Latigo
04-20-2011, 10:22 AM
Reading a few posts about FLS and hitting the bolt handle with the heel of the hand made me think maybe I should post aboout this.
These two points on the op-rod lug, A&B are not inherently weak, but are the common place for the op-rod to fail if its going to with repeated undue harsh use. Keep in mind the age of these rifles. We typically weld the LHO bridge to original Op-Rods, so we have intimate knowledge of the op-rod steel and its limits.
(Thanks Guisan)
All k31 op-rods were made for the armoury at various cottage industries in Switzerland and the mettalurgy of the steel can definitely vary from lot to lot.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v87/zfk3155/lug5.jpg
We have Swiss Rifles here in the armoury, and I mean we have a lot of them, all kinds. When in correct mechanical condition not one of them requires undue force to cycle. Extraction is crisp and smooth, and running a correctly profiled cartridge into battery is smooth, effortless and a few at most requiring a solid push for the last 1/16" of bolt travel. Cycling the bolt with the chamber empty is never as smooth as when cycling in a cartridge.
If your bolt is clean and your cartridges properly sized, seat depth correct for the rifle you'll have no problem running a cartridge smoothly into battery. If you have to slap them in or out, you have a problem and one most likely easily solved.
Rapping on the bolt handle with anything at all to remove a stuck case (or for any other reason) is a sure way to stress that op-rod and lug. Never, ever use a mallet or anything else on a k31 bolt handle.
So how do you remove a stuck case in a Swiss Rifle?
Try this:
You need to apply strong rearward inertia to the entire bolt, not just the handle.
Take the rifle in your left hand, holding it by the mid-foregrip. Place the edge your right hand (like a karate chop) against the bolt handle or you can grip it firmly with your fingers (not quite as effective with that type of bolt), or you can use a small block of wood in your hand to put downward pressure on the bolthandle. Raise the rifle about 18" off the ground and bring it down quickly, rapping the buttstock sharply against the ground while putting hard downpressure against the bolt with your right hand. Do it more than once if you need to, but I can tell you that its worked very time for me for as long as I've been reloading no matter what the rifle. If its a turn bolt action, rotate the bolt handle up and do the procedure. The AR10 is done the same way but just grip the bolt handle like you're extracting a cartridge and pull down hard while striking the butt on the ground.
Don't do this on concrete for obvious reasons.
Don't slam that bolt home, folks. Everything has it's limits, including Swiss Rifles.
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These two points on the op-rod lug, A&B are not inherently weak, but are the common place for the op-rod to fail if its going to with repeated undue harsh use. Keep in mind the age of these rifles. We typically weld the LHO bridge to original Op-Rods, so we have intimate knowledge of the op-rod steel and its limits.
(Thanks Guisan)
All k31 op-rods were made for the armoury at various cottage industries in Switzerland and the mettalurgy of the steel can definitely vary from lot to lot.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v87/zfk3155/lug5.jpg
We have Swiss Rifles here in the armoury, and I mean we have a lot of them, all kinds. When in correct mechanical condition not one of them requires undue force to cycle. Extraction is crisp and smooth, and running a correctly profiled cartridge into battery is smooth, effortless and a few at most requiring a solid push for the last 1/16" of bolt travel. Cycling the bolt with the chamber empty is never as smooth as when cycling in a cartridge.
If your bolt is clean and your cartridges properly sized, seat depth correct for the rifle you'll have no problem running a cartridge smoothly into battery. If you have to slap them in or out, you have a problem and one most likely easily solved.
Rapping on the bolt handle with anything at all to remove a stuck case (or for any other reason) is a sure way to stress that op-rod and lug. Never, ever use a mallet or anything else on a k31 bolt handle.
So how do you remove a stuck case in a Swiss Rifle?
Try this:
You need to apply strong rearward inertia to the entire bolt, not just the handle.
Take the rifle in your left hand, holding it by the mid-foregrip. Place the edge your right hand (like a karate chop) against the bolt handle or you can grip it firmly with your fingers (not quite as effective with that type of bolt), or you can use a small block of wood in your hand to put downward pressure on the bolthandle. Raise the rifle about 18" off the ground and bring it down quickly, rapping the buttstock sharply against the ground while putting hard downpressure against the bolt with your right hand. Do it more than once if you need to, but I can tell you that its worked very time for me for as long as I've been reloading no matter what the rifle. If its a turn bolt action, rotate the bolt handle up and do the procedure. The AR10 is done the same way but just grip the bolt handle like you're extracting a cartridge and pull down hard while striking the butt on the ground.
Don't do this on concrete for obvious reasons.
Don't slam that bolt home, folks. Everything has it's limits, including Swiss Rifles.
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