Winchestor Model 70 Safety Help

[Pirate69]

I have a Model 70 purchased in 1971. The safety is a three position safety on the bolt. 1) All the way forward, safety is off; 2) Halfway back, bolt will open but rifle will not fire; 3) All the way back, fire will not fire and bolt will not open. These are the correct operation of the Model 70 safety as far as I know. However, recently, the bolt willl open in the #3 position. The rifle still will not fire in the position. Seems to still be safe but I am wondering what has changed? Is there a detent pin or something in the safety that may haave worn-out or something? I would feel much more comfortable if the safety worked totally as expected. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

[JLarsson]

One possibility is that the tip of your safety plunger has broken off. When the lever is fully rearward, the safety plunger should engage a recess in the bolt body to prevent the opening of the bolt. If the tip is broken off, it will not engage the recess, and the bolt may still be opened. The safety function is provided by a cam on the safety lever that physically stops the firing pin from moving forward. This cam is engaged in the middle position, but the safety plunger is not pushed into the hole in the bolt body, which is why you can open the bolt in the middle position.

Another possibility is that the edge of the recess that is supposed to be engaged by the safety plunger is damaged or broken. I don't think that's very likely, though.

If you know how to disassemble your bolt, you can check this yourself. With the safety in the middle position, press the breech bolt sleeve lock (little button that sticks out of the shroud on the side opposite the safety) and unscrew the shroud/firing pin/firing pin spring assembly from the bolt. You have to be really careful at this point NOT to let the safety lever move forward, or it will release the firing pin and you'll have a very difficult time reassembling the bolt. In your case, as you're disassembling the bolt, I would watch for anything falling out of the space between the shroud and the bolt body, in case your safety plunger has broken. Maybe put a white paper towel on the table or bench, and disassemble the bolt over that.

Now, with the shroud/pin/spring assembly removed from the bolt body, look at the forward face of the shroud directly in front of the safety lever. Move the safety lever to the rearward position. You should see the safety plunger rise out of its hole about 1/8". If you can't see it rising out of its hole, I'd guess it's broken. Replacement can be pretty tricky. I'd take it to a gunsmith at that point. Even if you see it rise out of the hole, make sure the tip is not damaged. It should be completely cylindrical. If one side were sheared off, the bolt would operate as you describe.

If you CAN see the plunger rising out of its hole, and the pin tip seems to be undamaged, then check the bolt body. If you hold it so the bolt handle points straight to your right and you're looking from the rear of the bolt body down through the center, at 12 o'clock there is a slight semi-circular recess in the edge of the lip that sticks out toward you. Look for any damage to the recess or the lip starting at 12 o'clock and moving clockwise. That's for a right hand bolt. For a left hand bolt, you'd need to point the bolt handle straight left and look for damage from 12 o'clock moving counter-clockwise.

Before you reassemble the bolt, move the safety lever VERY CAREFULLY from the rearward position to the middle position. DON'T let it slip into the forward position at any time until the bolt is installed in the rifle with the bolt handle completely down.

I looked for pictures on the internet that would make this clearer, but I couldn't find any.

[Pirate69]

Thanks JLarsson. This gives me info to start checking.

[JLarsson]

I'd be interested to know if you figure it out. I think I have the most fun tinkering with things to figure out how they work or why they don't.

[fouronesix]

Me too on this one. I've never seen one do that before so will be interested in the cause and cure.

The only time I've worked on (or had to work on) a Win 3 position safety was one from the same era as the OP's- about a 1970 model. Burs and roughness of the detent pockets the pin rides in and over during travel from one position to another can be problematic- simple fix is to polish them out. But, the problem here with a failure to lock the bolt on the full safe position is a new one on me.

[fouronesix]

I have a Model 70 purchased in 1971. The safety is a three position safety on the bolt. 1) All the way forward, safety is off; 2) Halfway back, bolt will open but rifle will not fire; 3) All the way back, fire will not fire and bolt will not open. These are the correct operation of the Model 70 safety as far as I know. However, recently, the bolt willl open in the #3 position. The rifle still will not fire in the position. Seems to still be safe but I am wondering what has changed? Is there a detent pin or something in the safety that may haave worn-out or something? I would feel much more comfortable if the safety worked totally as expected. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Pirate, go through this parallel thread on the M70 safety/bolt. Both the pre-64 and post-64 PF push feed M70s have same or nearly same safeties, so there may be something in this thread that will help. Take the pin/safety shroud out of the bolt body and inspect the bolt locking plunger and the hole it pops into in the bolt body when the safety is in the #3 position.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?229285-What-happened-to-my-bolt-(winchester-m70-pre-64-help-)

[JLarsson]

Any word on what's happening with your bolt/safety?