[jsjj388]

So my FIL has been saying he wanted me to look at a few guns of his for a while now. This carcano was one. He disassembled it and the bolt got stuck when he tried to reassemble it. I see from his other carcano that it should slide out when you pull the trigger woth bolt open. Any thoughts on getting it out?

Edit: got it loose with a couple taps. Still won't close and doesn't seem right.

Also got this one. Seems to work, but no idea the caliber.

 

[gdmoody]

That is some kind of ugly rust on them!!

 

[jsjj388]

That is some kind of ugly rust on them!!

You ain't kidding! Been neglected for several years. I'm gonna clean them well and see what I can do.

 

[Firpo]

That is some kind of ugly rust on them!!

Looks like it has the measles.

You said you got the bolt loose, were you able to get it out of the receiver?

 

[ysacres]

Those guns have the shingles. Oil might help.

 

[jsjj388]

Looks like it has the measles.

You said you got the bolt loose, were you able to get it out of the receiver?

Yes. But it won't seat. I've got it oiled up hoping its just sticky.

 

[jsjj388]

He says they were in his safe, im thinking he used his safe for a boat anchor! As you can see, the stevens 22s look just as bad. He took the top one apart and couldn't get it back together. Now he can't find the pieces.

They need lots of TLC, but I want to get them back in order.

 

[Firpo]

My guess is if it’s that rusty on the outside it could be rusty on the inside of the bolt. I’d take the bolt apart and make sure it’s squared away. I found this video, watched about 5 minutes and the guy seems to know what he’s doing.

 

[TRAP55]

So my FIL has been saying he wanted me to look at a few guns of his for a while now. This carcano was one. He disassembled it and the bolt got stuck when he tried to reassemble it. I see from his other carcano that it should slide out when you pull the trigger woth bolt open. Any thoughts on getting it out?

Edit: got it loose with a couple taps. Still won't close and doesn't seem right.

View attachment 240654

View attachment 240655

View attachment 240656

View attachment 240658


Also got this one. Seems to work, but no idea the caliber.

View attachment 240659

View attachment 240660

7.35x51 Carcano

 

[PRR1957]

I watched the video and it was informative in two ways. One was showing how to disassemble/reassemble the bolt. Two that this guy is not married because if he was, his wife would had a fit if she saw him doing that on the seat of one of the living room chairs. 😬

Now for the meat and potatoes of the stuck bolt innards. If it is internally rusted, soak the bolt with a penetrating oil, like WD-40 for about a hour, then rap moderately on the bolt body with a hard wood dowel or a wood hammer handle. This will usually break the bond of rust.

Remember, rust never sleeps.

 

[TRAP55]

Two ways to take care of the rust, and leave whats left of the finish.
Bronze or copper wool, not steel wool! Soak in oil of your choice, and scrub, ATF works, use the edge of a penny for the belligerent spots. Hose it off with non-chlorinated brake cleaner from Walmart or your local auto parts store. Any active rust lights up neon orange, repeat as needed. Then wipe it all down with a good silicon based gun oil, like CLP BreakFree.
Method 2: Boil the parts in distilled water, dry and card with 0000 steel wool. You'll be essentially rust bluing those spots. I'll see if I can find the video showing the process, and post it here.

 

[jim brady]

Yes. But it won't seat. I've got it oiled up hoping its just sticky.

The 'won't seat' part is easy. You have rust on the bolt and on the inside of the receiver. My guess is that there is plenty of rust in the bolt locking lug recesses in the receiver. That is a close tolerance area, and any rust will cause the bolt to stick.

Cleaning the outer surfaces of the bolt would be easy - cleaning the recesses of the receiver is another story. Carcanos were always the cheapest of the military surplus arms so it's no surprise that they were neglected. Soak and scrub and scrub and soak. I can almost imagine how the bores look... You got your work cut out for you.

 

[jsjj388]

So, the shiny bolt (the one initially stuck) will not seat in either rifle. The old rusty bolt seats fine in both.

 

[Firpo]

I must have missed something. So you have two bolts? Sounds like you may have purchased a new one. Not uncommon for new bolts to have to be fitted and if there’s still rust in the chamber that will double your troubles.

 

[TRAP55]

It never ceases to amaze me how clean a milsurp bolt action can be, and the locking lug recess Jim mentioned, can be packed with dried grease and junk. It's a difficult area to get into, to get clean.
I've posted before about a pair of M1917 Enfields that were almost plugged from shooting blanks in Honor Guard ceremonies. I couldn't dig it all out. In frustration, I filled it with spray paint stripper, let it set for a couple of hours, and pressure washed all of it out. I took a lot of flak for "pressure washing a gun", but it worked. I didn't have to suffer the "wrath of the redhead" for trying it in her dishwasher either.

 

[TRAP55]

I must have missed something. So you have two bolts? Sounds like you may have purchased a new one. Not uncommon for new bolts to have to be fitted and if there’s still rust in the chamber that will double your troubles.

Mark, you missed the first pic. Two rifles, two bolts.

 

[Firpo]

Mark, you missed the first pic. Two rifles, two bolts.

There I go again. Time to stick me in the home.

 

[TRAP55]

There I go again. Time to stick me in the home.

Hold a room for me too.

 

[MKC1911]

Make sure the bolt is cocked when trying to put it back in. If I remember right it needs to be that way in order for it to seat.

 

[jsjj388]

I must have missed something. So you have two bolts? Sounds like you may have purchased a new one. Not uncommon for new bolts to have to be fitted and if there’s still rust in the chamber that will double your troubles.

I have 2 guns. One 6.5 and one 7.35.