Sure its not a problem bud. Sorry if i came in hot.
The cost of a top of the line carbon barrel headspaced, cerakoted and chambered and delivered to me is $1100. That is a bit more then a tikka costs but much less then it takes to reproduce a hells canyon tikka. Or any other custom action in a manners stock with a trigger tech. Then you have the optics for multiple rifles vs one. While you didnt bring all the other stuff up it does serve to prove additional points. However if you just say the $1100 is a wash on what a new gun cost its still cheaper to have 1 gun with 4 barrels vs 4 ready to go guns with 4 ready to go scopes. 4 ready to go guns with 1 scope maybe close to the same price depending on how nice you make the guns.
The second point a agree with. Everytime you take something apart and put it back together you do run the chance of something breaking. I couldnt tell you about what happens if you over torque or under torque a barrel as I use the WTO switch lug. The only catasrophic failure I could see would be over tightening the clamp and stripping out the threads or cross threading the barrel. Im pretty comfortable that they designed the switch lug to take more then the 30 ft lbs which is what fix it stick you use. I am just careful when I swap barrels and take a deep breath. The old mechanics way of if it doesnt go stop and take it out and try again. Never force it.
Third point I can see how that would make sense but I can tell you that your mistaken and here is why. I was demostrating the repeatability of switching barrels and making a cold bore hit on a 2moa gong that can represent the vital on a sheep, elk or even a large mule deer. Although I use a 8" gong for mule deer vitals and a 6" gong on pronghorns and small whitetail. Anyways. What I was trying to say is the system is repeatabe but you must have a good dialing scope and you must have the offsets of where barrel A shoots vs Barrel B shoots POI vs POA. 406smith demonostrated this is another post beautifully on how even a very good 100 yard zero can and noramlly will have a touch of offset to it. You can use programs where you take a picture of the target and it will tell you the offset and group size. Being as I shoot a bunch ammo cost is what it is. There is no more associated cost with running a switchlug vs normal guns for me. Average hunter that shoot 20 rounds a year this is a horrible system that they shoud stay away from. You need to have a firm grasp on ballistics and how to use your chosen ballistics program. This isnt a system I would reccomend for a casual level shooter. I use about 60 rounds just to sight in my barrels. Lets just say 6 10 round groups. 3 10 round groups chronoed and suppressed and 3 10 round groups chronoed and not suppressed. This give me a good data set to build my offsets in my ballistic solver. But I do this on standalone rifles too not just switchlugs. The point is im very comfortable with barrel swaps and being able to hit a cold bore 10" vital gong on an animal at 500 yards everytime drop wise. Wind is always the determing factor when shooting that far. Drop is very easy to solve for.
Fouth point you are right. I take great care when im switching barrels and bolts. All the bullets are red tip hornady on the particular tikka I have been refrencing. when I swap I just do it undistracted verify 3 times and put the other componets up when they can not be accidently grabbed. For me its kinda like clearing a rifle to verify its unloaded. I clear it and look 3 times that is unloaded before I say its unloaded. Same with a barrel swap I verify the bolt vs ammo vs barrel 3 times. Most times I will have the other components out so I can put the ammo with the correct barrel and the correct bolt. I havent had a trip where I felt it was nessecary to take 3 barrels anyways so Im usually just working with 2 sets of componets and the third and fourth set are still at home.
The setup I am using is a tikka switch lug with a 300 wsm barrel, 6mm creedmoor barrel and a 223 barrel. I just ordered a 6.5 prc barrel for this setup. Why did i order another barrel. Just had a itch i guess. The 223 barrel is normally just used for practice so it normally doesnt go on trips. The gun was built to go to africa with in 2020 but that was a F up and we didnt get to go. 2021 not looking to swift either. It was funny that you brought up plains game vs dangerous game in africa.
Picture so you know this isnt all theoretical bullshit. This gun actually exists. As it sits it weighs 8lbs with optics and mags but unloaded without bipod. I like it so much I am building another switchlug in LA. The tikka is a awesome SA to medium action but cant run some of the LA chamberings I would like to play with as well.
View attachment 262101
westtexordnance.com
