Ill buy his Dimple upper ...seriously
Free play with no round chambered isn't a big deal. So long as the bolt is tight against the locking lugs when a round is chambered, that's what matters.
I've seen numerous bolt action guns where the bolt isn't snug when there's no round in the chamber.
3-4mm is a fair bit, but remember, you're also talking about a huge round here.
Regardless, so long as when you chamber a round/properly sized case/properly headspaced dummy round (I wouldn't use the snap caps, as I have no idea how accurate they are when they set the shoulder on them), the bolt doesn't have any play to it then, and you can feel it cam into place on the locking lugs/cam ramp, then I wouldn't worry one bit.
When the round goes off, all of the force on the gun is in two axis:
1. Majority of the force goes directly rearward; some of that comes from friction between the case body and the chamber wall, since the case expands. This means that this force is transmitted directly into the chamber/barrel/action and pushes the gun rearward. The other place it goes is directly into the bolt face, rearward. If the locking lugs are snug up against the receiver lug-mating surface when the round is chambered and fired, then you should see no issues with respect to peening or other problems that might arise from a loose bolt with too large headspace. You also won't see the brass expand more than it should. There is no forward force (i hope this is obvious), so even if the bolt had a quarter inch of forward play, it really wouldn't be a safety concern (well, it might start to become one, because then more of the brass is unsupported, but that's another matter, and it doesn't sound like it's THAT loose - plus the web on a 50BMG is pretty damn big).
2. Some force is transmitted radially, in the opposite direction of the rifling (i.e. left hand twist, force is clockwise when looking down the gun as though you were shooting). This force has basically nothing to do with the bolt lockup.
Either way, chamber a properly headspaced round (a factory commercial round might be the better choice compared to milsurp if you have it), and see what the lock up is like. If you're not at the range, it goes without saying you should either remove the firing pin or disassemble the round (don't use a fired round, because it will obviously have expanded and not be close to correct). A factory round should close up quite snug - I guess it would depend on how it was sized when it was created, but there's a chance there'd be a few thous. of play if the round is on the small end of spec and the chamber headspace is on the high end.
Best thing to do would be to take it over to a gunsmith who has 50BMG headspace gauges and get the chamber checked (or borrow them from someone - bring a cherry picker or a crane, they're big :P).
ATRS NR lower?
What does NR lower mean? NR means non-restricted in my books, but I am not picturing ANY AR compatible lower being NR.... I can't even imagine the RCMP classifying a lower that works with an AR bolt action upper but is otherwise not compatible with semi auto uppers (no mag well perhaps) as NR, since it's likely a "variant".
Details?
The thread is over here, it's a not-quite AR lower with no magwell that requires modification to the 50cal upper to connect, and it is apparently non-restricted with a FRT number and everything.
e: and apologies to CanAm for linking to another vendor's forum
If one reads carefully it's not an AR lower.
It's a new trigger group that only fits a " Modified" DA50.
The only AR parts that interchange are the trigger and hammer.
The NR lower will not fit up to an AR bolt action upper.
The modified DA50 will not fit on to an AR lower.
That's why you must send your DA50 to them
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AtRS made the lower in the past for ferret 50 and saftey harbour 50 single shots.
They are doing a small run only, of these lowers (trigger groups)
Upper needs to be modified to fit.
If anyone wants one, I have my 250.00 deposit (with atrs) up for grabs in the EE.
I've decided to forgo the budget single shot and am working towards a GM6 Lynx
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