BTW, the SAKO style extractor does remove the safety the fully enclosed bolt face ("3 rings of steel") gives you if you have a catastrophic malfunction with overpressure. Or do I have the wrong idea about that kind of extractor?
No worries!
Uncle Mike: Somewhere in my decade of web searching, I read a thread about the limitations of the SAKO extractor conversion.
As per my memory, there was a reputable gunsmith who installed SAKO extractors on M700's. This might have been Kenny Jarrett . One day at the range, he had a pressure problem. His converted rifle blew his SAKO extractor out injuring him. The post I read said it blinded him in one eye. This is something I have been unable to confirm.
This guy then recalled all the rifles he had converted and restored them to Remington configuration.
The M700 protects the shooter very well from case head ruptures.
It is of course, at a cost. All actions are a compromise. All action designers make design trades. I think the best overall compromise is the Mauser 98. It is, in my book, simply the best action every designed. Remington decided to weight shooter protection a more than feed and extraction reliability. So you have this tiny extractor in the thing. It works, but it is not as durable as a claw. If you cut the bolt head ring, then you have created a gas channel out of the breech. So it is like a safety belt, hopefully you will never need the breeching protection offered by a Rem 700, but then if you do have a problem, you will be glad you had it.
It is a matter of how much risk you are willing to live with.
I have a SAKO, (which has a poor breech design) so I guess I am living dangerously.
http://www.jarheadtop.com/FAQ_40X_or_Rem_700_Action.htm
http://www.jarheadtop.com/FAQ_40X_or_Rem_700_Action.htm
Quote:
But, now, I am somewhat amazed at what a fragile design is in this gun. The extractor is a thin piece of metal. I have ordered a replacement and a spare. Has anyone else had one fail personally?
Fragile design...!?!? That design has been working in a excellent fashion for many, many, many, years!
It amazes me....someones extractor pops and it is the very worst design made, pure unadulterated junk, I tell ya...!
Remington extractors are not the only extractors that break. It was well known, and I have replaced push feed M70 extractors, on the bloody firing line at Highpower matches.
I think the Mauser claw, or the pre 64 claw to the be most reliable extractor ever built as long as you feed from the magazine box. You snap one of those over enough cartridge rims, and the claw will also break in time.