Other than a hot load, what would make the bolt on my 8mmX06 Mauser stick. I went out and shot the rifle, and after the first shot the bolt handle was stuck. Imanaged to pry the handle up, then the bolt was still stuck closed. After turning the handle up and down a few times and moving the bolt back and forth about 1/8", I finally did get it open and the brass ejected like it should. Upon checking the brass, it looks perfectly normal. Primer okay, etc. The load in the '06 brass was 52 grains of IMR 4350, with a 180 grain bullet. Not a hot load. I shot another, and the same 10 minute struggle to get the bolt open. Same fine looking spent cartridge. The thired shot, and the bolt is still stuck. What do you all think may be the cause. The barrel AND the chamber were clean. I haven't measured the cases as yet. But they "eyeball" the same as a resized and loaded round. HELP!

I would suggest measuring the cases. The difference between open and stuck can't be determined by "eyeballing"!

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May your chambers be true to your bores.

Check the receiver for locking lug setback.

And have a look at the bolt lugs to: are there cracks?

Fritz

My first thought would be that the headspace in incorrect. The first thing I'd do would be to have it checked. George

try disasembling your bold and check to see if the cocking cam is gailing. If the cocking cam got to hot durring welding on the bolt handle it well gail when you operate the bolt in cocking. Two wqays to double check this is to either lube the cam and then operate the bolt by dry firering. the other is to use something else to pull the cocking piece back so that the bolt is cocked before you open it. I have a turk bolt that did this and it totaly locked up after a couple of operation cycles.
Ray

Sounds like lug set back. What type 98 Mauser was it VZ24, 1909 Argentine. K98K etc?

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NRA Life member

Assuming everything works on an empty chamber, I'm going to vote for "bad chamber", rough or bulged somewhere.

I would have voted lug setback, but from his description even after he got the bolt "up", he couldn't pull it back, so he would have been past the lugs at that point.

Some additional info: The rifle is an Oberndorf mauser. It is the rifle that came from the factory with the double-set triggers, and a down turned bolt handle that is shaped like a "spoon". It is also called a "BRNO" Mauser, because it says brno on it. I have removed the last stuck case from it and measured all the cases and compared them to a new 30.06 case, and a resized case. Length of the stuck case was 2.494, and the diameter from the base to the shoulder grows steadily smaller, so I don't think the chamber has a bulge in it to cause the case to stick. I am now beginning to wonder if the load of 52 grains of IMR 4350 behind a 180 grain may just simply have been too hot for this particular rifle. Possibly the chamber has a very short throat, and the bullet was into the lands? This is somthing I haven't yet checked.(pretty stupid, huh?) This was the first time since purchasing the rifle, that I have fired it. The bolt lugs look fine under a magnifying glass, no cracks or signs of denting.
The mystery continues....

I forgot to say that the primers of the reloaded case sit .003" below the brass case head, and the fired cases that stuck are now protruding about .003". One of the loads had 52 grains, and the other had 54 grains. The 54 grain load flattened the primer, but the lesser load didn't. Both primers backed out about the same. Incidently, the Speer #11 book gives 53 grains of IMR 4350 as a starting load for a 30.06 bullet of 180 grains.

It can't be an Oberndorf and BRNO. I don't know enoff about commercial brno's to say if you have a millitary reworked or a commercial. I bet Ray A does though.
Ray B

If I have to choose which, I would say BRNO, because it is stamped on it. It seems to me to be a commercial Mauser, as there is no half moon shaped opening on the left rear of the action side...the thumb clearance port?
Anyway, I found that the cartridges are very hard to chamber. I first chambered a loaded military 30.06 cartridge and ejected it with no problems. Then I tried to chamber a cartridge that I loaded in the 8mmX06 size, and it was extremely hard to puch all the way in and very difficult to close the bolt on. I found the same proble with opening the bolt on an unfired round that I found on a spent cartridge. After using my rubber mallet(hammer) on the bolt handle, it came back and ejected the live round. Thank God for no slam fires. I then examined the live round and found a slight "ring" at the base of the neck. It seems as though the neck of the cartridge is too tight. If everyone agrees with that....then what is the remedy? Turn the case necks? How much? Take the barrel off and re-chamber what someone else didn't? Try a different brand of brass? I am currently using "Norma" brass. As to the true identity of this Mauser, ask me and I will gladly tell you. It has some Czeck looking words on the left side of the action...same area where the militery Mausers have the thumb cut-out. And there is a number on the barrel and the action. It would be nice to actually know what this is, but it won't remedy the problem.

Sounds like a commercial brno and it probably started out as a 8x57If you have acess to a set of head space gages I would check the head space. it is posible that it was recambered using the early method of using a 30-06 reamer then using a chucking reamer to do the neck. First i would say that you need to do a chamber cast. From there you can deside what to do next. If the next is to tight it shouldn't be fom the brass. The brass would have to have been of proper thickness in its 30-06 form and would become thinner when necked up to 8mm. If you deside to a just the chamber it can be done without taking the barrel off. You can rent the chamber reamer from www.reamerrentals.com and use a 3/8 sock exstention to drive the reamer. But before you make any plans on adjusting the chamber, make the cast first to determine any problems.
Ray

auto,

Have you checked bore and groove diameter? If it is .318 instead of .323 that could account for the tight neck. It would also raise pressure QUITE a bit if you fire .323 bullets in it. Can you easily slide a .323 diameter bullet into the case neck of a fired case? If not, then there is not sufficient clearance for the bullet to release from the case neck without raising pressure dangerously.

Jim

I think you guys are correct...the chamber neck is too tight. Now I would like to identify the rifle, so I won't feel so dumb, and won't call it by the wrong name again. This rifle has some lettering on the left side of the reciever. I says: ZBROJOVKA BRNO,NAR.PODNIK The barrel says made in czechoslovakia. The caliber 7.92 is stamped on the barrel as well as a symbol of some sort, and the serial# 19755. The bolt handle is shaped like a spoon handle, and the rifle has double-set-triggers. There are two folding rear sight blades, and a ramped front sight. The front sling holder is a ring about 1/2" wide and is soldered around the barrel, close to the ebony forend. There is no crest or symbol on the large ring of the reciever, but the reciever ring has a pattern of sprial lines that are really close together, like maybe 30 lines to an inch, running from front left to right rear...diagonally. Upon closer look, the symbol on the barrel is repeated on the reciever, and next to it are the numbers "48". The symbol kind of looks like it may be a capital "N" only a little wider, with possibly a lion(?) in the center. The Lion(?) is standing on its hind legs with the tail raised.
I am going to ream the neck opening in the chamber a bit. Apparently, the loads were not hot. Just a tight neck. I won't fire it again until that is remedied. Thanks to all.