Anyone had the bolt handle peel off????

Be interested to hear.

Seen a few of them. Repaired two this year.

There is a way to correct this potential problem though.

http://members.tripod.com/Hicksdesigns/bolt_mod.htm

Celt

Yup, had a tightneck chamber that I fed a unturned load into. The handle pulled off alot easier than I thought it would. Had it replaced with a Holland tactical by my smith and that sucker could be used to pry a door open.

That's been fairly commmon on all the 600s and 700 models and the 788s are especially prone to coming off.

Celt,

I like your bolt fix... and the Badger knob too, very nice.

My dads bolt came loose on his 700 some time back... it was welded on, it won't come loose now.

JBelk et al.

Ok, I am lucky enough to have recently purchased a 788 (222) with a very tight chamber.
The weak bolt handle has had me concerned.
Is this the fix for the 788 also??
Is there a better one?

LouisB
Nosey folks want to know all the details

I have another fix. Buy a Howa instead. As accurate or better than a M700, and with a bolt handle forged as part of the bolt itself. You won't break it off, and you don't need super-duty solder, JB Weld, countersunk Torx screws, or anything else.

Mark Bansner is building custom rifles on Howa 1500 barreled actions. If Howa actions AND barrels are good enough for him, they're good enough for me.