Reader Forum

Feedback: Rechambering The Arisaka… In the 1980s, I experienced the identical situation of bulged cases as Reuben Cole described in his letter "Rechambering the Arisaka" in the Reader Forum column in the July 09 Issue. My experience led me to investigate the reason, at first suspecting an oversized chamber as did the editor who answered Mr. Cole’s question. I subsequently acquired several Type 38 rifles and one Type I (Italian manufactured).

I made chamber casts of all of them for comparison, and determined that the chambers were all within very close agreement with each other. I eventually concluded that the cause of the bulged cases was not oversized chambers, but rather undersized cases. My investigation was documented, and was published in Handloader magazine (September- October 1984). I recommend that Mr. Cole read a copy of my article in that issue before he initiates the rechambering of his rifle.

By reforming readily available cases, the problem can be solved quite simply. By the way, my bulged cases were manufactured by Norma, but I suspect other manufacturers used similar dimensions for their products. James Taylor Thanks for the tip, James. AMT Backup Disassembly I have an AMT Backup pistol in .22 LR in the shop that needs a replacement extractor. Numrich has the part, but I can’t find any instructions for disassembly.

I’ve looked through my copies of American Gunsmith going back to 2002, and my Gun Digest books don’t show any AMT products. Any help will be appreciated. Name not given Update your Gun Digest books with the latest edition on automatic pistols. It includes the .380 Backup, and the .22-caliber version takes down in the same manner.

Winchester Stock Removal I have three Winchester Model 50 auto shotguns, two in 12 gauge and one in 20 gauge, and all have the following issue: To remove the stock, it appears you need to remove the buttplate, then reach up inside the stock to remove a buffer lock and unscrew the inertia rod from the receiver-extension tube. This gets the stock loose, but the inertia rod is still captured and won’t slide out of the stock. Therefore, the stock won’t come free from the gun.

I’m at a loss as to what to do next to get the stock free from the gun. All attaching parts and pins seem to be captured or hidden. Any ideas? Michael Helgerson We had to dig way back for the official field manual on these shotguns published when Olin Corp. was in control of the late U. S. Repeating Arms. This is what it said: Remove the buttplate and buffer lock. Insert a bladed driver into the buffer-lock slot in the buffer plug. Undo the plug.

Ease the plug out of the stock; it’s under tension from the closing spring. Do not allow the plug to escape and get lost. The spring and inertia rod are then withdrawn from the stock hole. You might want to check with Jerry Stevens at Nu Line Guns ext. 5) to be certain that subsequent engineering changes didn’t invalidate the above instructions. But don’t bother calling Browning/Winchester. The Model 50 predates their present arrangement by about 50 years.

NEF Extraction Problem A customer recently brought me a New England Firearms Handi Rifle in .270 caliber with an extraction problem. When the gun is opened, the extractor drops down below the case rim before it tries to extract. The chamber was kind of rough, but after polishing it there was no change. The only thing I can think of is that the extractor is caliber specific and the wrong one has been installed. Your help and advice would be appreciated.

Kenneth Wright The extractor on the .270 model also serves the .308 and .30-06 models, so it is not caliber specific. The extractor can bypass the case head on closing the action due to a fouled chamber or dirty ammunition. You may have eliminated the possibility of a dirty chamber due to your polishing effort, but how about the brass?

You should also make certain the extractor cut in the breechface is spotless, and check the extractor for vertical movement. (It’s spring loaded.) Excessive motion could allow the component to get out of position and might indicate a weak spring. If this is the case, replace the spring and extractor. If you don’t get positive results from the above actions, your only option would be to return the rifle to NEF for factory service.

Remington Trigger Adjustment Do you have any info on how to set the trigger pull weight on the X-Mark-Pro trigger on the Remington Model 700? I just had a gun dealer order me a Model 700 VTR with the X-Mark-Pro trigger, but they sent me last year’s model that has to be adjusted from the inside. The 2009 models adjust from the outside with a tool, but this is not the case with mine. Thanks. R. J. If you told your dealer to order you a M700 with the new X-Mark-Pro trigger, then you didn’t get what you ordered.

We’d have a chat with the dealer about that. If the chat doesn’t solve the problem, we suggest you call Remington and purchase a 2009 Mark- X-Pro trigger. We’re pretty sure the old and new models of the trigger are readily interchangeable. If you don’t want to do that, dig out your August 07 issue of American Gunsmith. In it

you’ll find an article on how to adjust the older M700 trigger. Firing Pin for Commando? I have a customer with a Commando Mark III .45-caliber semi-auto from Volunteer Enterprises Inc., Knoxville, Tennessee. He lost the firing pin. I need help locating a firing pin or drawings that would help me make one. Thank you for your help in this matter. Tim About all we can tell you is that the carbine was made by Commando Arms in the late 1970s and was patterned after the Thompson sub-machine gun.

It’s possible that a firing pin from the Thompson could be the solution, but we suggest you check with Kahr Arms present maker of the "Tommy Gun," to check on interchangeability. Remington Model 552 Ejection A customer brought in a Remington Model 552 .22 Short-only that was not ejecting properly. After a thorough cleaning, I test fired it and it was ejecting; however, it would not cock the hammer. I disassembled it again and checked it over.

I found the extractor-spring seat was protruding slightly into the ejector groove. I remedied that and test fired it again. It still won’t cock. The hammer face had some burring on the edges, so I stoned them off. The chamber is smooth with no burrs. I did another test fire with the same results. The only other defect that I’ve found is that it needs anew buffer pad. Do you have any suggestions? Robert A.

Scott Failure to cock with the M552 can be caused by a defective hammer or sear notch, a faulty disconnector or connectors, or a binding bolt or trigger. Replace any damaged parts, check for proper reassembly of the disconnector, and if all else fails, you might have to return the trigger-plate assembly to Remington for factory service. Hi-Standard Model W-100 Reassembly A customer brought me a Hi-Standard Model W-100 "Double-Nine" revolver in a plastic bag.

He told me it looked so simple he decided to take it apart and clean it. Apparently, he wasn’t thinking ahead to the time when he’d have to put it back together. Well, I have it now in pieces. The customer provided me with the Hi-Standard drawing of the parts breakdown to help me put it back together. The picture looks straightforward enough, except for the two springs numbered 7380, and another one, with a number that’s not legible.

It’s located to the right of the hammer and left of the hand. (The number looks like it might be 7185). I can’t find a step-by-step procedure for reassembly. Can you help? I looked at all the AG magazines I have and cannot find it. Not popular, I guess. I told the customer that my efforts will far outprice the value of the gun, but he wants it back together. Joe Grisafi The only schematic we can locate for the Double Nine revolver appears in the Numrich Gun Parts catalog.

There is no part 1785, but the spring you describe appears to be the hand spring Beyond that, we can’t help you with detailed reassembly instructions. All of the Hi-Standard info in our files are devoted to their pistols. Winchester Short-Cycling? I have a Winchester Model 1894 .44 Magnum rifle. I purchased it new and have used it for cowboy-action shooting with .44 Special ammo for a number of years—maybe 3000 rounds. Lately I’ve been having a problem.

When I’m running the lever for speed I’ll have a cartridge jump out of the magazine and under the carrier, which locks up the gun. I have to remove the magazine spring and follower to get out that cartridge and any others left in the magazine. This is after the rifle has picked up a cartridge and chambered it. Could it be as simple as I’m shortstroking it, or could something be worn or out of adjustment? Any ideas on what could be wrong, what to check, or what to replace would be appreciated.

Mike Geiman With speed events using a lever-action, it is important that the cycle of extraction, ejection, loading, and chambering be completed in a deliberate manner. The trigger should be allowed to fully return to its at-rest position between each cycling of the action. Your problem does sound like a classic case of short-cycling, although you should check for signs of wear or weariness in the feed-back mechanism, particularly the cartridge guides.

Meriden Firearms Parts I have a customer who owns a Meriden Firearms Pocket Pistol and wishes to restore it. I’ve exhausted all my sources in trying to locate parts for this pistol. Do you know of anyone who might have parts for this firearm? The overall condition of the gun is fair; it’s just missing some parts. Thank you for your assistance. Mike Dill This little revolver went out of production in 1915 and—due to its need of parts—its condition would likely be rated "poor." At most, it’s worth $50.

We suggest you secure a free copy of Brownells’ "Parts Source List" and begin making phone calls. We expect you’ll probably run up some serious long-distance charges before you find any parts. Remington Model 11 Ejection I have a Remington Model 11 that a customer brought in because it would not eject. The ejector is okay, and I

(continued from previous page) replaced the extractor. Now it will eject as long as there are no rounds in the magazine. It appears that, on firing, the elevator brings the next round up too soon and prevents the spent case from ejecting. How would you approach this problem? Gary Are you sure of the ejector? It’s integrated with the barrel extension. Also check the setup of the friction rings in the recoil system. They have to be arranged according to the ammunition being used.

Then inspect the carrier/carrier-latch assembly. A worn or weary part there could be a candidate for replacement. And make sure there’s nothing loose with the cartridge-stop components. Hard-Functioning Bolts I have a Turk Model 48 and two Russ 91/30s, one a rifle and one a carbine. All three have bolts that are are hard to operate as I empty the magazine. By the fifth shot, it takes quite an effort. Is this normal? John A Dempsey Westmont, Illinois Normal? No.

Check your chambers against SAAMI specifications by making a cast of Cerrosafe (from Brownells). The chambers may be worn and the cases are swelling to fill them as the rounds are fired. This would cause the bolt to balk because extraction has become difficult. If the erosion is serious, you’re probably looking at replacing the barrels. But maybe you’ll get lucky. Use a good bore light to examine the chambers. It could be they’re a little rough and simply need a polishing.

We hope that turns out to be the solution, as polishing the chambers whole be a lot less expensive than new barrels. Marlin 22 Feeding Problem I sent you an email recently about a Marlin .22 with feeding problems, it was jamming about every other shot, you advised me to try polishing the extractors, I tried this and it seemed to correct the problem, but the owner returned it and said it was still jamming. I shot it about 100 times and it did not malfunction once.

Could this be a problem with the ammunition he’s using? I didn’t ask him how often it jammed. John H Murdock You fired it 100 times with no jams? That sounds to us like the problem is with the owner, and it’s not an uncommon one. You didn’t mention or post a letter to American Gunsmith Reader Forum, Merritt Island, FL 32954. whether the rifle was tube-fed, leveraction or semi-auto. If it’s a semiauto, there may be an urge on the owner’s part to see how fast the magazine can be emptied.

As often happens in such cases, the trigger is not allowed to return to a fully forward position before being pulled again. When rapid fire is attempted with a lever-action rifle, the problem of trigger return is compounded by short stroking. If at all possible, accompany your customer to a range and observe the shooting session. Two things will be accomplished (possibly three). You’ll see how the gun is jamming, how often, and find out why for yourself.

And bring along a box of the ammunition you used in your test firing. If your ammo works and his doesn’t, he’ll simply have to switch brands. Even then he may have to give up trying to make a "machine gun" out of his Marlin. BSA Martini Schematic? Where can I get a schematic (parts breakdown) for a BSA Martini International MK 2 action? Doug La Blanc BSA stands for British Sporting Arms, based in Birmingham, U. K. Gun Digest shows the current importer is BSA Imports, in Ft., Lauderdale, Florida.

If you can’t get a phone number for them from information, send them an email at You should also consider purchasing two books, both available from De Haas Barrels The books are titled Single Shot Rifles and Actions and Mr. Single Shots Gunsmithing Idea Book.