tape. The wrench fit like a glove on the barrel nut and splines.
I also made a make shift barrel vice out of some scrape maple hardwood pieces, lined up two 1"X2" pieces clamped them together and drilled a 1 in. hole with a forsner bit through the seam. I lined the hole with a piece of masking tape to help with slippage. I clamped the main portion of the wood jaws in a bench vice and C clamped the other side, a stiff whack with a 2X4 and mission accomplished nut loosened the barrel easily screwed off of the receiver.

Some say Necessity is the mother of invention, and I needed a wrench.

here's a few pics of the set up.





Click to expand...

It worked and that is the main thing. I guess I'll have make a wrench of some kind myself.
 
I have barrel nut wrench in stock for the newer castle nut style barrel nut with square notches:

http://www.gstprecision.ca/product/savage-barrel-nut-wrench/

Many ways to remove the barrel nuts, factory are usually rusted on because of bluing salts residue and require some sort of heating and soaking with penetrating oil. A combination of barrel vise and the wrench usually works to take them apart. If it can't be achieve by clamping the barrel it can be done by clamping the action in the barrel vise (not too tight obviously)

If you have a newer smooth barrel nut, I normally remove them with a pipe wrench and put a new castellated barrel nut, which I also have in stock.

Good Luck
GST
 
Here is a simple wrench you can make or have made. You really need a milling machine to bore the hole to the correct diameter. It is made from 1/2" flatstock and a 5/16" bolt.

3128umx.jpg
 
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