No.1 Mk3 Bolt Cracks

[Peter Laidler]

THE ACTION BODY STRETCHING SCENARIO IS A TOTAL MYTH............... I have already put it to bed once on the forum if anyone cares to resurrect the article. Things stretch be being put under tension - as you do with a TENSION spring or putting a bolt under TENSION by tightening it in hole against a nut. I won't go into it again but think about it, whether it's a Bren, L1A1, No1 or 4, the rifle body is always in compression. That's why you get bloody recoil.................. I've got my steel helmet on again, ready to face the wrath of the amateur physicists and metallurgists.

That is where bolts ALWAYS fracture and it is simple metal fatigue* where the bolt is hardened/tempered/toughened across the locking lugs. Looks like an incorrectly fitted bolt or worn body but only metallurgy will show

Calm down dears........
(*not strictly mechanically correct but sufficient for our example)