If you are having a smith do it, I would have him remove the barrel.
Two reasons, better balance, less vibration when re crowning, a small amout, small thing, but when I had my shop, I started www.savagegunsmithing.com, so I accurized a lot of Savage rifles, barrel removel is very easy.
The second reason is that the smith can set the headspace perfectly, a little tighter than they come from the factory is not a bad thing. Just a very slight bit, but there is a lot that can be done with the Savage rifle, that is the reason I think they are the best rifle on the market and of course the accuracy is fantastic for a factory rifle.
The barrel nut can also be turned to be perfectly as can the front of the action.
The new one's, with the numbers stamped under the tang are machined much better than the old one's.
The older rifles had some pretty rough faces on the end of the action. As long as the smith takes the time to set up the action perfectly in the lathe, it can be faced smooth, the other thing you want to do is to replace the recoil lug. The stock one is stamped and does not make anywhere near full contact, which can cause the barrel to be slightly cocked to the side.
Replacing the recoil lug with an aftermarket lug will insure as near 100% contact as possible.
The joint between the action, barrel and barrel nut is the one place accuracy can be improved, it's the one place that is weak in every rifle. You want it as solid as possible, as near perfect contact as possible.
It may cost a little more, but it is worth it.
You can even have the lugs in the action and on the bolt head trued for as much contact as possible. Just because the Savage has a floating bolt head, which is a great thing, it does not insure the best contact possible.
All of these things help accuracy and consistancy.
If your smith cannot handle this, PM me. It needs to be done right with the best precision possible.
I'm now retired, but I know what it takes to make a Savage shoot it's best.
If you have the money, it's a great time to replace the stock barrel with a custom barrel, then you will really see the best accuracy. The FP protrusion should be checked also, if set wrong, it will cause less than the best accuracy also. There is more to the Savage than meets the eye, they look simple, but little things make a difference.
I do give Savage a lot of credit. They replaced all their CNC machines, the numbers on the bottom of the tang keep track how many cuts every cutter has taken and keeps track of many other things so that cutters can be changed when they should be as well as other things. This has greatly increased the accuracy in which the rifle are built.
My Best, John K
