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M70 ejector problem
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On a recent trip to TZ, the ejectors in a Winchester Safari Classic M70 in .375 H&H quit working. The brass could be worked out with a finger tip. Could this have been caused by loading the magazine, and then putting one on top and push feeding it? I had been told this was an acceptable practice because the mechanism was made to accept it.

The man who sold me the rifle, from a well respected gun shop, speculated that the African heat caused increased pressures in a round which had been chambered for some time, which perhaps resulted in the failure. Could this be true? The .375 rounds themselves were not loaded hot, 2500 fps with a 300 gr bullet. His advise was to periodically rotate the rounds or leave the chamber empty until needed.

Your advise would be appreciated. Thanks.
 
Posts: 87 | Location: Texas Hill Country | Registered: 20 March 2004Reply With Quote
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First I think you mean the extractor quit working no the ejector.

Second, African heat is no different than other heat and most safaris are not conducted in extreme temperatures anyway

Third, i can not understand how the length of time the cartridge sat in the chamber would matter unless were are talking about oil and heat literally drying and stickying up the case...

Lastly, I am trying to figure out how if the gun wa sin battery and was able to fire, I am thinking that the case was gripped by the extractor otherwise I am not sure the gun was in battery.

So I am going to point towards a tension problem with the extractor claw


Mike

Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.



What I have learned on AR, since 2001:
1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken.
2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps.
3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges.
4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down.
5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine.
6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle.
7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions.
8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA.
9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not.
10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact.
11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores.
12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence.
13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances.
 
Posts: 10134 | Location: Loving retirement in Boise, ID | Registered: 16 December 2003Reply With Quote
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Sounds like the extractor needs replaced.
Did it fire and you had to pull like hell to get the round out but have the claw actually pull over the rim???

Sounds like that is a rifle Id repair before I took on a dangerous animal with.




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Posts: 3077 | Location: Northern Nevada & Northern Idaho | Registered: 09 April 2005Reply With Quote
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The case would pull out of the chamber just fine. It simply went nowhere after that. Maybe I don't know the difference between an extractor and an ejector. But the brass stayed above the magazine when the bolt was drawn back. I could then pull it out with a finger tip. It has since been repaired but I did not take the time to talk with the gunsmith that did the work. My son picked up the rifle.
 
Posts: 87 | Location: Texas Hill Country | Registered: 20 March 2004Reply With Quote
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i just picked up another m70 classic 375 and brought it home and had the same problem, it would extract the case but not eject it. i noticed that the ejector blade was low so i kind of lifted it up with my finger but everytime i ran the bolt closed it would push the ejector down. then all i did was loosen up the middle screw(the front one in the triggergaurd) and it works fine. i guess you just cant overtighten those middle ones. not sure if this helps but worth a look..
 
Posts: 201 | Location: S.E. Alaska | Registered: 25 February 2005Reply With Quote
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Fixed blade ejectors have to be able to pivot on their pin, in and out of the way of the moving bolt... and if they get gunked up (or placed in a bind) they can stick in the “out of the way†position and never pop out to hit the empty case when the bolt is drawn to the rear.
 
Posts: 4574 | Location: Valencia, California | Registered: 16 March 2005Reply With Quote
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quote:
Originally posted by grizzinater:
i just picked up another m70 classic 375 and brought it home and had the same problem, it would extract the case but not eject it. i noticed that the ejector blade was low so i kind of lifted it up with my finger but everytime i ran the bolt closed it would push the ejector down. then all i did was loosen up the middle screw(the front one in the triggergaurd) and it works fine. i guess you just cant overtighten those middle ones. not sure if this helps but worth a look..


You're right. The first action screw (at the front) should be well tightened. The rear most triggerguard should be "snug" - i mean tight, but not to the extent that the front bolt is tightened. And the middle screw should be tight enough to firmly hold the trigger guard in place (that's its only purpose)... no more.


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Posts: 4025 | Registered: 28 May 2004Reply With Quote
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Sometimes the slot for the M70 ejector has a burr in it or does not have enough clearance, resulting in a failure. That is one of the things that a good DG gunsmith will attend to when working over a M70 prior to an African trip. It is simply unwise to take a M70 to Africa without it first being worked over because there are many things that can go wrong due to loose QC at the factory.
 
Posts: 18352 | Location: Salt Lake City, Utah USA | Registered: 20 April 2002Reply With Quote
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quote:
Originally posted by grizzinater:
i just picked up another m70 classic 375 and brought it home and had the same problem, it would extract the case but not eject it. i noticed that the ejector blade was low so i kind of lifted it up with my finger but everytime i ran the bolt closed it would push the ejector down. then all i did was loosen up the middle screw(the front one in the triggergaurd) and it works fine. i guess you just cant overtighten those middle ones. not sure if this helps but worth a look..


The bolt is supposed to push the ejector down when it goes forward...that’s the whole idea in having a spring tensioned “pivoting†ejector. The bolt holds it down until the slot in the bolt head passes over it and allows it to pop up to be in the way of the rear moving bolt/case so as to kick it out.

I could be wrong, but I doubt that you could place enough torque on the middle guard screw to flex the receiver enough to bind the ejector in its slot. Doing so will play havoc with accuracy and maybe even feeding though.
 
Posts: 4574 | Location: Valencia, California | Registered: 16 March 2005Reply With Quote
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Did your rifle eject better with rounds down in the magazine than with only the round in the extractor? If you pull the bolt out, place a round on the face and close the extractor, does the bolt grip the round tightly or does the round flop around? Having rounds down in the mag puts upward pressure on the case being extracted, helping to hold it in the extractor. But once the neck of the case clears the ejection port, the extractor loses control of the case. I had this problem with the original extractor on my M1999. Not enough extractor tension. MRC fixed it with a new extractor.

MKane160


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Posts: 488 | Location: TN | Registered: 03 January 2004Reply With Quote
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And it's always the Ruger 416 Rigby that's cops the flak for this problem!!!
 
Posts: 159 | Location: New Zealand | Registered: 30 May 2002Reply With Quote
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May I assume from the above that its ok to push feed a round into the chamber, and that the overheating comment can be discounted?
 
Posts: 87 | Location: Texas Hill Country | Registered: 20 March 2004Reply With Quote
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Since you say it "quit working", I assume it worked at least once. If you had to pull the ejector blade up, the ejector spring has broken and/or come off. It is a small spring and tricky to reinstall.
Since the rifle extracts the case from the chamber, "pushfeeding" it was not to blame.


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Posts: 1366 | Location: Houston, TX | Registered: 10 February 2003Reply With Quote
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