R700 Lug Rub (outer)

[FoxSpotter]

I reckon if the barrel comes off I'll still be able to see the lug rub the thread.
It's a 26inch full bull..so There is hope there.

If the case heads are deforming to flatten on the bolt face, surely I'd be able to measure this. I do have a 21C concentricity gauge.

I'm suspecting the action was never trued, and the barrel is concentric, but the bolt nose relief cut was not enlarged beyond normal size to accommodate the 1. Wonky bolt raceway. 2 wonky action threads.

Maybe I could put some marker on case heads and run them through the action to check?

[straightshooter]

I reckon if the barrel comes off I'll still be able to see the lug rub the thread.
It's a 26inch full bull..so There is hope there.

If the case heads are deforming to flatten on the bolt face, surely I'd be able to measure this. I do have a 21C concentricity gauge.

I'm suspecting the action was never trued, and the barrel is concentric, but the bolt nose relief cut was not enlarged beyond normal size to accommodate the 1. Wonky bolt raceway. 2 wonky action threads.

Maybe I could put some marker on case heads and run them through the action to check?

FoxSpotter
I am curious.
You don't disclose whether the same person or business did the action truing and the barrel fitting.
Did the person or business doing the truing have all the specialised tooling essential for a competent job?
No need to mention names.
A typical R700 action truing consists at minimum of
1. Use a piloted reamer and fixture to ensure locking lug abutments are square and perpendicular to the bore of the receiver.
2. Use a single point tool to cut action thread parallel to the bore of the receiver which is supported by a mandrel.
3. True the action face square and perpendicular to the bore of the receiver while supported by a mandrel.
Often times only #3 is done without a mandrel and that is claimed to be a trued action.
In addition was a surface ground recoil lug fitted?

[ButchDDG41]

I have 2 R700's, 1 in 270 and 1 in 22-250 both B series around 1980 vintage. Both were fully floated and bedded straight out of the box. I was seriously thinking of having them re-barrelled as they are not shooting as well as they used to, and my wife is now doing target shooting so I figured converting one to a target oriented set-up might be better than forking out on a new rifle. Last year I would have just opted for more guns and put these ones too the back of the safe but now with the NSW foolery...

I am following this thread with much interest; some very insightful stuff so far. Cheers.

[FoxSpotter]

I reckon if the barrel comes off I'll still be able to see the lug rub the thread.
It's a 26inch full bull..so There is hope there.

If the case heads are deforming to flatten on the bolt face, surely I'd be able to measure this. I do have a 21C concentricity gauge.

I'm suspecting the action was never trued, and the barrel is concentric, but the bolt nose relief cut was not enlarged beyond normal size to accommodate the 1. Wonky bolt raceway. 2 wonky action threads.

Maybe I could put some marker on case heads and run them through the action to check?

FoxSpotter
I am curious.
You don't disclose whether the same person or business did the action truing and the barrel fitting.
Did the person or business doing the truing have all the specialised tooling essential for a competent job?
No need to mention names.
A typical R700 action truing consists at minimum of
1. Use a piloted reamer and fixture to ensure locking lug abutments are square and perpendicular to the bore of the receiver.
2. Use a single point tool to cut action thread parallel to the bore of the receiver which is supported by a mandrel.
3. True the action face square and perpendicular to the bore of the receiver while supported by a mandrel.
Often times only #3 is done without a mandrel and that is claimed to be a trued action.
In addition was a surface ground recoil lug fitted?

[FoxSpotter]

Straight Shooter.
Same company made barrel and was paid to do truing at the same time.
A recoild lug by manael , ignition custom engineering was installed.
I'm thinking no truing was done and standard bolt nose recess was cut and it was not noticed that bolt lose lower and lugs rubber.
However, not sure how a custom barrel presumed centered fits an functions with lug rub and bolt nose rub...indicating something is off centre

[FoxSpotter]

Butch.
I'm no expert.
If bedding is done a long time ago, the compounds may shrink. This may not make any appreciable difference. Bedding can be checked by feel, ie thumb on action, barrel to see if you can sense any movement at all when tang bolt is tightened. Or by those fancy indicator needle setups with rifle in a vice..replacing your thumb as a sensor.

It's been said that a trued r700 was the most accurate rifle I've shot...Gordy Gritters or some such equivalent well established and respected gun guy. People presume custom actions are straight..who ever checks them?

If doing target work.. Probably check bedding.
I've bedded in the past, without pillars. I've beded for the bottom metal too!...if I was going to bed again..I'd really want to install pillars. Negate any chance of wood being squeezed, compressed or swelling.

Barrels seem to give 90% of accuracy...so I've heard..

I'd have thought a B series would be very high quality...but now I suspect mine was rubbing the lug on the threads before it was supposed to be trued. I have a vague memory of those marks. But, to be sure...when I pull the barrel with my brand new barrel vice...I'm betting the barrel threads are the same as or practically the same as factory spec... indicating no truing has been done .

[ButchDDG41]

I have toyed with the idea of purchasing a barrel vice. I have all my father in laws toolmaking stuff (coveting it for years only to find out when I obtained it ALL of the dies, taps etc are whitworth) but I have not got a lathe. One will magically appear when my shed is built in the near future. Mrs will be upset, but she will get over it. Then I may be in a position to check run out etc but as pf right now, my 50 year old pole shed is so full of stuff I couldn't fit another thing in if I tried.

Other option for me is to use the (reasonably local) gunsmith, who is busier than a one armed taxi driver with crabs. I guess these are first world problems.

[FoxSpotter]

I hope to have my barrel maker take the relevant specs from my action..so..from then on I can just order custom pre fit barrels...and save big $ and inconvenience of postage

[Duramax]

Run a straight edge along the bottom of the action. Rem 700 actions are easily bent at the rails during the barrel removal process. That to me would explain the bolt nose contact at 6 o'clock. 700 actions benefit from truing but it would take some serious misalignment or poor workmanship to result in what has been described here.

[FoxSpotter]

Thanks Duramax re "run a straight edge along the bottom of the action".
Will do when I shoot the remaining loaded ammo...at that stage..it's assessment and off to the doctors (barrel maker/gunsmith)

[bigrich]

Straight Shooter.
Same company made barrel and was paid to do truing at the same time.
A recoild lug by manael , ignition custom engineering was installed.
I'm thinking no truing was done and standard bolt nose recess was cut and it was not noticed that bolt lose lower and lugs rubber.
However, not sure how a custom barrel presumed centered fits an functions with lug rub and bolt nose rub...indicating something is off centre

so can you give me a hint as to who made the barrel and trued the action ?

[FoxSpotter]

BigRich.
I think it would be unfair to name.

They have agreed to look at the action. They haven't had a chance to.

As much as I may have not had the best experience with this action..I have been absolutely thrilled by a 17rem barrel they made in the past.

So..I don't want one story to tarnish their reputation.

I have another action there ATM having alot of stuff done to it...so..I'm not drawing conclusions yet...to be fair.

[bigrich]

BigRich.
I think it would be unfair to name.

They have agreed to look at the action. They haven't had a chance to.

As much as I may have not had the best experience with this action..I have been absolutely thrilled by a 17rem barrel they made in the past.

So..I don't want one story to tarnish their reputation.

I have another action there ATM having alot of stuff done to it...so..I'm not drawing conclusions yet...to be fair.

fair enough mate .i used a smith/barrel maker west of me years ago , that initially did some good work . but i got some shocking, disgusting work from them which forced me to cut them loose and find someone else . oversize chambers with "chatter" in the chamber and dangerous head spacing made me move on , and i've heard tales from others quite recently of poor/dangerous work from this shop . i bought a new IBI rifle blank off a fella in tassie who'd had work done on one of his rifles by these fools . had a phone conversation and he told me they sent his rifle back chambered in the wrong calibre ! he rang them and they just said they didn't have the reamer for the cal he wanted, so they went ahead with another calibre without calling him . unbelievable . there's no excuse for bad workmanship or a bad attitude when it comes to fixing their own stuff up IMHO , the fact your rifle made it out the door with obvious faults would make me look for another smith . JMHO