PSA re: bolt failures in recent import M-14 pattern rifles

Question: Would you be able to see any fatigue cracks before the bolt finally fails, or do they fail without warning?

My M305 is of the #P1425XX series, and I think it was made in 2015, and bought from Al Flaherty's in the fall of 2016, but I'm out of the country so I can't inspect it. Only put 140 rounds through it so far.
 
joe6167 said:
Question: Would you be able to see any fatigue cracks before the bolt finally fails, or do they fail without warning?

My M305 is of the #P1425XX series, and I think it was made in 2015, and bought from Al Flaherty's in the fall of 2016, but I'm out of the country so I can't inspect it. Only put 140 rounds through it so far.
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Initial cracks would be detected with dye penetrant LPI texting, or potentially by magnaflux.

Neither is particularly practical for the casual shooter.

The real solution is if you have a mim bolt and value all your digits and face, replace that POS as soon as humanly possible, or return the rifle if able.
 
M1-Garand said:
I have a 2013 Norinco M305,had a very close look at the bolt but it does not have the little circles on the bottom,so I don't think its an MIM bolt.
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If you can see machine marks all over the bolt, not just near the lugs, and there are no telltale circles, it's probably not mim.
 
Claven2 said:
If you can see machine marks all over the bolt, not just near the lugs, and there are no telltale circles, it's probably not mim.
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That's what mine looks like,also lug contacts on both lugs seem very well equal.
I got it used and it looks like it has been shot quite a bit,so I think it's pretty safe.☺
 
So it seems that all the newer ones have this problem whether they came from North Sylva or marstar
I sent my rifle out today to get fixed by John, no way I will be buying another Chinese m305 in the future
 
Deathrawt said:
So it seems that all the newer ones have this problem whether they came from North Sylva or marstar
I sent my rifle out today to get fixed by John, no way I will be buying another Chinese m305 in the future
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The receivers still seem to be ok. Just done rely.on the bolt in the complete chinese rifle. I'd feel ok about using a norinco receiver for a usgi bolt build, no sweat.
 
Can anyone verify M@^&%star recent socoms have the MIM bolt? or is it strictly NS?
Reading OP's post. The rifles were 2014 imports. Does this also apply to 2015 and onwards?
 
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D3vin said:
Can anyone verify M@^&%star recent socoms have the MIM bolt? or is it strictly NS?
Reading OP's post. The rifles were 2014 imports. Does this also apply to 2015 and onwards?
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I cannot say for sure who is currently selling the rifles.

But there’s one on my bench right now with a 16 in the UN marking... denoting a 2016 import.

I’m going to say it’s a 2014 to present issue. But, IT IS NOT AN INDUSTRY WIDE ISSUE. The local G-store has 2014 and 2016 imports on the shelf with forged bolts.

John
 
Yup that's how I initially checked out my rifle. You can see the circle marks looking through the magwell on the bottom of the bolt
 
My buddy shot 15 rounds out of his gun before the bolt broke and now can't get ahold of the supplier for warranty work. He's looking for a new bolt does anyone know where to find one? Thanks
 
sks_shooter said:
My buddy shot 15 rounds out of his gun before the bolt broke and now can't get ahold of the supplier for warranty work. He's looking for a new bolt does anyone know where to find one? Thanks
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Get a hold of John at m14 medic, he has norc bolts in stock and can fix the rifle. Good luck on getting any reply out of North Sylva they can't be bothered to reply to any one who has bolt issues. What they need is a letter from a high powered lawyer and then they might pull their heads from their back sides
 
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