DIY action wrench

[The D]

I have access to some scrap boxed steel at work and was thinking about making my own action wrench. This is a pic of the stuff we have

This is what I’m thinking; cut two sections about 4” each, drill holes through the ends(not at the very ends), sandwich the action between them at the ejection port, M12(or M16 if needed) grade 10.9 through the holes, weld a long handle to one piece to handle stubborn factory barrels

Does this sound like it will be adequate or will it fold in half the first time I try to use it?

 

[MarinePMI]

I have access to some scrap boxed steel at work and was thinking about making my own action wrench. This is a pic of the stuff we have

View attachment 7828864

This is what I’m thinking; cut two sections about 4” each, drill holes through the ends(not at the very ends), sandwich the action between them at the ejection port, M12(or M16 if needed) grade 10.9 through the holes, weld a long handle to one piece to handle stubborn factory barrels

Does this sound like it will be adequate or will it fold in half the first time I try to use it?

If the action has flats (like a Tikka bolt gun, or a lever action/falling block), sure. If, however, it's a round action, you'll likely need to use solid bar stock, so you can bore or turn a hole to fit that particular round action's OD. (I'm assuming you're wanting to pull factory barrels, which could have been fitted very tightly.)

JMTCW...

 

[The D]

Yes this is for at least one factory barrel on my 700. If it works decently I’ll offer to help some friends remove theirs as well

Is the round cutout an absolute necessity(I understand that would be ideal, I’m just trying to use as much of the material I have at hand) or could I just cut a notch out and weld in a small piece of angle iron? That, actually could serve double duty. One flat side for square-ish actions, the angle iron side for round actions

 

[MarinePMI]

Yes this is for at least one factory barrel on my 700. If it works decently I’ll offer to help some friends remove theirs as well

Is the round cutout an absolute necessity(I understand that would be ideal, I’m just trying to use as much of the material I have at hand) or could I just cut a notch out and weld in a small piece of angle iron? That, actually could serve double duty. One flat side for square-ish actions, the angle iron side for round actions

With action wrenches (especially removing factory barrels) you're looking for as much surface contact as you can get. Will a single point contact wrench work? Maybe. But you'll likely leave a mark on the action's bluing (at a minimum) and possibly a dented flat as well (at worst) where the single flat engages the round action.

If you're set on using that drawn tubing, I'd think a round cut out (to reduce fracturing at any straight line intersection) or radius'ed cut out, with some aluminum inserts that fit inside the tubing, but are turned to match the OD of the action may work. Hell, even oak blocks (bored out accordingly) would probably work. That's what a lot of older barrel vises use. Just thinking out loud here....

Oh, and I think most 700 outside action wrenches have a hole for a threaded bolt to pass through the outside jaw, and screw into the front action screw hole, to prevent slippage. I wanna say Remington's are 1/4-28tpi, but I'm going off memory, so you'd need to confirm.

 

[Rthur]

As mentioned circular contact is preferred.
Leave a little elbow room, slightly larger than the action diameter.
Cardboard from a paper towel roll or TP gives one helluva grip and protects the finish.

R

 

[MarinePMI]

I'd add (after thinking about it) that you'd likely want to make multiple bottom pieces. One flat (Howas and Winchesters are round top/flat bottom actions), one a "V" for Mausers, and one to allow round bottom inserts of various sizes for different round actions. Obviously, the top inserts would need to be the diameter (or slightly larger as mentioned by Rthur) of the specific receiver.

Also, if building a multi-action wrench, I'd suggest having bolts of varying lengths for the jaws in case, say you want to just have one "V" bottom jaw, but want to invert/flip it over, to have a flat jaw wrench.

Again, just musing things out loud...

 

[The D]

Thanks for the insight fellas. I’m definitely not planning this to be a money making tool, it’s just for me and maybe a few others. Since that’s the case and I’m not concerned with any sort of time table, I’ll most likely try the most basic version I was thinking about at first but definitely proceed with caution. I’ll keep this thread updated with any progress and/or modifications I need to make. After all, it’s not like I’m trying to engineer a bridge or something…

 

[The D]

Alright, I got the clamping pieces cut today. Cleaned, drilled, and found hardware for them. Thoughts?



It’s rotated 90* but you get the idea