At the LGS last week, I discovered what appeared to be a Lend Lease gun that had sold for $1,200.
3-42 bbl, correct serial range, tight bbl, one of the most perfect GHS stocks I will ever see. Correct small parts, op rod, sight seal, etc.
Gun had been sold and was back, as it suffered a case head separation, firing new factory Federal, Garand loads.
I brought my broken shell extractor tool down, and it worked perfectly to pull out the upper half of the new Federal brass. Seemed to be pretty flimsy brass.
Bore was about as pitted as I have ever seen, despite new ME and TE.
It obviously had been fired with corrosive ammo, likely long ago and put away "wet", a real tragedy.
I surmised that high pressure caused by the extremely pitted bbl was the cause of the case separation. It had already been fired 80 times before the malfunction occurred. So this bore was not going to shoot itself clean and smooth. It still looked like a worn out WWII Mauser bbl.
LGS owner, got another opinion and a gunsmith shot 30 rounds of Remington commercial hunting ammo without problems. Problem solved for them.
I advised against shooting this collectors piece but my admonitions went unheeded. I offered to buy the gun when it came back a 2nd time with bent op rod.
Oh Yeah, the gun had a short pinion and a type one lock bar.
Good Grief. $1,200.
3-42 bbl, correct serial range, tight bbl, one of the most perfect GHS stocks I will ever see. Correct small parts, op rod, sight seal, etc.
Gun had been sold and was back, as it suffered a case head separation, firing new factory Federal, Garand loads.
I brought my broken shell extractor tool down, and it worked perfectly to pull out the upper half of the new Federal brass. Seemed to be pretty flimsy brass.
Bore was about as pitted as I have ever seen, despite new ME and TE.
It obviously had been fired with corrosive ammo, likely long ago and put away "wet", a real tragedy.
I surmised that high pressure caused by the extremely pitted bbl was the cause of the case separation. It had already been fired 80 times before the malfunction occurred. So this bore was not going to shoot itself clean and smooth. It still looked like a worn out WWII Mauser bbl.
LGS owner, got another opinion and a gunsmith shot 30 rounds of Remington commercial hunting ammo without problems. Problem solved for them.
I advised against shooting this collectors piece but my admonitions went unheeded. I offered to buy the gun when it came back a 2nd time with bent op rod.
Oh Yeah, the gun had a short pinion and a type one lock bar.
Good Grief. $1,200.
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