7mm mag bolt action has a 'catch' in it, gotta put force to get open

[jssbastiat]

ok, I'm in Alaska and my 7mm rem mag was frozen up and I forced it and it jammed...

thawed it out and used the 'bolt release' pin to get the bolt to come back...oiled it down and it worked good until I shot it...now after every shot the bolt will open up, but, when I try to pull it back, it does not want to come freely...

I'm living in the bush, so, gunsmiths are hard to find...

any ideas what is wrong...can i buy a new bolt, or you think the prob is on the gun?...

any good smiths in Ak?

i'd sell it to someone that could fix it...hogue stock, 4/14 nikon scope...

jssbastiat@aol.com

 

[Harry Bonar]

Bolt

Sir;
In Alaska the very last thing you want in a rifle action or chamber is oil or any TRACE of lubricant! Being baffled concerning your problem all I can think of is there may be some trace of lube somewhere or there has been some damage done.
What rifle do you have, a Remingtom, or other - you specified the caliber but not the rifle - I'm also confused about the pin you're refering to. Tell us more detail and we can wring this out.
Harry B.

 

[ForneyRider]

Hunted caribou in Iliamna area of Alaska at -35 F. My 7mm Mag didn't freeze, but my dad's mdl 70 375H&H did. He wiped the oil off as well as he could, and it worked fine. His bullets dropped like a son of a gun though. Perhaps there are more loose tolerances in a Mauser.

I had my bolt body replaced for 75$ in parts and same for labor. Mine was a sporterized mauser with magnum-length action. Chances are a gunsmith will have some used parts, else the smith or an online search can return list of suppliers of commercial spare parts.

There is a guy on here WildinAlaska that does gunsmithing.