Is this a common failure?

[Rumpelhardt]

In suppose this sort of thing should be expected from a rifle almost 70 years old.

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[browningautorifle]

Just crystalization of steel. Metal fatigue. I had a #1 Mk3 that broke a bit further back. Shed a tear and change the part. Someone here will have a Savage piece for you.

[Peter Laidler]

Yep, most common failure next to bent foresight protectors......... Cause, exactly as BAR says

[jmoore]

Another common failure seems to be the guide stud or boss (as seen above) on the cocking piece either wearing or breaking off. Safeties seem to be next in line to give real dramas. (loose, worn, or missing)

Captain Lailder has seen a blue million more than I, however!

I wonder if there were studies done on common failure modes, more to the point, were any studies written up and distributed! I know things like that get done all the time for aero propulsion bits. Makes keeping proper inventory levels of spares rather easier.

[Peter Laidler]

No true record was generally kept about failures unless it reached epidemic proportions or it was a safety related failure. Generally speaking, Armourers just got to know what commonly failed as in the saying 'common problems occur commonly' and it got around by word of mouth.

What DID happen with these failures was that the bits would wind up somewhere, such as Shrivenham or the Training schools where they'd be shown around and dscussed at length during metallurgy lessons. At Shrivenham, we used to analyse these failures in relation to the steel, the content/mix etc etc and so on. Interesting and it highlighted many things, not least some poor quality control. But given the sheer volume/quantity made, I suppose failures were easily within the acceptable parameters.

Remember the splitting flash eliminators Skippy and Tankie? They all seemed to split in one year. As one wag suggested '........ it was either a good year for ammo or a bad year for flash eliminators!'

[browningautorifle]

I remember the split flash eliminators, it was at the end of our service with the FN so no one seemed to care. We just cannibalized and carried on.

[Rumpelhardt]

I would think this might be a little unnerving in the middle of a fire fight. Three rounds then the bolt does not close.

[Peter Laidler]

The metallurgy failure was due over time so was not likely to occur when they were in front line service

[Rumpelhardt]

OK makes sense. Not like the M-16 I had in the early 80's that jammed at the mere mention of the word sand

[jmoore]

If you want to play a bit, and have a range rifle where original military configuration isn't important, then save that cocking piece and make a short fall speed lock. I had a Wolff "Blitzschnell" mainspring, and a broken cocking piece like yours- a bit of "whittling" and voila! Coolio speed lock that works great, except for the safety, which now only works if the rifle is uncocked.

Press forward is stiffer, but if you're vigourous, it's no drama.








I did remove even more metal than required for function, just to lighten things up. If I go altogether mad: a titanium firing pin!

Does it help accuracy? It doesn't hurt any, mostly it was just a functional experiment.