shells sticking in the chamber of a bolt gun?

[WVGunman]

I recently bought an old Springfield 840, which is a single-locking lug bolt gun in .30-30. I have no idea when mine was made, but it was a loooooong time ago. I have found myself in the unenviable position of fixing a laundry list of things on this piece to get it into shootin' shape. The bore was filled with crud, but after a thorough scrubbing is like a mirror. The feed lips on the magazine had to be tightened so rounds would not hang up on the top of the chamber, etc. You get the idea.

But one problem seems to defy a simple explanation. Every time I have fired this gun it starts to become very hard to pull fired cases clear of the chamber. I have fired only Remington and Winchester factory ammo in it. The first round usually comes out fine, but it gets worse after that. There has been no problem getting rounds to chamber.
I've read around on this issue, and saw that high pressure is sometimes the problem. But there are no cratered primers, and I see no sign of high pressure. This was factory ammo from two different companies, too. I have also thoroughly cleaned out the chamber with a .41-caliber brush and nitro solvent. The cases stuck even after THAT, though it seemed to take a few more shots.
I have heard that cases can get stuck if a gun is hot, but this seems to happen after 3-6 shots, which doesn't seem like a very big deal.

Any ideas?

 

[rcmodel]

You won't see high pressure signs on 30-30 primers until after the gun blows up!

They run SAAMI max pressure of only 42,000 PSI, and factory loads are less then that.

A Dirty or Rust Pitted chamber is very likely your problem.
And you won't get it all out with a brush and hand cleaning.

Get some 0000 (Super-Fine) steel wool.
Get a cordless drill.
Get a short section of cleaning rod.
And the .40 bore brush you have.

Then wrap the steel wool around the bore brush, chuck it in the drill, and using solvent on it, run the whole mess in & out of the chamber till you get tired of doing it.

Then clean and dry normally with clean cotton patches.

rc

 

[frustrated2]

Feeding problem with Winchester model 70 243 cal. Mfg date 1973. it is bolt action. Holds 4 rounds. # one round loads & fires normal, #2 flies out of throat & jams about 98% of the time. I installed new magazine spring, did not fix problem. Am very frustrated. Does anyone else have this problem with Winchester model 70 bolt action feed problem? Any suggestions how to fix? I took it gunsmith & he gave it back saying he could not repair it.

 

[bainter1212]

OP, you may also need to polish that chamber a bit....especially if there is pitting. Get you some headspace gauges and check that as well.....also before and after polishing to make sure you aren't overdoing material removal.

 

[Liberty1776]

Get some 0000 (Super-Fine) steel wool.
Get a cordless drill.
Get a short section of cleaning rod.
And the .40 bore brush you have.

Then wrap the steel wool around the bore brush, chuck it in the drill, and using solvent on it, run the whole mess in & out of the chamber till you get tired of doing it.

Then clean and dry normally with clean cotton patches.


THIS^^^^^^

 

[LAGS]

@ Frustrated 2
If you open your own thread, and include pictures of how the cartridge is feeding, or misfeeding, I think we may be able to help you.
But first, you might try to take it to another Smith.
The first guy may have just thought it was too time consuming , or not in his rhelm of expertise.
Sometimes a Smith doesn't want to mess with a perticular job unless they can see a specific problem, and mislead the customer that it will be returned in perfect condition, without knowing how long it will take or cost the customer.