Hammer/Striker spring wear?

[redneck]

I just bought a new Marlin bolt .22 (81ts) awhile back and the manual says it should be stored with the bolt removed for safety (it came with a cable and lock too, I'm really glad )

I don't plan on taking the bolt out, or putting the stupid cable in. I keep it up out of reach in a room where youngsters aren't allowed, and the ammo is stored seperately, out of sight and even higher. (what good is it for varmints if it takes longer to put together and load than my great plains rifle? )
But I got to thinking about the spring for the striker knob. The striker knob is cocked when you lift the bolt handle. Will it be weakened by leaving the gun cocked for long periods of time? I know I'm not supposed to leave my spring piston air rifle cocked for long periods of time because it will weaken the spring. Thought that might hold true for the striker spring, even though its not under as much compression.
Whatcha think

 

[Art Eatman]

We had a long go-'round on The Firing Line about springs. A professional metallurgist chimed in, and reinforced what I thought I had learned in my metallurgy courses: If the spring is truly spring steel, it will not "take a set". It will not get weaker.

The only way a spring can be hurt is if the metal is stretched beyond its limit, beond the "yield point". This cannot happen in compressing a coil spring.

Think for the moment of the springs in your car's valve train. At idle, they cycle over 300 or 400 times per minute. When the car is parked and the engine is off, at least two springs (4-banger) are fully compressed--so, consider museum cars which are not run for lengthy periods yet start up and run smoothly.

None of the above applies to low-quality "not really spring steel" springs, of course, but I'd doubt that such is the case with Marlin.

Art

 

[redneck]

Thanks
I kind of feel that way about it all too. I make knives, and have found that if I make the springs right for a folder they generally wear in, but at a certain point they seem to quit changing.
I hadn't thought of the valve springs idea, but thats a really good example. I suppose the same would be true for leaf springs, the old pickem up truck wasn't 2 inches shorter after hauling from Columbus OH to Fort Worth TX with a 10,000lb trailer ridin on its back

But then folks who know more than me say otherwise sometimes, so I thought I'd toss it out there and see what everyone else thought.

 

[DMK]

1) Open bolt 2) Pull trigger and hold it 3) Close bolt 4) Release trigger = The rifle is not cocked and there is no tension or spring wear to worry about.

I don't know if it works on the Marlin 81, but I store most of my bolt actions this way. IIRC, the only of my guns it doesn't work on are the Romanian 1969 trainers.

 

[Art Eatman]

DMK, I do the same thing. Mostly, however, it's a sorta safety feature, IMO. In the highly unlikely event this was done with a round in the chamber, it's not probable that the firing pin would be hit with a hammer, compared to Mr. Stoopid pulling the trigger. Also, some rifles don't take all that kindly to dry-firing (most centerfires aren't harmed), particularly rimfires.

Art

 

[redneck]

That method worked great! Thanks. I'd always been in the habit of just leaving a spent shell in the chamber since I have the gun out fairly often. I like this better though.