is this bolt ok?

[6mm06guy]

A buddy called me and said he found a steal on a 270 wsm, the price sounded good and after a few pictures I told him to pick it up.

It's a winchester 270wsm all blue, bubble grip shadow stock, and at first glance the gun looked fantastic. Upon further inspection I found the bolt to be severely worn. I have never seen marks like these. Did I buy a dud? Or will it be ok?

 

[6mm06guy]

And for some reason I can't post a picture all of a sudden. ..

 

[6mm06guy]

There we go.

 

[6mm06guy]

Here's a few more.

 

[6mm06guy]

Not all the scratching shows up well on camera, but you can feel every line. Am I worried for nothing? I picked up some ammo for it and the bolt closes hard unless I put the safety in the middle position. I find this to be odd also.

 

[FearNoWind]

The first one to tell you that the bolt is either OK or not OK is the one you should avoid. Take it to a credible bun smith, along with the rifle of course, and get a first hand assessment of what you have there.

 

[cahunter805]

I agree take it to a gunsmith and have him check it out. In some of the pics it almost looks as if one of the scope base screws might have been to long. Any decent gunsmith can evaluate it easily for you.

 

[6point5x284]

Looks like a DIY attempt to lap the lugs?! I 3rd...take it to a smith and have them look it over.

 

[Pdvdh]

I don't see anything obviously wrong from the pictures. What makes you suspect there's anything wrong with it in the first place? The surface isn't held to 0.00025" and polished to a high luster? The bolt face looks as good as any M70. Better than some I've seen. What do the bearing surfaces of the lugs look like? None of the photos shows the bearing facews of the lugs, so I don't understand the statement about lapping the lugs. You could examine the mating surfaces on the top of the action body where you think the top of the bolt is rough, and look for signs of galling.

Unless you see something clearly worn to be significantly reduced in dimension, gouged, cracked, drilled, milled, welded, Jed Clampett modified - more than the cosmetic imperfection of the surface finish, shoot it. I don't know what you see that raises concern, and you haven't identified anything other than "worn". It's a factory action and bolt. It's not going to look like a custom aftermarket action.

 

[Deleted member 46119]

The first one to tell you that the bolt is either OK or not OK is the one you should avoid. Take it to a credible bun smith, along with the rifle of course, and get a first hand assessment of what you have there.

But they did it any way...gun)gun)gun)

 

[6mm06guy]

I thought the same same thing, but the scratching is even top and bottom the width of the bolt head. And the screws don't appear to be touching.

 

[Canadian Bushman]

I cant see anything wrong with it in the pictures you posted. You didnt include a pic of the back of the lugs. Typically when a rifle is abused, thats the first place to show it.

From what i can tell all faults are cosmetic.

 

[Pdvdh]

I thought the same same thing, but the scratching is even top and bottom the width of the bolt head. And the screws don't appear to be touching.

Compare it to several brand new M70 bolts in the local stores or gun shops, and I believe your concern will be alleviated to the point you'll be able to enjoy the use of the rifle.

 

[6mm06guy]

I dropped it off at a smith buddy this morning, he said the rifle is fine. Just worn badly from lack of oil and care. He suggested if it bothered me to order a new bolt body ($275) and to clean and polish all the surfaces of the action to prevent it from happening again.

If I'm going to do that I may as well have it blue printed and put a new barrel on. I hate to spend a bunch of money, but then again I have been wanting a new lightweight 270 wsm for mountain hunting. What do you guys think?