I usually charge about $75 for this procedure. I do need the receiver, complete bolt and trigger. The safety and the trigger along with the cocking piece need to fit so when the safety is applied, the cocking piece is cammed off of the trigger sear from .010 to .015 of an inch.

I'd like to log into this to thank Mr. Wisner again for the wonderful job on my lefty .300 RUM. I love my 3-position, maybe I got the last one of his?
Don Browning

Gentlemen,
I am finishing up at The Colorado School of Trades and spent today attempting to fit a Gentry 3 position safety on a CD Mauser that will be a gift for my older brother. In short it was what I thought to be a simple job that turned into a nightmare. I called Gentry's and spoke with the younger fellow who was an ass to deal with. He did get his father on the phone, who was very polite, and gave me a number of suggestions. Unfortunately none proved to correct the problem... In short I've destroyed one cocking piece after multiple suggested passes to gain the 30 degree relief cut. I've beveled, polished, and assembled and torn down the firing pin assembly and safety shroud so much that I type this with exceptionally sore fingers. No one on staff, those worth asking, could deduce the problem. In short I'm out of a day out of a tight time schedule and a useless safety... Dakota or NECG?

Regards, Matt Garrett
Lakewood, Colorado

I put an NECG on a 1935 Chilean 98 Mauser with no problems. It was not a drop in fit. If you can read and follow instructions and are a little handy with some basic tools, it is no problem. I would use another NECG without hesitation. I'm not a gunsmith, but I do have one for a brother that I use for backup.

Jim Wisner-

Thank you for your history of those that produce three position safeties for Mausers. That was very informative.

How does Ed LaPour fit into your history or family tree of Three Position Safeties. Doesn't Ed's products trace their roots back to you and/or your dad?

I know that Ed's design on Enfield safeties harks back to you or your dad because I have one of each and they look identical.

Thanks in advance.

It looks like Brownells has dropped the NECG, and the Dakota has been out of stock forever.

The only 3 position Mauser safety they have is the Gentry.

THis thread is being brough tup again? Every 3 position safety takes work to fit most of the time. SOme times you get lucky, but that is all it is-luck. It is not because one safety is better or worse or some one has vastly greater skill than the rest of us. Install enough M70 safeties on enough rifles and you will pull your hair out on some and others will drop right in.

Draw what is happeneing with the safety on a piece of paper on your bench. Look at the angles, faces, and narrow range of dimensions involved in a properly working 3 position safety. Now change the faces a few degrees or add or take off a few thousandths on your drawing and look at the whole thing going down the toilet before your eyes. ANyone with experience in manufacturing will know the tolerances that are reasonable for different price points. Look at all of the different actions and safeties out there and we are really very lucky to have it so good.

We have it so good that "Brownells-parts-changers-gunsmiths" can often install a 3 position safety without really understanding how the safety works and what all is going on.

I have spoken to the elder Gentry a couple of times, the Younger several times, and even Maw Gentry 2 or 3 times. Everyone of them has been polite, helpful, and responsive, even when I was trying to fix bone-headed mistakes on my part. Of course, I was always very polite and professional, and that goes farther to having a good good conversation with some one than anything else.

AHR is the only safety I won't use agin. It was the lowest quality of any safety I have used and had to send the action to them. AHR had to chenge parts in it to get it to work and then tried to lie to me about it.

And besides, if you want a SS M70 safety for a M700, Gentry is the only game in town. You may have to use a lot of profanity to get the thing working, but you will have a very rust resitant M700 safety with 3 positions when you are finished!!!

The problem I found with the Gentry is the indexing. The bolt has to turn 90 deg and the indexing on the Gentry is not; it is more or less. That is why it don't work and you can't make it work without changing the indexing and that is a lot of work.

The Dakota is machined out of spec for what it should be. That is why it needs so much work to get fitted.

Go with Ed Lapour and you won't look back

Jim