This is the rifle - a 303-25 built on a Lithow MkIII action.

The action binds. I thought at first it was dry, but oil does not help. I cannot see the cause and am beginning to get worried. The action shows considerable wear in places and the bolt is damaged in that the half-cock bolt locking piece is broken off. This is the break;


This cannot be causing the binding. Any ideas?

Try a differant bolt in it - not to fire , just to see if it also binds. Looking at the half-cock damage I would suspect a replacement bolt might help a lot - and it isnt as if they are in short supply here .

Just remember to get a competant gunsmith to set the headspace for you .....

quote:

Try a differant bolt in it

Thanks muzza. I tried my MkI bolt but the shroud do-dackies won't let it go past the clip charger bridge. But up to there, it binds! I then tried the MkIII bolt in my MkI. Gues what - it works fine! (Not firing). So it seems like the receiver has a problem.

Check the projection of the ejector (the screw) and that the sear is not dragging on the bolt.

Given that the nub is gone I'd be looking for a new bolt body. Din Collings probably has a gross of them

The fastest way for a Kiwi to fix his .303 is to join the 21st century and trade it off for a good gun.....

I looked at the ejector pin. It does look shiny but the screw on this rifle has not been disturbed and the pin is flush. However, the safety lock pin does touch the bolt so I removed the safety and now the bolt moves freely. BUT - when I chamber a fired case, the bolt binds on extraction! It seems that the extractor is pushing the case against what appears to be a sharp or rough edge at the chamber mouth. It leaves scratches on the case. I'll attempt a light polishing and see how that goes. The resistance on extraction is not noticeable when reloading quickly for follow up shots. It's when I'm trying to make the rifle safe, quietly, that it bothers me! Besides, Lee Enfield’s are supposed to be slick.

I'll look up Din Collings - thanks. But, is it a good idea to change bolts when the original has bedded itself through use? (Assuming it is still the original bolt).

quote:

The fastest way for a Kiwi to fix his .303 is to join the 21st century and trade it off for a good gun.....

What! Sacralidge!

(P.S. A Tikka T3 in 6.5x55 is tempting! )

quote:

quote:
The fastest way for a Kiwi to fix his .303 is to join the 21st century and trade it off for a good gun.....

What! Sacralidge! Big Grin


Regards
303Guy

ask Tentman to show you his 6MM Remington on a 98 Mauser....I'll bet the bolt don't bind on that gun!!!!!

Well, 303, you know how fragile the rails are on a Smelly....

I don't suppose when the barrel was replaced the "smith" may have very slightly bent or twisted the action in getting the old barrel off? Starting to sound maybe a bit like that to me...especially as both bolts bind.

(He may even have re-straightened it enough to not be a visible bend, but just enough to impair smooth flow of metal on metal.)



If you think that is the situation, there are several approaches to "cures", the most obvious of which is a replacement body. But before I went to that extreme, I'd probably use a 400 grit (maybe even finer) stone and try lapping the tops of the rails to see if a tiny bit more clearance wouldn't help.

I see 2 issues ...the bolt is damaged at the rear where it cams. The stock is in an ATI or similar and most likely is not fitted. When restocked you MUST maintain the correct geometry. Remove the triggerguard/trigger (one assembly) and insert a new bolt (no cartridge in the chamber). If it cycles OK and cocks against the sear, then you've ID'd the issue. Put the triggerguard/ trigger back on and retest...if sticky, then it is hanging up on the sear. Unfornately on these old Enfields the sear position is critical and may need to be repositioned by tuning up the inletting in the forend. My best guess and I've worked on a lot of these. 25/303 is a very nice conversion.

I messed with an ATI stock once.
I had to under cut with a dove tail bit to get a surface for the epoxy to grip.

I put in so much filler that it was a very heavy stock. And still it flexed.

Never again.
The original military wood with added epoxy would be better.

Thanks for the suggestions and help. I will take a look tomorrow. (Right now I have had a few beers and don't want to handle guns - just look at pictures of them).

Right. (I hadn't had that many beers but I was very tired). I have had a good look at this rifle and it seems several things were happening. I cannot see any sign of rail damage (which does not mean it's not there).

The safety plunger was rubbing on the bolt causing 'binding' at the rear.
The ejector screw was protruding (I don't know if that made any difference).
There is a sharp edge or burr on the chamber face, which binds the case when the extractor presses it sideways.
The extractor pushes the bolt over causing the locking lug to bind in the guide.

I have polished the bolt and internal surfaces of the action and the chamber mouth. I have rest the ejector screw back a bit and removed the safety mechanism. Then I oiled the whole thing real well STP/Smoke Stopper). The oil helps, so did the polishing and removing of the offending bits. It will work but I think it is a lemon and will look out for a MkI action to replace this one with. On the up side, it has a unique feature in that I can carry the rifle in the half-cock mode with the bolt unlocked. There is no way the action can be accidentally closed and the bolt holds in position, so it will not drop open and lose a cartridge. To fire the gun I have to push the bolt forward a bit against spring load and lock it then I have to pull the cocking mechanism to 'fire'.

I did use the safety then discovered I had a tendency to forget it and found it getting pushed to the fire position inadvertently. (I normally carry a rifle with the bolt unlocked or chamber empty - I have lost a few cartridges this way but better that than an AD).