is this bolt ok?

[Pdvdh]

Shoot it! Or "Choot'em" as the CCI Louisiana guy says. If you're content with a factory rifle, see how it shoots. It might be a gem in the rough. All you stand to lose is some time and the cost of the ammo.

If cosmetic appearance is a major factor, sell the rifle and buy a new one. You bought the rifle used, so you won't lose much money by moving on. Or get out the checkbook, buy a custom action, and build from the ground up.

There's two major camps/brotherhoods when it comes to hiring a gunsmith to blueprint and customize a factory rifle. Search the Forum. A factory action that's been blueprinted isn't worth any more than a factory action that hasn't been blue printed - for the most part on the open market. A custom action will always have better resale value on the open market. By the time you blueprint a factory action in the effort to make it equivalent to a custom action, you'll be left with a factory action that will never look like a custom, even if it shoots like one. There's nothing that could be added to what's already been stated and re-hashed over and over again concerning the pros and cons.

I'm in the camp of purchasing a custom action to build on, rather than attempting to make a custom action out of a plain-Jane factory production run bolt action. The only opinion that counts is yours. It's your money, your satisfaction level, your peace of mind and decision.

 

[Pdvdh]

He suggested if it bothered me to order a new bolt body ($275)

What do you guys think?

I would never blow $275 on a new bolt body to replace a completely functional bolt body with surface blemishes. What I would, or would not, do doesn't matter. It's your money - not mine.

 

[6point5x284]

If he said it's good to go, SHOOT IT! Like some have said, it may be a shooter as is!

 

[cahunter805]

If it checks out I'd grease the lugs and bolt and run it! Also if the cosmetics worry you that much coat it.

 

[Capt RB]

Put some sharpie on the lugs and close the bolt. It looks like the lugs have taper from front edge to the final seating position across the bearing surface. If you had the receiver trued the lugs look like they would only touch in about last 10% of the face. If you cut the lug square to the bolt body you would screw up the timing. Here is a good series of videos explaining receiver/bolt work
https://www.sgrcustomrifles.com/videos
The pictures showing the difference in lug height may be an illusion from the camera so check with the sharpie. I would bet at on time the fore mentioned scope screws did hit and were fixed

 

[243winxb]

Photos of the back of the lugs would be better. The part that makes contact with the receiver. 1 drop of Break Free CLP on each lug before firing . Headspace is what matters. Need a good , real gunsmith to check that.

 

[6mm06guy]

I can do all the work myself, I'm not a smith but I have built several rifles from scratch, this will be my first winchester, I'll add lug pics asap, but by looking there's at least 90% contact on the left side and 10% on the right.

 

[Hired Gun]

I have seen a couple Winchesters with this exact same scratched appearance. Winchester may fix it for nothing if you want to part with it for a couple weeks. If not it's not hurting anything. It is normal for only the right lug to touch with the sear engaged as it picks the bolt up and it hinges off the right lug. The left lug will not touch until the sear is released. I get feed back like this just about every time we true an action for an inexperienced owner. If the bolt is bushed or the action and bolt is coated it takes up about .004" of clearance and will get the left lug closer while it is cocked. To lap the lugs you must remove the firing pin and the sear. Then put a spring loaded device on the end of the bolt to make even pressure on both lugs. The one I use you have to pull the barrel. If you try to lap it while cocked you will just make everything worse. 100% lug contact on both lugs doesn't really make that much difference. 80% on a factory rifle is just fine. I don't like putting that much wear on them. When we true up an action there is no need to lap them. We coat the lugs and abutments and they wear real even.

 

[6mm06guy]

Thank you very much hired gun, that is exactly the information I was looking for. I would prefer my rifles look as good as they shoot, do you think they will really fix it even though I bought this rifle used?

 

[Hired Gun]

It can't hurt to ask. If it doesn't go as planned with the first agent ask for a supervisor. You might need to explain your loyalty and that will be in question on your next purchase. A friend had to do that in order to get a rifle fixed not long ago.