Which Tikka Prefit?

[CrabsandFootball]

Hi Hide,

I have a unfired T3 Tac A1 in 6.5CM. Might as well upgrade the barrel to get some more velocity before I play with it. Will probably sell the unfired barrel here at a later date for someone trying to get upgrade cheaply. The options for a shouldered pre-fit don't seem great.

Proof. - Only real option is a 24" Carbon Barrel. The stainless prefits are all hunting contours. Really would like 26-27" finished length.
PVA - Ends up costing more than the Proof (after mil discount) and who knows how long the wait is?
Bugholes - Says they are not taking orders from non repeat customers
Xcalibur - ?
Mcgowen- ?
LRI- Sent an email on price to turn my blank into pre-fit a few weeks ago, no response.

I also have a hawk hill marksman 6.5 Blank. Are there any smiths that would turn it to a shouldered prefit sometime this year?

Thanks for any help and advice.

 

[wade2big]

PVA turned two shouldered prefits for my TRG in four business days, call to received. This was three weeks ago. Used their Rock Creek blanks.

 

[flustercuck]

+1 for PVA. Their Rock Creek barrels are the shit

 

[CrabsandFootball]

I have a hawk hill marksman so will probably use that if I go the PVA route.

 

[Harman117]

Preferred Barrel Blanks is another option for Tikkas. They have shouldered options for it.

 

[bohem]

Hi Hide,

I have a unfired T3 Tac A1 in 6.5CM. Might as well upgrade the barrel to get some more velocity before I play with it. Will probably sell the unfired barrel here at a later date for someone trying to get upgrade cheaply. The options for a shouldered pre-fit don't seem great.

Proof. - Only real option is a 24" Carbon Barrel. The stainless prefits are all hunting contours. Really would like 26-27" finished length.
PVA - Ends up costing more than the Proof (after mil discount) and who knows how long the wait is?
Bugholes - Says they are not taking orders from non repeat customers
Xcalibur - ?
Mcgowen- ?
LRI- Sent an email on price to turn my blank into pre-fit a few weeks ago, no response.

I also have a hawk hill marksman 6.5 Blank. Are there any smiths that would turn it to a shouldered prefit sometime this year?

Thanks for any help and advice.

We (PVA) have a 26" M24 shouldered barrel for a Tikka prefit in 6.5 Creedmoor that can ship on Friday. It's an "in stock" barrel.

If you want a custom for a 6.5 Creed Tikka prefit you can do that too, we're at 2 weeks on them. With your supplied barrel the lead time stays the same, price is $400 OTD for 'Hiders.

 

[CrabsandFootball]

Awesome! I might just send you my Barrel! Thank you!!!

 

[OyVey]

We (PVA) have a 26" M24 shouldered barrel for a Tikka prefit in 6.5 Creedmoor that can ship on Friday. It's an "in stock" barrel.

If you want a custom for a 6.5 Creed Tikka prefit you can do that too, we're at 2 weeks on them. With your supplied barrel the lead time stays the same, price is $400 OTD for 'Hiders.

I've been planning to send in my factory CTR to PVA because I couldn't get the barrel off no matter what I tried. Are you guys able to save the factory barrel and send it back or are you guys doing relief cuts? Would be nice to be able to save the factory barrel for back up/hunting and use the M24 for matches.

I still got over 1000 rounds on my factory barrel so I might shoot it out before rebarreling if there is no other way than relief cut. I don't want to waste a perfectly good barrel although Tikka barrels are slow.

 

[CrabsandFootball]

You Just need a solid barrel vise attached to a solid bench and a good action wrench/breaker Bar. Tikka's are on tight but there is zero reason you need to relief cut unless something is seriously wrong (someone glued barrel or extreme galling like you see with SS/SS).

PVA and Bugholes both make Tikka wrenches.

The two best vises I have seen are the one from LRI and Brownells.

 

[OyVey]

You Just need a solid barrel vise attached to a solid bench and a good action wrench/breaker Bar. Tikka's are on tight but there is zero reason you need to relief cut unless something is seriously wrong (someone glued barrel or extreme galling like you see with SS/SS).

PVA and Bugholes both make Tikka wrenches.

The two best vises I have seen are the one from LRI and Brownells.

I was told never to use internal wrenches for taking off factory tikka barrels although I do have the Bugholes Tikka wrench. I tried to use a Wheeler action wrench to grip the action on the sides and Mechforce barrel force to hold the barrel but the barrel always end up slipping in the vise. I do realize it's a vise issue I'm having. Is there a barrel vise that anyone could recommend that could fit the CTR contour? Even better if it's from Amazon so I could return it once the deed is done.

 

[CrabsandFootball]

The best barrel vise is the one you machine yourself, with custom collets. Both brownells and LRI sell a bombproof vise that takes a bunch of diff collets. They are expensive but worth it if u dont have a lathe/mill. Too many barrel vises out there on the market are just toys.

 

[wade2big]

I was told never to use internal wrenches for taking off factory tikka barrels although I do have the Bugholes Tikka wrench. I tried to use a Wheeler action wrench to grip the action on the sides and Mechforce barrel force to hold the barrel but the barrel always end up slipping in the vise. I do realize it's a vise issue I'm having. Is there a barrel vise that anyone could recommend that could fit the CTR contour? Even better if it's from Amazon so I could return it once the deed is done.

I have used the exact same setup you have to break three tikka barrels and one sako trg barrel. None have even tried to slip. Throw that peice of leather that comes with the mechforce vice in the trash. If you use it your barrel will slip. I wrap my barrel with a round or two of computer paper to protect the finish and then clamp in the vice. My Tikkas come off with a whack of my hand on the action wrench handle and the sako needed a couple whacks with a rubber mallet. No cheater pipe necessary.

 

[bohem]

We typically put a relief cut in them to avoid any potential damage to the action and folks are barreling for a reason. For me, it takes more time hassle than it is worth to promise we can take off any tikka factory barrel without a cut. I use the SAC vise in the shop, it works great, but spending half an hour or more trying to save a factory barrel isnt something that is a prudent use of my time.

Plus, when we end up not getting it off without a cut or we make a scratch on the outside it is cause for complaint. So I just wont promise it anymore. Doing a couple at home is one thing, doing a lot of them in a process is entirely another.

We can make the barrel and have it done for you in the timeline and cost I mentioned above. I wont promise taking off a factory barrel without a relief cut though. There is too much liability and uncertainty in it.

 

[C Cape]

Bohem,

I'm interested in one of your carbon prefits for my CTR. What kind of deal can y'all do for a hide member?

Thanks,
Chris

 

[bohem]

Bohem,

I'm interested in one of your carbon prefits for my CTR. What kind of deal can y'all do for a hide member?

Thanks,
Chris

Sale pricing on those coming is going to be 15% off which would put you at 950

Sale starts on May 5th. If you arent already signed up for our website I would suggest doing so and you will get an invite to the sale 12hr earlier

 

[wade2big]

I have one more for a Tikka I want to pick up and may go ahead and pick it.

 

[noles47459]

I was told never to use internal wrenches for taking off factory tikka barrels although I do have the Bugholes Tikka wrench. I tried to use a Wheeler action wrench to grip the action on the sides and Mechforce barrel force to hold the barrel but the barrel always end up slipping in the vise. I do realize it's a vise issue I'm having. Is there a barrel vise that anyone could recommend that could fit the CTR contour? Even better if it's from Amazon so I could return it once the deed is done.

I used the brownell’s vise to remove the factory barrel from my T3. In addition to the Brownell’s vise, I used a 1 1/4 box wrench around the action with blue painter’s tape (protects action and helps with fit). FYI, the wheeler wrench did not work for me either. Final tip is to use a dead blow hammer vs pulling with even / constant force. Took me no more than 5 min from start to finish.

I likewise have the bugholes Tikka internal action and used it for installing the new barrel. It worked great and was the perfect tool for the job.

Good luck!!

 

[bassmaster07]

Sale pricing on those coming is going to be 15% off which would put you at 950

Sale starts on May 5th. If you arent already signed up for our website I would suggest doing so and you will get an invite to the sale 12hr earlier

@bohem will that sale include your steel barrels as well?

 

[OyVey]

Appreciate all your answers, guys. I will give it another shot at removing the barrel.

Going back on topic about the prefits, has anyone encountered problems with the following?

1) Shouldered prefit does not headspace correctly when using headspace gauges (forster gauges for example). What do you do when this happens? Send it back to the manufacturer along with your action and let them handle it? Does the action in this case just happen to be not good enough to build pre-fits on?

2) If one were to use a barrel nut prefit, the barrel nut does not clear the chassis or stock. I'm using a MDT ESS for Tikka for example and it does not seem like there would be any extra room around the action-barrel junction area for the barrel nut to sit. Does anyone have approximate dimensions of the barrel nut? Would the barrel nut clear the original Tikka CTR stock? If clearance is not an issue, I may just buy the barrel nut version and headspace it myself. I have worries about the shouldered prefit not headspacing correctly.

I'm glad to see the PVA guys are still in business and operating during these times . If only I could find a range that's open in California now.

 

[bohem]

@bohem will that sale include your steel barrels as well?

Yes

Appreciate all your answers, guys. I will give it another shot at removing the barrel.

Going back on topic about the prefits, has anyone encountered problems with the following?

1) Shouldered prefit does not headspace correctly when using headspace gauges (forster gauges for example). What do you do when this happens? Send it back to the manufacturer along with your action and let them handle it? Does the action in this case just happen to be not good enough to build pre-fits on?

2) If one were to use a barrel nut prefit, the barrel nut does not clear the chassis or stock. I'm using a MDT ESS for Tikka for example and it does not seem like there would be any extra room around the action-barrel junction area for the barrel nut to sit. Does anyone have approximate dimensions of the barrel nut? Would the barrel nut clear the original Tikka CTR stock? If clearance is not an issue, I may just buy the barrel nut version and headspace it myself. I have worries about the shouldered prefit not headspacing correctly.

I'm glad to see the PVA guys are still in business and operating during these times . If only I could find a range that's open in California now.

1) we work in the very narrow window that the tikka leaves us to guarantee headspace. They are probably the best factory action out there for headspace consistency.

2) we include a barrel nut with the barrel and it is designed to fit inside of the envelope of the standard tikka shouldered barrel. The barrel nut barrels fit the tikka A1 chassis too. Some of the really light hunting rifles are a little too tight for the nut but some sandpaper fixes that

 

[CrabsandFootball]

The SAC vise looks nice but its made of AL?
I would worry about not being able to hold up. Most of the top vises seem to be made of steel, even if it is just A36. Has about 3 times the shear rigidity.

 

[bohem]

The SAC vise looks nice but its made of AL?
I would worry about not being able to hold up. Most of the top vises seem to be made of steel, even if it is just A36. Has about 3 times the shear rigidity.

I've been using it for about 18 months, daily, there isn't even any wear on it.
Stiffness isn't the concern here, it's yield strength. 7075 is stronger than A36 and mild steel, harder too. And when anodized the surface hardness is harder than nitrided steel.

Either way, the SAC vise has been very good for us. I would be surprised to hear any person using them in a hobby environment would ever see wear, let alone hurt one.

 

[knuckleballz]

Another option I didnt see listed is Carbon Six. They can make a carbon barrel shouldered prefit for your tikka for 695$ I ordered one from them in the twist, profile, length, chamber, muzzle thread that I wanted. I removed the tikka barrel myself and installed the carbon 6. It headspaced perfect, and shoots 1/4 moa. They use mcgowen barrels that they carbon wrap. I think you can also get a steel mcgowen barrel shoulder prefit from them for less. They answer the phone and are easy to work with. They were busy, but delivered on the week they said it would be done when I ordered it. You can also send them your barreled action to do the barrel swap.

 

[MarinePMI]

Another C6 barrel customer here. No complaints at all with fitment and accuracy.

 

[esw004]

Bugholes has a great selection of barrels as well. Tho I am pleased with my PVA barrel I bought a couple years ago.

 

[j741]

Also check with Mike @ Hells Canyon Armory if you are looking for a Tikka CF barrel. Mike also is happy to take off existing barrels so you can have it for future or just sell it.

Nick @ Straight Jacket will do Tikka barrels but he prefers to have the action in hand vs sending out a prefit. I know that doesn't work for everyone.

 

[CrabsandFootball]

Bugholes has a great selection of barrels as well. Tho I am pleased with my PVA barrel I bought a couple years ago.

Bugholes is only servicing prior customers. They are out.

 

[CrabsandFootball]

Another C6 barrel customer here. No complaints at all with fitment and accuracy.

Know if they give a mil discount like proof?

 

[Jrismoen]

I have a Carbon Six on a T3. Great barrel. I highly recommend them. Very consistent delivery and lead times. They aren't super fast but they'll deliver on their stated lead times.

I noticed they do not have 1:7.5 twist for the 6.5 prc. Will they provide upon request?

 

[Jrismoen]

I don't know. They use McGowen blanks and I don't think McGowen offer 1/2 twists. I have an 8 twist on a 6.5 SST. 147's at 3000+. It is performing well. Also might be the answer for overtwisting jackets off

Thanks for that information, reubenski.

 

[bassmaster07]

FYI. Ordered a Tikka shouldered prefit during the recent sale from PVA. Lead time was exactly 2 weeks from order to shipped. Ordered Friday May 15th; shipped Friday May 29th; Delivered in hand on Wednesday June 3rd. Emailed some with Joe and Josh with hourly responses from both during the process. Thanks @bohem

Now to spin it on and go shoot.

 

[bohem]

FYI. Ordered a Tikka shouldered prefit during the recent sale from PVA. Lead time was exactly 2 weeks from order to shipped. Ordered Friday May 15th; shipped Friday May 29th; Delivered in hand on Wednesday June 3rd. Emailed some with Joe and Josh with hourly responses from both during the process. Thanks @bohem

Now to spin it on and go shoot.

Looking forward to hearing how it shoots, thank you for the business. We appreciate it!

 

[bassmaster07]

Looking forward to hearing how it shoots, thank you for the business. We appreciate it!

Will let you know. What torque value to tell my smith when he spins it on for me?

 

[spife7980]

Will let you know. What torque value to tell my smith when he spins it on for me?

35-100 lbs

I put mine on at around 70-80 as a nice middle ground. Its nice and solid with a bit of oomph behind it to make sure it stays put if you take off a rocksetted muzzle device... but still not so hard its a pain in the ass to take off the next time.

 

[SgtNeeley]

Appreciate all your answers, guys. I will give it another shot at removing the barrel.

Going back on topic about the prefits, has anyone encountered problems with the following?

1) Shouldered prefit does not headspace correctly when using headspace gauges (forster gauges for example). What do you do when this happens? Send it back to the manufacturer along with your action and let them handle it? Does the action in this case just happen to be not good enough to build pre-fits on?

2) If one were to use a barrel nut prefit, the barrel nut does not clear the chassis or stock. I'm using a MDT ESS for Tikka for example and it does not seem like there would be any extra room around the action-barrel junction area for the barrel nut to sit. Does anyone have approximate dimensions of the barrel nut? Would the barrel nut clear the original Tikka CTR stock? If clearance is not an issue, I may just buy the barrel nut version and headspace it myself. I have worries about the shouldered prefit not headspacing correctly.

I'm glad to see the PVA guys are still in business and operating during these times . If only I could find a range that's open in California.
Sacramento valley is back open...Sloughouse. (1-916-354-9668)

 

[awpk03s]

Another satisfied user here with a Carbon 6 shoulder prefit for a Tikka.
Ordered to my spec (17”, 6.5CM, 1/8, Sendero) and arrived in quoted lead time (16-18 weeks I believe). Torqued on, headspaced fine and it shoots great. As for removing the factory barrel - as others have mentioned it’s easily done at home. I used MechForce vise, and a Brownells Universal action wrench. Put some brown sugar around the barrel before tighten in the vise, I used a cheater pipe and a hammer. Probably didn’t need the cheater. The impact/impulse of the hammer smack is really what works to get it initially broken loose.

 

[bohem]

Will let you know. What torque value to tell my smith when he spins it on for me?

At least 35lb and I usually use 50lb here

 

[R_Swanson]

Another satisfied user here with a Carbon 6 shoulder prefit for a Tikka.
Ordered to my spec (17”, 6.5CM, 1/8, Sendero) and arrived in quoted lead time (16-18 weeks I believe). Torqued on, headspaced fine and it shoots great. As for removing the factory barrel - as others have mentioned it’s easily done at home. I used MechForce vise, and a Brownells Universal action wrench. Put some brown sugar around the barrel before tighten in the vise, I used a cheater pipe and a hammer. Probably didn’t need the cheater. The impact/impulse of the hammer smack is really what works to get it initially broken loose.

I'm going to have to do this soon... Admittedly I haven't searched - but I've always wondered why people don't use impact wrenches. It's way more effective than a breaker bar. Will it be more likely to mar the action?

 

[wade2big]

I'm going to have to do this soon... Admittedly I haven't searched - but I've always wondered why people don't use impact wrenches. It's way more effective than a breaker bar. Will it be more likely to mar the action?

Most people, me included, use an outside wrench to break loose factory barrels. I will use an inside wrench thereafter. A cheater isnt needed on Tikkas. Wack the action wrench with your hand and the barrels will spin off. All three of mine did. If that doesn’t work you could hold pressure with one hand and pop the action wrench handle with a rubber mallet using the other hand. Done deal. My 13 year old son did my last one.

 

[R_Swanson]

Most people, me included, use an outside wrench to break loose factory barrels. I will use an inside wrench thereafter. A cheater isnt needed on Tikkas. Wack the action wrench with your hand and the barrels will spin off. All three of mine did. If that doesn’t work you could hold pressure with one hand and pop the action wrench handle with a rubber mallet using the other hand. Done deal. My 13 year old son did my last one.

Thanks Wade, that was my misunderstanding. I was assuming internal action wrench.

 

[wade2big]

Thanks Wade, that was my misunderstanding. I was assuming internal action wrench.

As easily as mine all broke, an inside action wrench would do the job. An impact would probably make it happen easily. I would take up all the slack by hand between the action and the wrench and bump it with the impact. Let us know how it goes if you do it.

All of mine were T3x. Maybe the T3’s are tighter. I wouldn’t know.

 

[DukeGSP]

I went with the PR prefit for my T3. just got everything together Monday of this week. haven't shot it yet but I'm very satisfied with the overall fitment of everything.

 

[bassmaster07]

Looking forward to hearing how it shoots, thank you for the business. We appreciate it!

Well got the barrel installed and broken in per instructions online. These are shots 36-40 in barrel. New Prime 130 6.5 creedmoor. @bohem . 100 yards off a bench.

 

[bohem]

Well got the barrel installed and broken in per instructions online. These are shots 36-40 in barrel. New Prime 130 6.5 creedmoor. @bohem . 100 yards off a bench.

Well done, Sir! That is excellent shooting.

 

[bassmaster07]

Well done, Sir! That is excellent shooting.

It was a perfect storm. Awesome new barrel. New adjustable Whiskey 3 rear stock for the bravo (thanks @cattleman99 ) . Was using a @Precision Underground bag. I have been rewatching rifle setup in the online training videos.

Now to get out to distance.

 

[Precision Underground]

It was a perfect storm. Awesome new barrel. New adjustable Whiskey 3 rear stock for the bravo (thanks @cattleman99 ) . Was using a @Precision Underground bag. I have been rewatching rifle setup in the online training videos.

Now to get out to distance.

 

[bohem]

We are having a flash sale for 22 centerdire barrels on tikka and ruger actions.

I got a batch of 50 barrels from rock creek that were an overrun from a high end AR manufacturer. They are all 5R stainless blanks that can be made into prefits for tikka size tenons.

Tikka/Ruger 22 Flash Sale

[email protected]

patriotvalleyarms.com

 

[bigwatchpilot]

I ordered 2 Carbon6 barrels in 6.5C at 18”. I was going to build matching guns for me and my son. He likes his how it is so I have an extra unused barrel if anyone is interested in not waiting...

 

[MarinePMI]

I ordered 2 Carbon6 barrels in 6.5C at 18”. I was going to build matching guns for me and my son. He likes his how it is so I have an extra unused barrel if anyone is interested in not waiting...

PM inbound.

 

[BigBlastin300win]

Can anyone really say which one of these barrels would be most accurate. Looking into prefits and just want to get the most accurate barrel. Thinking about going carbon for a 6.5prc or 300prc. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Proof
carbon six
PVA
Bartlein
Straight jacket