Win. Mod. 70 Safety - An Accident Not Waiting to Happen

08 October 2003, 07:30

Need Just 1 More Gun

Will,

Exactly how heavy is your trigger finger? [Big Grin]

Although it makes me cringe to do it, all of my rifles get a "slam test" after a trigger job. I grab it by the barrel and slam the butt on the ground much harder than if it was just dropped. The sound of the firing pin dropping on a improperly adjusted trigger is like hearing a rattlesnake sound off.

On the bright side, scares like yours provide a permanent reinforcement of the point the muzzle in a safe direction rule, and your sharing the story reinforces it for the rest of us.

Steve

08 October 2003, 08:23

500grains

quote:
Originally posted by Will:
Firstly, I want to admit I am not a very extensive or experienced user of Model 70's.

Secondly, I am not a big fan of the 3-position safety. It seems like a lot of wasted motion.

But the kicker is the discovery I made while on a recent trip:

I am walking up to the side of the PH to try to nail this critter. I have the rifle sort of at parade rest, pointed ahead but stratled between my hands and not up to my shoulder. I slip the safety off the .416 and it goes bang!!!

The rifle just about flies from my hands, as I catch it by the barrel with my right hand, the rear sight cutting my palm. It scared the crap out of both the PH, since he was still slightly ahead of me, and myself.

I didn't know what the hell happened.

I then, later, discover that the barest pressure applied to the trigger, even the slightest touch, when the safety is pushed forward, will release the firing pin, and it goes bang!

So I tried it on another Mod. 70 I have when I got home and the same thing.

I guess I had never done this in the past, by shear coincidence, and I admit this was my own doing by having my finger anywhere near the trigger, but this is not good.

Is this the way Mod. 70's are suppose to be?

Spooky!

Shame on you for not using a double for all of your hunting.

Personally I greatly dislike a model 70 safety. When I convert Mausers I like a Buehler style safety. For an iron-sighted rifle, I prefer the original military safety. If I have to use a model 70 safety, I prefer a 2 position, as it seems the middle position tends to wear out and it becomes a 2 position safety eventually anyway.

I had a model 70 that had a self-adjusting trigger pull and during the hunt it went from 2.5 pounds down to firing when the bolt was closed. A bit of torque on those little nuts remedied that problem.