03A3 Suspect Bolt

[John Beard]

What you have is a scant forging.

Bolts were die-forged from bar stock. Occasionally, the soft steel did not completely fill out the forging die, thereby leaving a scant spot. The scant spot didn't usually show up until the bolt forging was milled. Government inspection standards allowed for scant spots as long as the scant spot was small and not in a critical location. If the scant spot was large enough, the part would be recovered by welding in parent metal and re-machining the part. Nothing went to waste.

Your bolt is not the least bit unusual. Remington scant forgings are very common. I have a number of them.

J.B.

[Chuckindenver]

is this a square safety lugged bolt?

[Sarge1998]

Chuck, I don't know how to recognize that safety yet, here are some additional photos.







I hope those suffice, thanks for everyone's help.

[Chuckindenver]

the safety lug is the small lug mid way down the bolt, that keeps the bolt from plowing into the shooters face during a failure.
id bet that your bolt is one of these, and are known for poor fitting, rough finishes, ect,.,most are safe to shoot...i woudnt worry about the damage in the area you have shown.
look for a correct bolt for your rifle, the bolt assembly you have pictured has been poorly refinished by someone at some point.