Finnish VKT M39 chamber loading issues

[BluesDancer]

Hi Folks,
I was hoping you could help. Sometime in the past year when Classic Firearms started getting that huge stash of Finnish M39's (7.62x54mm) I picked up one of the VKTs. However, when I began to function test at the range it took multiple hard whacks on the bolt in order to load each road into the chamber. Generally speaking this rifle fires and ejects just fine, but the process of manipulating the bolt in order to load each round into the chamber has been a real issue, and I would like to see if anyone has any suggestions.

I will comment about what I have done up until this point. Initially when I had loading problems I did what many of us might do, which was to "google" the problem online and of course see what people said. Based on this I went ahead and identified the interrupter (2 pieces) and tried to slightly flatten it out a tiny bit (trying to relieve the interrupter tension a bit) as well as giving the action/chamber a real cleaning (not a deep job with a dremel tool, but a couple fairly decent soaks overnight with hoppes #9 and finishing with CLP).

In the process of tinkering with the interrupter I accidentally broke off a tiny bit of one of its' corners. In response to this I ordered 2 additional interrupters from buymilsurp.com and replaced the original (still have it, though). At this point I also read about issues with the interrupter being trapped against the inside of the stock, so at this point I also sanded down the internal part of the stock a bit which the interrupter rubs against. I suspect the stock might have been an issue because it looked new-ish and I suspect it was a replacement stock, not original.

The magazine and magazine spring seems okay by appearance but not 100% sure. Also, in the process of my attempt at fixing I did have problems with some rounds riding under the bolt (feed angle of rounds issue?) - it seems more like an intermittent problem now. I function tested the rifle today and while loading rounds took a few light-ish whacks on the bolt, none of the rounds rode under the bolt.

After all this nonsense the rounds load in easier but it still takes a couple light whacks. Does anyone have any suggestions in order to make loading rounds into the chamber not a PITA?

Sorry for the wordy explanation. Any help and comments are appreciated, thanks!

 

[Risky buisness]

does your Finn have a large 'D' stamped on the receiver? The D signifies that the rifle has been throated to use the D style projectile, a somewhat longer and I believe heavier bullet. It may be that the bullet is actually into the leade of the bore and too long for the chamber currently, thus having to be forced into the chamber by the bolt. Seeing any pressure signs on the brass (steel) ? My Finn is throated for the D bullet, but the bore is
.3085", so I use any old 308 dia bullet with no problem. You may want to slug the bore, additionally, a different grn weight bullet, lower weight equaling shorter projectile, may help. Additionally, some of the Finns actually were 7.62x53r, signifying that the bore dia was .308

 

[farmerboy78]

Is it that difficult to manipulate the bolt without a chambering cartridge?

 

[Panzerschwein]

Did you clean it?

 

[caribou]

M-39's are built from the start with a deep chamber for the Finn "D" bullets they loaded, few m-39's were "D" marked most were not.
The "D" stamp on Finn Mosins shows that the throat was deepened for the longer bullets, especially important on the Finn Mosin M-28 series, as they had .308 rather than .310 bores and the 'D' load ended up a bit too long, hence the throat mod by them.

Not a factor in M-39's they all were made with the deeper chamber throat.

It can be #1, an extractor thats hitting the barrel face, or a burr or dirt/junk where the extractor slot is on the barrel face.

#2, your front action screw is loose or too tight, bringing the magazine/mag ramp out of true with the receiver and binding.

#3, There could be junk, bright and shiny, in the chamber. Cosmoline in fresh from storage condition is often dried and very hard to remove. dried cosmo even looks like chamber steel too....squirts from a can of Break cleaner and a 20 gauge shotgun brush on a rod and a cordless drill will often do wonders for chamber problems in 'new to me Finn Mosins'. Cures "sticky bolt" and 'short" chambers......

#4 look for junk.dirt where the locking lugs mate to the receiver, as crap in there is not easy to see or find.

#5 Clean the interrupters working slot in the receiver......the interrupter/ejector should not be a factor, unless broken. Then it can be too far in the way of the bolt or not work at all.
The interrupter and magizine should be worked with some 'gusto' or "firmly' as light and delicate handling can mess up the bullets feed/hold, as the rifle was made to be used in 'action'.

Clean it and keep it clean

Good luck!

 

[fireman 9731]

Caribou nailed it as usual. I once had a problem with a wooden splinter from the stock interfering with an interrupter. I would make sure you have good clearance around that area.