54R Bren Issues

[ActionYobbo]

before you go grinding and cutting...
do you use the gun in 303?
if so is the HS correct for the 303 barrel?
if you answer yes to these questions then modify the 7.62 barrel by facing off the breach and running the chamber deeper. there is no sense in modifying the existiing HS if its correct for one of your barrels

also from your pictures I cant tell if you are headspacing off the case or the bolt stops.

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[djandj]

before you go grinding and cutting...
do you use the gun in 303?
if so is the HS correct for the 303 barrel?
if you answer yes to these questions then modify the 7.62 barrel by facing off the breach and running the chamber deeper. there is no sense in modifying the existiing HS if its correct for one of your barrels

also from your pictures I cant tell if you are headspacing off the case or the bolt stops.

As for HS - I did it with and without the cart. in the barrel also with and without the extractor (and shell) and the bolt locks in with NO movement either way. (what does that mean?)

As for grinding and cutting, I'm NOT going to do that. I'll either replace the locking shoulders or use a barrel shim as those steps are reversible. I'm not qualified to be cutting or grinding anything on this rifle (other than the wood perhaps)

[ActionYobbo]

As for HS - I did it with and without the cart. in the barrel also with and without the extractor (and shell) and the bolt locks in with NO movement either way. (what does that mean?)

As for grinding and cutting, I'm NOT going to do that. I'll either replace the locking shoulders or use a barrel shim as those steps are reversible. I'm not qualified to be cutting or grinding anything on this rifle (other than the wood perhaps)

you need to determine what is actually stopping the bolt it should be the case head but if its the bolt stops then you cant set head space
headspace is measured between the bolt face and the cartridge so stick in a dummy case and shut the bolt with out the extractor and see what gap you have between 1) bolt face and cartridge case 2) bolt and barrel 3) bolt and bolt stops and report back
with a case in and the bolt shut the bolt should not be touching 2 or 3
the bolt stops are only there to stop the bolt from flying out when the barrel is out and to stop the bolt from peening the barrel when the bolt is dropped on an empty chamber. they are not involved in any part of live firing

[djandj]

you need to determine what is actually stopping the bolt it should be the case head but if its the bolt stops then you cant set head space
headspace is measured between the bolt face and the cartridge so stick in a dummy case and shut the bolt with out the extractor and see what gap you have between 1) bolt face and cartridge case 2) bolt and barrel 3) bolt and bolt stops and report back
with a case in and the bolt shut the bolt should not be touching 2 or 3
the bolt stops are only there to stop the bolt from flying out when the barrel is out and to stop the bolt from peening the barrel when the bolt is dropped on an empty chamber. they are not involved in any part of live firing

Many thanks Mr. E. You are quite correct. It appears that my rifle is not headspacing with the cartridge at all (see pics) The bolt stops with the bolt stops which are also aligned with the end of the barrel. The back end is held in by the shoulder stops. So shimming the barrel will not change anything for me (right?) It would appear that if we want to have a bit a play in the bolt back and forth between the stops (and barrel) and the Locking Shoulders we need to get a shorter licking shoulder (right?)

Here we see the bolt resting directly against the barrel an the stops


Here we see that even with the cartridge, the spaces between the barrel and the bolt face etc. don't change. The casing fits in the pocket created by the stops and bolt face.

[ActionYobbo]

in both pictures it looks like the bolt is stopping on the barrel. can you fit a slice of business card between the case and the bolt face?
to me the issue looks to be zero head space...
back to Joe H

PS Joe is a guru when it comes to semiauto brens. he has helped me a bunch over the years

[djandj]

in both pictures it looks like the bolt is stopping on the barrel. can you fit a slice of business card between the case and the bolt face?
to me the issue looks to be zero head space...
back to Joe H

PS Joe is a guru when it comes to semiauto brens. he has helped me a bunch over the years

Quite right Mr. E. The bolt contacts directly on the bolt stops and barrel = 0 headspace since the locking shoulders allow for NO rearward movement of the bolt when locked in the shoulders.