M14 Bolt Lug Wear Points - Lapping req'd? *Pictures*

[mosinmaster]

I haven't shot my M14, but after cycling the action I've noticed some initial wear points. So I was wondering if a certain % bolt lug contact is necessary for safe operation of the M14. I did the sharpie test on the lugs and didn't really see that much wear. What do you guys think?

Comparison pics (before and after sequence):

*Wear point on receiver just before right locking lug goes into its recess. Normal? Rounding of the edge?

 

[I <3 M14]

The rear of the lugs is the only part you really need to be concerned about...the part of the lugs facing the heel of the receiver. Pretty much everything else will just get surface wear

 

[mosinmaster]

Out of the box, the bolt lock up was tight, no wiggle at all.

 

[I <3 M14]

The wear point on the receover is totally normal, all my rifles have it.

To check lug contact darken the rear of the bolt lugs with sharpie, then put even rearward presure and cycle it 20 times or so... you should be able to see if it's bearing on both lugs.

You can also cut a shell casing in half, polish it up, then put either a hammer spring or 1/2 a 1911 recoil spring in between the two pieces to give good even rearward pressure

 

[I <3 M14]

There should be some side to side wiggle in the bolt, this gives each lug a chance to carry it's share of the force. No wiggle could be and issue

 

[mosinmaster]

Okay yes there is a small amount of wiggle side to side, but not sloppy is what I meant.

I just repeated the test with sharpie on the back of the bolt lugs, and nothing really is wearing. Left lug has all the ink still on it, and the right lug looks like the picture above with some wear on the outside part.

Apparently after watching Laz's video on Youtube, it's very common to have almost no lug engagement on the left lug. So how do you about fixing this to improve accuracy and longevity?

 

[I <3 M14]

You need to put fairly significant back pressure on the lugs to show where they are wearing. Try the 1/2 case spring thing i mentioned abouve, or you could try putting a fired case in the chamber to push the lugs back

 

[I <3 M14]

Where are you located?