What’s the Difference Between a Shouldered Pre-Fit and a Barrel Nut Pre-Fit for a Savage?

[Mike in Oregon]

Eventually I will be doing as much gunsmithing as possible to my guns when retired, to include Savage barrel replacement. So, what is better, shouldered pre-fit or barrel nut pre-fit? What are the pros & cons of both? I've done a couple reads, but I just not wrapping my head around it, I guess.

 

[DShortt]

There's a thread on here by a well known member who took a known good barrel and turned it into a barrel nut barrel and could tell no difference.
Yes, it was one test by one member.
Draw your own conclusions.

This will require a ton of popcorn by the time this thread plays out. That much I do know.

 

[Clancy]

One looks a hell of a lot better than the other. That’s it.

 

[Mike in Oregon]

There's a thread on here by a well known member who took a known good barrel and turned it into a barrel nut barrel and could tell no difference.
Yes, it was one test by one member.
Draw your own conclusions.

This will require a ton of popcorn by the time this thread plays out. That much I do know.

I'll search for this topic, meanwhile you start the popcorn!

 

[KMW 1954]

Find yourself a picture of a shouldered barrel and then a picture of a Savage barrel. It will become obvious.

 

[spaniel]

I stopped building Savages when Remage prefits became readily available.

My two most accurate rifles are my F-Class gun build as a shouldered barrel, Bartlein barrel and Kelbly Panda action, and my 338 Edge hunting rifle, Stiller Predator action and McGowen prefit with nut. Despite a lighter profile and increased recoil on the 338, for a 5-shot group they shoot the same.

I've built a dozen rifles with nuts. After seeing the results, that's all I do anymore. Putting another one together next week. Build more rifles instead of paying smiths.

 

[Mike in Oregon]

Find yourself a picture of a shouldered barrel and then a picture of a Savage barrel. It will become obvious.

I have, so this is based on looks.

 

[KMW 1954]

I have, so this is based on looks.

Shouldered barrel have just that,a shoulder and only screw on so far. The nutted barrels have no shoulder and can be screwed into the action until you run out of threads. The chamber/case headspace on a shouldered barrel is st by the shoulder. The Nut barrel is set by Go/No go gauges. Also I do believe they also use completely different thread sizes and diameters.

 

[Krogen]

Paging @urbanrifleman

 

[Mike in Oregon]

I stopped building Savages when Remage prefits became readily available.

My two most accurate rifles are my F-Class gun build as a shouldered barrel, Bartlein barrel and Kelbly Panda action, and my 338 Edge hunting rifle, Stiller Predator action and McGowen prefit with nut. Despite a lighter profile and increased recoil on the 338, for a 5-shot group they shoot the same.

I've built a dozen rifles with nuts. After seeing the results, that's all I do anymore. Putting another one together next week. Build more rifles instead of paying smiths.

I'm leaning towards using a nut. Sounds more straight forward to me using a Go/No Go gauge.

 

[JB10]

Before i bought my first factory savage i talked to my gunsmith about them. Right away he hated them. Real no good answer he could give other than not his preference. I own a few now and they all shoot. One of them i bought and ripped the barrel off to build a 6x45. I bought a barrel blank and had him chamber and install it (shouldered) shoots just fine. Id be fine eather way. But depending on what kind of stock its going into, the barrel nut will take some space up. I have seen some companies making some more lower profile nuts.

 

[Mike in Oregon]

Before i bought my first factory savage i talked to my gunsmith about them. Right away he hated them. Real no good answer he could give other than not his preference. I own a few now and they all shoot. One of them i bought and ripped the barrel off to build a 6x45. I bought a barrel blank and had him chamber and install it (shouldered) shoots just fine. Id be fine eather way. But depending on what kind of stock its going into, the barrel nut will take some space up. I have seen some companies making some more lower profile nuts.

Mine to hates them. To many moving parts (Bolt) he says. I'll be sending my Savage's to Fred. I remember my first one (10FP 223) and I was a nervous wreck hoping that it would shoot. I took the 2x4 stock off and trigger and went with the SSS stock and trigger before taking it out to the rat patch. It was a shooter! I soon stepped up to a 12 LRPV 223 and 22-250. I left the Accutriggers in both and they too were shooter.

 

[JB10]

They do shoot when you tune a load to them. Years later he said his real gripe was the bolt head. He liked the floating head design but can not install a sako extractor wich he likes,

 

[Rat Rifle]

I have, so this is based on looks.

To bad You’re starting Your quest the day SavageShooters.com site shut down after 24 years. The answers to all Your questions have been there for decades.

 

[Fuj]

So, what is better, shouldered pre-fit or barrel nut pre-fit? What are the pros & cons of both?

They both shoot well. On my Savage builds I have been shouldering
my barrels for a good long while. Just one less part needed you could
say.......However, you can have it both ways and at the same time ?? I'm
building a specific Savage for the Tack Driver coming up. Yes, a nut is
being used to keep the "Brotherhood" happy but, it will still be shouldered.
I'm using the much larger and longer nut from International Barrels. I cut
and thread for the nut and torque it up tight with thread locker red. I then
shoulder the barrel. It's extra work, but I have the time. Just another custom
nut job.....LOL

 

[Rat Rifle]

They both shoot well. On my Savage builds I have been shouldering
my barrels for a good long while. Just one less part needed you could
say.......However, you can have it both ways and at the same time ?? I'm
building a specific Savage for the Tack Driver coming up. Yes, a nut is
being used to keep the "Brotherhood" happy but, it will still be shouldered.
I'm using the much larger and longer nut from International Barrels. I cut
and thread for the nut and torque it up tight with thread locker red. I then
shoulder the barrel. It's extra work, but i have the time. Just another custom
nut job.....LOL

It’s a BLESSING to have a Machine Shop and the skills to use it

 

[Kracken McGraw]

I'm leaning towards using a nut. Sounds more straight forward to me using a Go/No Go gauge.

Your Smith will also use those gauges on a shouldered barrel. lol.

 

[SKWERLZ]

Before I started cutting my own barrels I used a lot of savages prefits as I could headspace them as needed and gunsmith didn’t lneed the action to make them.
Just basic thread and bolt clearance.


Now that I’m cutting my own barrels I do everything with a shoulder as it’s easier to swap barrels.

 

[LuvDog]

When you say you plan to do as much gunsmithing as possible, does that mean you plan to chamber your own barrels? Or does that mean you plan to just replace your own barrels?

A shouldered prefit needs to either already have the measurements of the action or the action needs to be made and held to tight tolerances in order for it to headspace properly

In the case of a Savage action, you'd need to either send in your action to a smith, so they can measure and record it for future shouldered prefits, or you can simply buy nut prefits and set headspace yourself

 

[urbanrifleman]

Paging @urbanrifleman

I'm not sure I understand the thread.

Yes, there is a thread in the gunsmith forum about 8 pages long with everyone commenting on the performance of nut barrels (and how they can't be as good as a shoulder pretty much). When I asked if anyone had ever made a nut barrel, there was total silence. I've made about 400 of them, I've tested dozens of them and the barrel doesn't know if it's a nut or shouldered (of course).

Then, one of the members that is a well known high level shooter and gunsmith tested a barrel with both types on the same barrel. The nut actually agged smaller if there was any difference at all.

No more replies after that.

Honestly, I can't believe at this point after decades and decades of use, how people can say the things they say about nut barrels. I get the "looks" part. Whatever that means. But other than that, the rest of the nonsense is just silly and total baseless.

The nut has MANY advantages. So, does the shoulder too. You can make a nut barrel into a shouldered barrel with some loctite. So, it can really have the same advantages as a shoulder.

A Savage will have to be fitted. It will not be a "prefit" because Savages don't hold headspace.

Some of my best shooters shoot the nut even though they could order the shouldered prefit. I shoot the nut pretty much every barrel I test, as does my family and shooting friends.