Date: 04 Mar 94  18:21:50
From: Ed Harris
To:   All
Subj: Rusty Ain't Ruined

"Selecting Surplus Rifles" 

If you missed this when it appeared in American Rifleman,
here it is again ikn the  "Fidonet Condensed Version:

By Ed Harris (Revised 3-4-94)

The military surplus rifles now available at bargain prices are
are a good way for new shooters to get started economically. Bore
condition of a used rifle may vary from bright and clean, through 
light "salt & pepper", or "dark with strong rifling" to the
proverbial "sewer pipe".   This is because nNearly all military
rifles made before 1950 were exposed to chlorate primers.  If
they saw any combat, you can be expect less than perfect bores.
Today's shooters, weaned on non-corrosive primers, immediately
think of anything but a shiny, perfect bore as irreparably
"damaged",  but this is not the case.

I have enjoyed many interesting firearms I might not have
otherwise, because I was not afraid to buy one with an imperfect
bore.  I learned a great deal in the process.  The second-hand
rifle is like an old house.  If it shows honest wear, and has no
irreparable structural damage, it remains useful.  Slight pitting
of a rifle bore does little real harm.

If the bore is somewhat dark, but capable of being restored to
firing condition by careful cleaning or lapping, its utility is
undiminished.  Mild pitting which will (probably) clean up to a
mostly bright, but lightly speckled bore, gives the shrewd buyer
a good position to haggle on the price. There is always some
risk, because you never know it is a good shooter until you
actually clean up and fire the rifle.  So consider the risk in
the price you are willing to pay.

The presence of pitting in any degree is a disappointment, but
should not discourage you from enjoying an otherwise sound
firearm.  Choose a model and caliber which appeal to you, for
either historic or practical reasons. The experienced shooter,
even if not a collector, can find a niche for a military rifle in
his gun rack.  Why buy a surplus rifle when you have a closet
full of pretty ones, you ask? I'll tell you why...

We all need an inexpensive "spare" rifle to loan to the clown in
camp who doesn't take care of his stuff as well as you and I do!
Iron sights, admittedly, aren't ideal for adverse hunting
conditions, but they can get the job done, and might make the
difference between hunting or not. A surplus military rifle is a
good idea for a utility piece which might take a beating in a
pickup rack on the farm, or for other rough and ready duty.

Most surplus rifles on the market remain serviceable despite
decades of storage and intermittent use, because they were well
designed and made to begin with. They usually shoot well, given a
little cleaning up.  A less-than-perfect bore will usually shoot
fine with jacketed bullets if the crown is in good shape.  Cast
lead bullets, even if gaschecked, can be an iffy proposition
unless the bore will clean up to "mostly bright, with mild salt
and pepper bore, no large or deep pits".

The worn bore with light pitting responds well to careful
cleaning, sometimes lapping, and recrowning. Such a restored bore
often handles cast bullet loads just fine if the bullet fits
properly, is well lubricated and velocities are kept below about
1600 f.p.s.  Such mild cast bullet loads work well for informal
target shooting and up to 200 yards, and for hunting small game
or varmints.

A reputable dealer should have no objection to your bringing a
cleaning rod, bore brush, solvent, wiping rag and patches so you
can make a careful visual inspection, before you buy. Thank him
for his indulgence and show him the courtesy to clean up after
yourself! If ordering through the mail and having a rifle shipped
to your local dealer, find out the distributor's return policy.  

I have had several bad experiences ordering surplus rifles which
were not as represented, and was further annoyed to be charged a
"restocking fee" to return a rifle in "NRA Good", which was
represented as "excellent" by somebody's standard. I had a well-
known distributor flatly refuse to take the rifle back and refund
my money until I complained to Postal authorities and the office
of consumer protection in the state where the firm was located. I
repeat the tale in hopes that my experience may save you similar
headaches.

I prefer to support local dealers, and am willing to spend
a bit more and expend some effort cleaning a half-dozen
rifles to select the exact one I want. This effort is usually
appreciated by the dealer because it makes his remaining stock
more attractive and easier to sell.  If you frequent gun shops in
Northern Virginia, sniff for "Ed's Red" and you'll know I've been
there!

Exterior appearances of military surplus rifles can be deceiving.
Many rifles have outside wear from handling or storage, but have
been shot very little. I have seen many Finnish and USSR Mosin-
Nagants which were beat up on the outside, but which had fine    
bores and were good shooters. I have found that rifles sold out
of storage from their original countries of origin are usually in
good shape. Other rifles have been abused through decades of
conflict on several continents, and are as bad inside as out.
Those cast off to Mediteranian, Asian, Middle Eastern or African
nations, after WWII seem particularly  sad indeed.

I went through a batch of 30 Finnish M28/30's in which half of
the bores had rusted underneath the grease, probably from failure
to clean adequately after a chlorate-primed proof load 30 years
ago, whereas the others were perfect. Had I bought one off the
rack without cleaning it, luck would have it I would have gotten
the rusty one.  I ended up with a half dozen Finn-Moisins, and
tested them all to find the best lead bullet shooter.  I sold all
the pretty ones with bright bores and noce wood to collectors. 
Afcter I cleaned up the ugly one and put a thousand lead loads
through it, it out-shot the them all.  It's a 1-1/2 m.o.a. rifle
with my best cast loads or Sierra 168s.

Some tips in what to look for will help you separate the shooter
from the wall hanger.  The crown must be in good shape or capable
of being easily repaired with a brass ball and lapping compound.
Avoid muzzles which have been counterbored.  In Third World
countries, this is often done crudely with a twist drill, on
rifles which should have been rebarrelled or scrapped.  When
counterboring is done with a piloted reamer, insuring
concentricity, counterboring can work well, but why take a chance
on one somebody else has done?

Pitting in the bore cannot be excessive to the point that the
bullet is damaged, or is unable to become sufficiently
stabilized. Packing grease hides the pits, so you must clean the
bore more thoroughly than just running a few dry patches through
it in order to examine it. The best method is to push a wet, bore
cleaner-soaked patch though the barrel to push out most of the
grease, and wet-brush the bore two or three passes to loosen the
softened grease and dirt.  Flush out the dislodged residue with
two more wet patches before attempting to dry the bore and
chamber for visual inspection. 

A GI-type bore reflector is handy, because it also lets you
examine the condition of the chamber and throat as well as the
bore. This will tell you more than anything else about the
rifle's potential serviceability.  The chamber cannot be pitted
because this will increase extraction effort. Such a condition is
beyond economical repair because it requires setting the barrel
back a thread and rechambering.  A somewhat worn and eroded bore
and throat may still shoot OK if smooth, but be wary of heavy
heat checking and deep pitting.

Carefully examine the rear engaging surfaces of the locking lugs
for deformation or galling.  Inspect the lugs where they meet the
bolt body for cracks.  While the bolt is removed, examine the
bolt-face, firing pin tip, extractor and locking surfaces for
pitting, galling, cracks or deformation.  A pitted boltface means
that the rifle has suffered pierced primers and is a warning that
the tip of the firing pin may be pitted or sharp.  The striker
tip should be smooth and hemispherical.  Driven firing pin 
protrusion should never exceeding the diameter of the striker
point.  Most modern rifles have protrusion of only .030-050", but
military rifles made before 1940, such as Mausers and Mosin-
Nagants, often had up to about .070," which can cause problems
with pierced primers.

If the bolt is numbered and doesn't match the receiver you should
have the headspace checked by a competent gunsmith before firing
the rifle. If that is not possible, fire the first round with the
rifle wrapped in a old blanket, tied to a tire, and held down
with a sandbag, pulling the trigger with a long string from
behind cover.   Examine the fired case for protruding primers,
bulges or splits.  Note any abnormal resistance to extraction.
Once you have examined the rifle and are aware of its actual
condition, you must decide if it is acceptable for the price as-
is, or whether it falls into the "economically restorable"
category you can haggle on.

Lapping a bore is not all that difficult to do. The method I use
is to first clean with Ed's Red, then degrease the barrel with
mineral spirits.  Impale a patch on a worn bore brush, pulling it
about 3/4 of the way down the brush.  While the lead pot is
heating I smear some bullet lube around the exterior of the
muzzle and to keep the lead from sticking.  I then pre-heat the
barrel by pouring a few dippers full of hot lead over the
muzlzle.  Next I run the patched brush out so it stops about 1
bullet diameter short of he muzzle. 

Pour the bore pour it full of lead, letting the whole dipper full
overflow and run off the muzzle to make sure I get a good
casting.  When the lead hardens, push the casting about 1/2" out
of the muzzle and trim the end off with a wire cutter or sharp
knife. Smear AA Clover paste on the trimmed casting while it is
still warm, holding the muzzle up so will readily flow around the
lap. 

Pull the lap back forcefully into the barrel, then reposition the
rifle solidly in a padded vise with the muzzle against a firm,
smooth surface so the lap will not exit the muzzle until ready to
recharge and index it.  Bumping the lap slightly against the stop
at each stroke will upset it slightly to that it stays snug. 

Give the lap four or six passes in each direction.  Then push the
lap out the muzzle, wipe on some more compound, and rotate it
over one groove, pull it back into the bore and repeat the
process.  Some gunsmiths argue that the lap should never leave
the groove it was cast in, but I agree with Boots Obermeyer that
you will get better results if you index the lap, because the
grit will not keep running in the same "tracks." When the lap
starts feeling loose in the bore, usually after four to six
passes, index and repeat once, the job is done.

Flush out the bore and action recesses thoroughly with mineral
spirits and wipe everything dry to remove all traces of abrasive.
Recrowning with a brass lapping ball or large headed wood screw
smeared with Clover "A" grit and oiling well to prevent rust
finishes the job.


--- msged 2.05
 * Origin: Home of Ed's Red (1:109/120.3006)

