New favorite for a new century: in the author's opinion, no rifle was ever heifer named. Savage Arms' new favorite is a worthy inheritor of this name, and a fun project for the hobby gunsmith

Guns Magazine, Dec, 2002 by Jim Gardner

I needed to pull the barrel to see if there was an appropriate location to install a takedown screw. Armed with the proper location for this screw, the ideal procedure would be to locate and tap drill for the screw before ever pulling the barrel. Having made a sketch of the proper dimensions, I reinstalled and pinned the barrel.

At some point here, you'll find yourself wanting to remove the breech block and lever. Be aware that the 30G is assembled with cross pins having a knurled head. They must be driven out from left to right.

Do The Job Right

Drilling for the takedown screw must be done with a milling machine, or at the minimum on a good drill press with a rigid quill. Drilling holes on a radius is something easy to make a mess of. It just can't be done well without good equipment.

Use a large, stiff centerdrill to locate the hole. The compound radius of the 30G's receiver is sure to allow a regular drill bit to wander. With a good drill start, you're ready to tap drill the receiver, Which thread diameter and pitch you are going to use for the takedown screw must be given some consideration.

The takedown screw of an original Favorite is threaded .310x30. That is to say, 5/16 inch diameter, 30 threads per inch. A very fine thread such as this is ideal for a screw which will be hand tightened and which must not loosen. Brownells offers taps and dies in 5/16x32, and this would be the best choice if you are fabricating your takedown screw from scratch.

Where To Get The Good Stuff

By the way, Brownells is the source for the tools and supplies for any amateur gunsmithing project. Nearly every item in my overflowing toolbox has come from these good folks, and their tech department is always ready to help with your questions. If you don't have their catalog, stop right now and give them a call at [800] 741-0015.

The other alternative for our takedown screw is to use 5/16x24. The good news here is that taps and dies are easily obtained, and that a 5/16 automotive bolt may be modified to serve as a takedown screw. The bad news is that we will need to be a little more careful to insure that the takedown screw remains tight when the rifle is in use.

The drawing will show you where to drill for the takedown screw, but establishing the correct depth is a little more difficult. One approach is to tap drill the receiver with the barrel removed, deburr and install the barrel, and then drill sufficiently to spot the location of the seat on the barrel shank.

On my rifle, the finished depth to the bottom of the barrel's locking seat is .755 inch.

If you have a good feel for the proper depth, you can drill with the barrel inserted, and then remove the barrel prior to tapping the receiver. Regardless, the barrel must be rigidly pinned in place when the hole for the screw seat in the barrel is located. To do otherwise almost guarantees a misaligned barrel.

The actual seat in the barrel for the locking screw was first spotted for location while tap drilling the receiver, but the final seat was cut with a .250 inch, four-flute end mill. This duplicated the barrel seat in my old 1915 model Favorite. The final depth of the barrel seat was .075 inch.