Leaving for Colorado 3rd rifle season in a few days and I just had the bolt handle come apart from the bolt. So I had a round stick a little and I gave the handle a "little" whack. Nothing severe just some firm persuasion. Fired the next round just fine untill i went to lift the handle and it came off in my hand. It didnt break, it just seperated at the weld. Remmingtin cant fix it soon enough and the local Remmington repair guys wont touch it. this is on a Sendero SF 300 ultra mag. I have a backup gun available but I really wanted to use the 300 rum on this trip, any suggestions?

It needs to be brazed back on. Some firms specialize in welding these handles back on Remmy bolts. The welded handles need to be done by someone with experience as heat treating on a bolt is critical.
Use another gun...get it fixed properly when you come back.
Maybe Varmint Guy will let you borrow one of his Remington rifles...they seem to be flawless!!!

Take it to your smith if you have one in your area and see what he can do but you might have to pay, depends how bad you need it and if your prepared to for go a free fix

No good all the same

Jeff (Celt) Hicks at H.D. Rifles has the best modification to prevent or fix detached bolt handles. Known as the Remington Bolt Mod, Celt puts three machine screws through the polt handle into the body of the bolt then smooths and refinishes the bolt assembly. It's one of Jeff's signature modifications and it will not fail. Here's a pic:



HD Rifle's Webpage

Costs $95 for the Bolt Mod. Or $140 for the Mod AND Badger Bolt Knob. Turn-around is usually 1-2 weeks. Had both jobs done to several of my rifles (one there now).

[ 10-27-2003, 15:55: Message edited by: Arock ]

A machinist or welder or gunsmith that is familiar with the Remingtons AND silver solder foil can do the repair. I made a clamping fixture to align parts and I take measurements to insure that I'm getting maximum extraction effort after the handle is re-installed. There are lots of ways to botch this up, I've seen several where bozos tried to use brass braze to attach the handle.

Could he order a headspace gauge and try to find another bolt that fits?

While your at it replace the extractor, ejector, brazed on locking lug section, safety, trigger and oh yes the bolt handle. While your at it add CRF and a stripable bolt system.

A 19th century philosopher by the name of Ruskin wrote that the most expensive thing that you can buy is something that fails to do the job that you got it for.

[ 10-27-2003, 18:40: Message edited by: Savage 99 ]

It's too late for the best cure: Don't buy a Remington. Maybe he's learned and won't repeat the mistake.

As someone else has said, why would one ever buy a rifle made and marketed by the lowest possible bidder, with every single feature designed purely to reduce manufacturing cost?

Most gunsmiths and some machine shops will have dealt with this problem. Phone around. If you have another Rem. bolt it would be best to take it with you to a machine shop so they can see what it should look like. As someone else said silver solder foil and a little heat. Possibly a little less powder. I have done the same thing with my 700 in .22 Cheetah. Mark

Hey now! That woolly mammoth was a bitch to kill with my .22 pistol.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Cold Bore:

And I'm curious, does the Savage M99 meet your specified list of must-haves above?

Cold Bore,

First of all the 99 Savage pleases me from an asthetic and functional standpoint. The Rem 722 was my first CF and I oiled it up and aimed it well until I saw my first M 70 and 99. Then it was just another cheap gun. There were Savage 340's then and lots of junk military rifles around too.

The 99 Savage has CRF, a spool magazine and in general is a class act. The Rem 7XX's were a good design if one wanted the cheapest thing to make but they never progressed. Instead they made them pretty but not safer or more functional. Thus the still inferior extraction, safety, trigger, bolt etc.

This is a warrantee problem. Send the rifle back to Remington and they will fix it. In the mean time get or borrow another rifle.

Remmington has no problem fixing it under warrenty. Its just that I leave Phoenix tomorrow for NW Colorado for Elk and Deer. I already have a backup 7mm Rem mag so there are no worries there and I hope to have the opportunity to use one of my "Old war horses" to take my doe. Just have'nt decided on Mauser or Mosin-Nagant there.
I really do love the screw-in-place option for the bolt handle. That is exactly what I was hoping to find. If only I had 3-4 weeks instead of just days. As far as Remmington quality goes, A cant complain really, this gun will, can and does shoot sub 1/2 moa groups with the hornaday 178 gr A-max on top of RL-22. I have had a brake installed, the trigger reset to about 2 1/2 lbs and piller bedded by Kodiac Precision here in Phoenix. My brother has the same rifle in .338 RUM and will shoot the Accubond just as well.

I can break just about anything with or without really trying, I just think should come off that easily and "easily " is all relitive I guess. I'm used to really pounding on some of the mil surps I have worked on the past few years. Now there is something you cam put some muscle into withour worrying too much.

As far as another bolt is concerned, My brothers just might work, if I could get MY bolt out and as I said, Remmington will warrenty the thing just as soon as I send it back to them. They said that they will not send out a new bolt-even if I paid for it- because they have to headspace check the new bolt themselves. That Lawyer stuff again.

Again thanks to all who replied, happy hunting
Jeff

[ 10-28-2003, 13:22: Message edited by: rockyroadsaz ]

Like said before, a gunsmith familiar with silver-soldering can do a better job than the factory. The factory uses a silver brazing that is done in a furnace & it many times gets too hot, burning some of the silver out.

If the right silver solder (a high silver content)is used, it has a 90,000 psi tensile strength, & holds better than the originals. And as also said, a special fixture is needed to align the handle root with the back side locking lug.