Browning BAR question

I own a 1985 BAR in .308, but I'm not an expert. I just loaded one shell, and it ejected without issue, and the bolt did lock back.

Is the extractor not holding onto the case and releasing too early, or is the extractor holding the case but the ejector is not functioning? You either have an extractor or ejector problem.

Is the extractor not holding onto the case and releasing too early, or is the extractor holding the case but the ejector is not functioning? You either have an extractor or ejector problem.

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I may have read the OP wrong, but I read it like the loaded round was too long overall to come out of the ejection port.

Perhaps he's loading the wrong cartridge...like a 300 Weatherby mag?

Measure the offending rounds...the SAAMI max OAL is 3.340. It wouldn't surprise me if some factory ammo was out there that exceeded the max OAL as most rifles will be bolt guns...though the rounds still should fit in the magazine.

What particular factory round would this be? The heaviest bullets intrude on the powder space quite a bit, so if it's one of them they might have seated them out to get more charge inside...but if it's within the 3.340" then there's something off with the rifle.

If the round is within spec, perhaps the ejection port could be relieved a little to allow it to get out? If it's only hitting by a little bit...I'd not be against a little file or Dremel work if that would let me eject the loaded round. Being forced to fire every round that has been chambered would not be ideal at all.

The BAR bolt only locks back on the magazine follower. When you remove the magazine the bolt closes. I have one in .243, and don't like this feature.

double bogey - I assume that the earlier BAR is different than the Safari II then? There's a lever on the forward right side of the receiver on my Safari II that locks the bolt back. Granted, it doesn't lock back automatically if there's no mag in the rifle, but the bolt does remain to the rear when the magazine is removed.

RainDodger, probably so. Mine was my dads and it is 30 yrs old, and not a Safari. Shoots well though. The .270 he had strung shots vertical. 1st shot on target, each successive shot went higher. Never did get it fixed. I do like the .243 , need to shoot it more.
Glad Browning made a design change, corrected a deficiency.
Now if Judge Delta can get his to eject correctly, good luck.

Is your buffer deteriorated and keeping the bolt from coming back all the way? My had done this.

I would think if the buffer was coming apart, the bolt would travel longer, not shorter.

It still sounds to me like the OP is trying to manually eject an unfired round. I'm not surprised a bullet nose would hang up somewhere in that case. I haven't tried that on my .243 BAR, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least.