Hi North Woods Hunter,
I just saw your post this morning ..... I'm having the EXACT same problem, with the EXACT same rifle ... the Accuguard, although mine is in 30-06. I just picked it up at the LGS this past Tuesday, September 12th. Same as you ... I was in a hurry and the gun shop was crowded so I didn't look at it thoroughly until I got home ... silly me.
I first noticed the sling swivel stud in the butt stock ... it's not properly installed, and then I noticed the improperly fitted barrel. I'm new to Weatherby rifles, this is my first. I use to be a Remington 700 guy until they started to have their QC issues several years ago. I've looked at Winchesters, Sako's, Brownings, but thought I would try Weatherby after reading the reviews about the Vanguard line of rifles.
I contacted Weatherby Customer service yesterday after talking to / recommendation of some friends of mine at my gun club. (They all said that the barrel was definitely not fitted properly) I must say the people I spoke to at Weatherby (from Leslie, who answers the phone & transfers you to the proper department, to Wendy in Customer Support, and a 3rd lady ... drawing a blank on her name ? .... were all very nice & understanding. Wendy said that she would show the pictures of the rifle showing the bad barrel fit & bad swivel stud fit to the gunsmiths. They should get back to me next week sometime.
Given that this is my first Weatherby rifle, frankly I was a little concerned that they might give me the run-around, but after talking with them, and reading how they handled your poor barrel fitting, I'm not that concerned anymore. (I just hope it shoots MOA or better when I finally get to shoot after they fix it. :-)
Thanks for posting ...