This question is for anyone who OWNS a Model 70
(fn) new model Winchester in either 375 H&H, 416 Rem or 458 WM. Can a round be chambered by hand after the magazine has been filled ? I have asked around & got answers on each side of the coin so I need this answered by someone that actually own one and has tried it.

clayman216,

I have one of the newer "Alaskan" model Winchester M70 .375 H&H rifles from South Carolina (FN).
There is more than enough room for the bolt to close over 3 in the box.
You can put the fourth round on the box and press it down enough for the bolt to CRF it off the top and into the chamber when the bolt is closed.
This works very well.

You can also just drop the fourth round into the chamber, with muzzle pointed down, and hold the other three down in the box, with offhand thumb, as you close the bolt.

That works fine too, but there is a bit more resistance to turning the bolt handle down,
as the extractor has to snap over the rim on closing the bolt, if you just push one into the chamber by finger and gravity.

Better to CRF that fourth round off the top of the box, but either way works fine.
Will be the same with either the "Safari Express" model or the "Alaskan" model.
Alaskan M70 .375 H&H:

Safari Express M70 .375 H&H:



Gunnut for 50 years: THERE IS NO CURE

I have always felt that a modified Mauser or Win. mod 70 that would ride over the rim and chamber load by dropping a round in the chamber was a mistake, especially on a DGR, as the extractor must be cut to do so, and that weakens the metal and makes it prone to breakage, and I have seen this happen..

Add to that its easier to push a round down into the magazine and close the bolt when your empty and in a hurry, than it is to drop a round in the chamber and close the bolt, as I have seen rounds fall over and out while someone attempted to do this.

On a PG or deer rifle, I doubt if it makes a lot of difference one way or the other.

If I need more ammo in the magazine, then I'll opt for a drop box or larger clip or whatever. I feel that a rifles round capacity is how many the magazine holds.

Just a personal opinnion.

Regardless of opinions as to whether this is a good feature or not the answer is that in my experience with a new FN made model 70 safsri express in 375 H&H you can easily close the bolt on a round dropped in the chamber.

Yep,
Ray is right, but we can live with that. Hopefully it will never get anyone killed.
The FN M70 might be a little harder to make the pushfeed-snapover, maybe it was not beveled as much as previous M70 extractors.
Maybe that means it will be a little harder to make it fail to extract too.
I will always CRF off the top of the box for that 4th round, as there is plenty of room for that with the .375 H&H.
Will give it a try with the FN M70 .458WinMag too.

No doubt about it, the standard Mauser Controlled Round Feed and Controlled Round Extaction is more reliable,
will make more angels dance on the head of a pin.

Right or wrong I was schooled to press on the extractor body which helps ease the extractor lip over the rim of the case when closing the bolt on a cartridge that is not picked up from the magazine. I think that this habit is a hold over from original Mauser actions and their users where the extractor has not been modified like the Mod 70.

When you do the "Mauser Extractor Pinch" to load that final cartridge into the chamber on top of a full magazine:

You better have a good Mauser extractor of machined steel that has been properly heat-treated to turn it into spring steel.

Some cast metal extractors don't seem to have the proper amount of "spring' in them, and they get permanently "sprung."

I hate pinching on the side of any extractor, and would not do it routinely.
I try to avoid that "emergency maneuver."

Yes

I'd rather not ruin the case head by forcing the ectractor over it and I don't like the idea of snapping the extractor over the case head. The method I use was mentioned by someone else. simply push the 4th round down on top of the mag while you slide the bolt forward and the head of the case slides right under the extractor and into the chamber nice and smooth.

It is also good to keep in mind that some rifles will not push the last round(first one on top) out of the magazine unless the mag is not filled to capacity or in other words you might have feeding issues with a stuffed magazine.

I put 3 down,load one into the chamber,with safety on, flip the gun, open the floor plate add one more round. This method I use on my Ruger RSM 416 rigby.

If it is a real issue to get more capacity there are guys making bigger boxes that take 4 or even 5 in 375.

I agree that snapping over a rim is not something you want to do. That said I think it is a feature that you really do need if you need it. I think it was Richard Harland wh owrote of the fact that his BSA could do this being critical to his survival on many occassions. But then most of us will never end up in the situations Mr Harland did!