[pyno&dyno]

After 3 shooting sessions, I made some maintenance and found that there is a sort of hammering on the bolt. Since I have not experience with the M1A, I would like to know if this has to be considered normal and why it is happening

 

[NoExpert]

Talk to 82nd ABN. He has something similar going on and could probably help you out. Personally I don't think it's normal.

 

[Rawnerves]

I think when this was discussed a while back a soft spot in that area of the bolt was the suspect. Possibly a flaw in the hardening process. I agree it doesn't appear to be normal.

 

[82nd ABN]

Same thing happened to my bolt. It turns out the bolt was not heat treated correctly. Unfortunatly you will need to send it back to Springfield for a bolt replacement. They won't just send you a replacement bolt due to liability issues.
Here is what my bt looked like after 700 rounds! That part of the bolt rides over the top of the hammer during recoil when resetting the hammer. The bolt is soft and this is the reason why it is deformed. Bad heat treatment is the cause.

In this next picture you can see what a SA USGI bolt looks like when compared to my damaged bolt

The good news is it is covered under warranty the bad news is it has to go back to the factory. What kind of obstacles do you run into shipping the rifle from Italy? You could replace it with a USGI bolt but you will have to make sure the headspace is correct and that you have good recoil lug contact. Sorry you have to deal with this problem and this is one of the examples why SAI has fallen from my good grace.

 

[82nd ABN]

If you want the persons name that was my customer rep please feel free to ask. They tried telling me this was normal. By no means at all is this normal wear. What year was your rifle built? Mine was built in 2008. There is a heat treatment lot number underneath the part number on the bolt. I forgot mine but could look back in my post to find it. I am curious to know what that number is.

Here is my origonal thread posted back on November 2nd
No matter what anyone says trust me your bolt is soft and will only get worse. Val più la pratica della grammatica
http://m14tfl.com/upload/showthread.php?t=91072

Buona fotuna!

 

[Seventh Fleet]

I'd always heard that the Chinese M-14 clones were supposed to have soft bolts.

However if Springfield Armory is getting away with turning out bolts this soft, then perhaps I just pissed away all the time money and hard work I spent in installing US GI bolts into my M-14/S rifles.

I've never seen any wear to match this on either of my two Poly Tech M-14/S original factory bolts.

7th

 

[82nd ABN]

The poly bolts from what I understand were soft in the recoil lug area. This is not good because overtime the headspace will open up to what could eventually become a dangerous situation. You were not wrong to make the conversions. It was money well spent.

 

[pyno&dyno]

To send the gun back to SAI is almost impossible for me, but I will try to contact the importer, even if they are not famous for their after sale service. It seems I got a lemon, now my problem is how to solve the problem since the M1A is not very common over here, find a gunsmith that can fix it and get the piece will be difficult and expensive.Do you think it is safe to shoot or should I reduce my reloads in order to avoid a Kaboom?

 

[7.62bthp]

I would simply replace the bolt with a original USGI bolt. I'm sure there is a gunsmith in italy that will help with the headspace.

 

[PFC THOMAS]

Italy and curing your M1A problem

I would contact Springfield about your problem and share the problem of being over seas. Then I would go on a hunt for a Marine Armour with a MOS of 2112. A match Armour from Quantico who has been trained to work on M14's. The 2112's that I know have a soft spot for the 14 and have always been willing to help this PFC. Don't give up just keep at it. These are not complicated pieces of equipment with a million parts in them.
They are a good piece of farmer equipment designed to run from sun up to sun up 24/7.

 

[pyno&dyno]

If you want the persons name that was my customer rep please feel free to ask. They tried telling me this was normal. By no means at all is this normal wear. What year was your rifle built? Mine was built in 2008. There is a heat treatment lot number underneath the part number on the bolt. I forgot mine but could look back in my post to find it. I am curious to know what that number is.

Here is my origonal thread posted back on November 2nd
No matter what anyone says trust me your bolt is soft and will only get worse. Val più la pratica della grammatica
http://m14tfl.com/upload/showthread.php?t=91072

Buona fotuna!

I have sent a mail, they didn't answer till now, and am afraid they will not

 

[82nd ABN]

Sir if it helps I will call them on your behalf to see what they suggest. I would imagine they are goign to want to see the rifle, I will explain this is not a viable option. I will be sending you my email address via the private messaging system. Considering I just went through this with my rifle I know what your concerns are.